Are you wondering how much you would spend living in Bali as a solo female traveler for an entire month? Well, you’re in luck. Here is a complete list of all the expenses (housing included), I spent while living in Bali for the month of September 2023.
You stumbled upon this because either you’ve always dreamt of living in Bali or you’ve heard that Bali is a cheap and great place to live as a digital nomad. Truth is, Bali has changed. The cost of living in Bali (2024) this year is definitely more expensive than what it used to be 5 years ago. But you can still expect your monthly expenses to be a small fraction of what you’d spend in the big cities of New York, Los Angeles, or London.
The quality of life is just about as good as living in one of those cities, and in some cases even better. I’ve barely seen any homeless people here! Compare this with LA where you’re guaranteed to see homeless people all of the time, in some cases even living on your sidewalk just outside your home.
The prices in this article reflect USD (because that’s where a majority of my audience lives). IDR stands for Indonesian Rupiah which is the local currency.
The following section explains tips on each expenditure category and how to get some of the deals I found.
For a complete table of all my expenses please scroll down to the bottom of this post.
So without further ado, let’s dive in shall we?
Visa
If you want to stay for 2 months the typical process is to get a visa on arrival (500,000 IDR or $32 USD) then you will have to extend your visa for the second month. I start the visa extension process 14 days before my first 30-day visa runs out. The more affordable process of extending your visa is to do everything yourself, but honestly, I couldn’t be bothered with traveling an hour to the nearest government building. So I gave it both times to a visa extension service. The service + visa extension cost (800,000 IDR or $52 USD) So if you stay approximately 2 months, you’re looking to spend a total of $84 dollars which comes out to $42 per month.
Here’s the Ubud Visa extension service that I used: Bali Expedition | VISA Extension & Flight Centre (address: Kantor Post, Jl. Jembawan No.1, Ubud, Gianyar Regency, Bali 80571)
Rent
Villa rentals are mostly always required to be paid upfront and in cash. In August, I found a room in a two-story house in Ubud for $550 a month. Each floor had its own kitchen and living areas with separate entrances. I was surrounded by nature and rice fields, shared pool, room cleaning once per week, and gas, water, pool maintenance, gardening, & fast wifi were all included. I found it relatively easy to find a place in Ubud that had all these things included.
Uluwatu was a different story. This part of Bali is not as developed for solo travelers so I had a harder time finding a place that offered as much as my Ubud pad, and when I finally did, it cost a little bit more per month. After messaging a few of the Facebook groups, a girl reached out to me asking if we could look for a two-bedroom villa together. Because she seemed legit I figured why not, and within a few hours we found a villa in Uluwatu for $1600 per month. The lesson here is, if you can’t find a room, find a roommate and search for a two-bedroom villa instead.
In Canggu expect to pay around 600-700 per month but there are a lot of options available! If you want to save some money on rental costs, I recommend looking into the surrounding areas, such as Kerobokan or Berawa.
Typically wifi, water, electricity, gas, room cleaning, and pool maintenance are included in the overall rental price but not always. You will have to talk to the property manager before you come to an agreement/pay.
One thing that I would like to mention is that there is are scammers in Bali and people in Facebook groups have been scammed before. But scams happen everywhere – I’ve seen scams happen in Europe, the Middle East, and quite often in Los Angeles. I recommend not paying anything until seeing the property first, meeting the manager, and maybe even waiting until the keys are in your hand before sending the money.
How did I find something so cheap? Airbnb and booking sites have some great places but they are far too overpriced. If you’re looking to rent for at least a month you need to post on the following Facebook groups:
If you decide to privately rent from a local in Bali you will most likely need to pay in cash or transfer money which you can do with a Wise account.
Here is a sample of the type of message I sent out to the Facebook groups. I sent a message to every group and received around 30-40 options each for Canggu & Ubud. I received fewer responses for Uluwatu.
At the end (see more section), I wrote: please private message me any offers.
Eating Out
I enjoy food, not going to lie. I will spend 20 bucks on a meal in Bali, and I’ll also spend $4 sometimes. Depends on the place and what I’m in the mood for. I’m not a budget backpack traveler so keep that in mind. You could probably find great local Warungs (local Indonesian diners) and spend a maximum of $10 a day on food.
I typically work out of cafes, so the meals, fruit juices, and coffee (sometimes twice a day) add up. Typically I eat only twice a day. Also, eating out is in many cases a lot cheaper (and tastier) than buying from the grocery store.
Transportation
Most people hop in a taxi or use scooters to get around. The benefit of having a scooter is that when it’s high season and the traffic is bad, you can zip past all the cars to the front of the line.
What I love about Bali is that when you decide to rent a bike the rental place will offer complementary bike drop-off and pick-up services. I learned how to ride a bike in Bali because I thought it would be fun (and it was!) and a lot cheaper than using the Grab or Gojek services (basically the Indonesian version of Ubur where they pick you up in a scooter on demand.)
Health Insurance
International health insurance can cost quite a bit these days. For a plan that covers (most) disasters that yu may encounter without paying an arm and a leg, make sure to check out World Nomads. World Nomads travel insurance has been designed by travelers for travelers. If you leave home without travel insurance or your policy runs out, you can buy or extend it while on the road.
What this list doesn’t include:
- Entrance fees to places normally cost anywhere from .32 cents to $6 (Ubud Monkey Forest)
- Shopping. I’m a girl who loves clothing. Now you’ll find things that run up to $100 for the boujie dresses or $20 on outfits from Indonesian-owned small shops.
- Plane tickets coming to and from Bali
- Yoga membership – For my first month in Ubud I got a monthly unlimited yoga membership at the Yoga Barn in Ubud which cost $175 USD. Most of the Yoga Studios cost roughly the same throughout Bali. Because I moved out of Ubud in September, I didn’t include that expense in this report. If you like to stay active, make sure to include gym memberships in your budget.
Ahead, a detailed list of the cost of living in Bali (2024) as a solo female traveler and remote worker.
| Expenses | US$ |
|---|---|
| Visa | $42 |
| Rent | $550 – $800 |
| Mobile Phone | $10 |
| Eating out | $530 |
| Transportation (car or scooter rental) | $115 |
| Fuel (bike) | $10 – $30 |
| Health Insurance | $180 |
| Drinks / going out | $70 |
| Beauty Upkeep | $33 |
| Misc (Laundry, Parking, etc) | $10 |
| Monthly Total: | $1,550 – $1,820 |
Are you surprised by the cost of living in Bali (2024)? Have you spent less or more living here? Sound off in the comments.
PS — Are You Booking a Trip Soon? Here’s my travel checklist!
These are the sites I use most to book my own trips. Using the links below is a great way to support my travel journalism at no extra cost to you.
Book Your Flights
Use Skyscanner to find the best flights. It searches 100s of airlines and websites across the globe to ensure you’re not missing out on any route options or deals.
Book Your Accommodations
Use Booking.com for hotels and guest houses. They have the biggest inventory and consistently offer the best rates.
If you prefer backpacking, Hostelworld is your one-stop shop for affordable accommodations and hostel reviews.
Book Your Tours & Experiences
Use Viator or Get Your Guide to find the best tours and experiences. They are my favorite tour search engines. I always check both as their inventory varies depending on the destination.
Transfer Money
With Wise, you can transfer money to most international bank accounts. They offer some of the best conversion rates and can be used to fund Gojek and Grab accounts.
Don’t Forget Travel Insurance
I never leave the country without travel insurance. My favorite company that offers the best all-around coverage is World Nomads. They offer a good travel insurance plan that covers things like lost luggage, theft, illnesses before your trip, emergency medical care, and shady travel agencies. Don’t travel without it!
