How Much Does It Cost to Live in Bali?

Of course, I always look PRETTY ridiculous in H's camera. What did I do with that pose actually? 😲

Are you... looking for this kind of post as my husband did? LOL

I mean, I live in Bali and we're still LDR for almost 5 years now (or maybe 7 if we count it from the day we became a couple). So when he asked me about how expensive/cheap is living in Bali, he doesn't really believe me. LOL. Then he will send me some blog posts about living costs in Bali from a foreign perspective and ask me to cross-check them. 

So here let me tell you how much does it cost to have a normal life in Bali. 

Btw, I am Indonesian. I moved to Bali from Java to find my balance. Long story short, I found what I was looking for in Bali. I don't have fancy life hopping from one beach club to another. I am a homebody so obviously, I spend more money on making my house comfortable, instead of spending money on clubbing or fancy eating. 

Of course, I still have some fancy eating out or doing fancy things once in a while but not every day. I mean, that's how normal people live, right?

Bike for rent in Sanur, price range from IDR 15k/hour. 

I am currently working from home, basically, I can work anywhere, so I don't have any kind of office to visit every day. I live (relatively) in the center of Denpasar, near Sanur beach. For those who don't know about the Sanur vibe, youngsters called it the grandparents' area because there are a lot of old people who retired and moved here. Mostly from Germany and Netherland. So, yes, you guessed it right, no nightclubs, rare parties, no drunk people, and most important thing is: quieter than Kuta or Canggu. Perfect for introverts! 

Okay, I'll start with housing. There's a local place we call "Kos" or "Kost", meaning it's like a mini apartment in a complex, locally designed. Usually about 8 rooms up to 30 something, one, two, three-floored. Sometimes you get brand new, sometimes old ones. It could be unfurnished, half furnished, or fully furnished. The empty Kos would cost you around IDR 500K-1000K. While the half or fully furnished usually cost around IDR 1000K - 3000K. Depending on the location and features. It usually has one bedroom, a small kitchen, and a bathroom as the basic features.

Another choice would be renting a house or villa. The average house rental price is around IDR 20 million up to 50 million/year. The more crowded the location is, the cheaper you can get. While the villa price ranges around IDR 5 million to 15 million/month, depending on how many rooms and location.

So I'll leave the choice in your hand. 

Next, we're talking about food. The cheapest meal is IDR 5K here in Bali. That we call this famous meal Nasi Jinggo. This is a real gem for us who don't want to cook and are too hungry to wait longer. Just jump out of your house and you'll find Nasi Jinggo easily outside your doorstep. Another cheap option is buying food from Warung (a small food stall). Local taste and definitely cheap.

Nasi jinggo for 5K and Mie ayam for 15k plus drink.

Lumpiyang for 5k in Sanur beaches, get it warm in the morning.

Obviously, there are a lot of middle-upper cafes and restaurants around. Although I can say that some food like pizza cost only $3/big size. As well as super fancy restaurants that cost above $10/meal. It's all depending on the choice. Although I have gotta say that many of international cuisine is very authentic because the chefs are coming from that country. Italian pizza is made by Italian, Pho is made by Vietnamese, and so on. So it's easy to find yummy authentic food.

But, if you are going to live here and live locally, then why not look for something local? We are so rich in local dishes so it's not difficult to find something tasty and cheap to eat. My average cost/meal is usually 15-25K rupiah. But, I don't always eat out. I sometimes cook, though I am not a good cook. Something simple for breakfast, like a fried egg, you name it. Or when I want to eat Javanese food but can't find it here. 

Pretty complete plate for 25k-30k

Now we are talking about other utilities like 3KG gas cost you less than 20K, as well as one gallon of water. If you are offered a 5K water gallon then it's something less than the original one. Internet, well... internet usually costs about 200K-400K depending on the speed and bandwidth you want. But mobile internet for phone, it varies. From Telkomsel, I usually buy the 40K for 5GB internet. Telkomsel is the most expensive one compared to the other providers.

Ok, what else? Hmm, electricity? A normal home usage can cost you about 200K-300K. Of course, during "summer" you can pay more because we tend to turn on the AC a lot more. But other than that, you can use a fan just fine. 

My everyday ride before I bought mine. And e-bike for the food delivery in a close radius.

Oh! Transportation! We don't have public transportation that much. Only city buses operate for several spots. It costs cheap, super cheap. For now, it's free lol. But if you want a scooter, you can rent it monthly starting from 400K. Gas costs 10K/liter. Or you can simply use our online hail ride. We have Grab and Gojek as the most-used apps. They provide services for transportation, food deliveries, groceries, package, almost everything. It's so convenient to have them. I use them both. 

You may find your favorite supermarket doing a sale after 6PM. Many supermarkets do this. You only need to find where. My favorite for cheap stuff is Artasedana. Their stuff is cheap and usually gives a discount of up to 90% even though the stuff expires in 6 months. My other favorites; are Popular and Papaya for imported products and sale after 7PM. Oh-oh, let's not forget Pande Putri and Tiara Dewata. 

The house rent is just taking up the budget a lot more because I choose to live comfortably in my house. I am a homebody, being comfortable in my house in a quiet neighborhood is a must for me. While these are the basis of living cost, surely it differs from one another. If you party hard, then you'll spend more. But, if you are just a homebody like me who enjoys the beach so much then you'll get rid of your stress by visiting the beach every sunrise or sunset. When you can't find me at home, then I must be in Sanur walking around, to ground myself. 

These are the reality of living in a paradise. Of course, some would go to parties, night club and get drunk. But... you can do that anywhere too, right? Unless for Indonesians who want to get drunk LOL. Here we have lots of alcohol choices while it's banned in most places outside Bali, especially the one with Muslims as the majority.

I am enjoying my third year living in Bali. I never went to parties and nightclubs because it's not my thing. I don't enjoy myself there. Personally, Denpasar is a very unique city. It's considered as the only city here in Bali (others are called Kabupaten), the airport is only 30 mins away from my place, big offices mostly have branches in Bali (apart from Jakarta), lots of open space like beaches and parks, it's two hours away from Batur and Agung mt, lots of diving spots. I can do people-watching in my favorite spots. I can walk along the beach. They have small communities about many things (though I never joined one lol, but when needed I know where to go).

The downside of living here? Of course, there's some. Unless you are a mafia or gang member then you don't need to worry about that LOL

My mental state is improving a lot and I become myself more and more. I have found the balance I was looking for. Oh btw, the quote "Every day is Sunday" in Bali is real! 😎