Cost of living in Indonesia — 2015

I have a blog, I update it every year from shopping prices etc as I find them

Here is the latest one from October so it will be still fairly accurate apart from Fuel and Electric both of which have gone up.

http://mylifejakarta.blogspot.com/2014/ … karta.html

For info land and building tax imposition base,tax object sales values (njob) in jakarta for 2015 increased.
This likely to have an impact on the price of rental property, especially at CBD sudirman and CBD kuningan area.

Thank you for the information ochie and lukereg. Could you share some more details with us here please? Like some approximate values so that the other members know as well what to expect. That would be really nice for everyone.

Thanks again

Shaazia
Expat.com Team

The petrol price had an effect on many things, including rice.
That goes up, so does everything else.
The fall in the fuel cost hasn't seen a fall in other prices.

This is true of the South Tangerang region.

I cant really as the information is in a chart inside the blog.

There are already some websites available on cost of livings comparisons:
- numbeo.com
- expatistan.com

Hi Shaazia

Here is the original message I posted a while back. I thought that would be clear enough

I have a blog, I update it every year from shopping prices etc as I find them

Here is the latest one from October so it will be still fairly accurate apart from Fuel and Electric both of which have gone up.

mylifejakarta.blogspot.com/2014/ … karta.html

Living in Kesiman (Close to Sanur), Bali
I pay 90 million per year rent of villa with pool and 2 bedrooms with ensuite
Electricity prepaid around 600.000 per month
Thinking of taking the government medical insurance at 60.000 per month.
Food shopping per month: estimated at 3.000.000
Eating out in local warung: 20-25.000
Eating out in tourist resto: 100.000 and more
Going to pub with girlfriend: 200.000 per evening
Internet Speedy 2Mb/sec, incl. tel line and tel. calls from landline (which are usually not existant): 325.000 per month

We managed a little experiment this week, living mostly on Indonesian food.
We've eaten some chicken, but mostly tempe, both with rice.
The whole medium chickens cost Rp27,000 per tail, the tempe is almost nothing.
I also bought 2 loaves of bread, my wife bought a load of veggie, and I had 2 portions of fried rice in a local restaurant because I was hungry and out of the house.

Total - Less than Rp150,000 for a week's eating for three adults (including the maid), and one child. - I'm not hungry.

> accommodation prices
For a two bedroom apartment in kuningan in an older apartment complex I'm paying 6,7 million a month

> public transportation fares (tube, bus etc.)
Taxi ride around my area between 30k - 60k per trip...depending on traffic

> food prices (your monthly budget)
I spend around 3 million a month on food but I order special health foods from an organic supplier which puts the price up.

> health prices (for those who need medical insurance)

A trip to the doctor can be between 200k to 700k. That's just a GP. It depends on where you go and what medicine you are given.

> education prices (if you need to pay)

> energy prices (oil, electricity)

Electricity is about 500k per month

> common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)

Internet and cable TV 650k a month
Mobile about 100k a month

> price for a good menu in a traditional restaurant

If I eat in a traditional restaurant I would spend between 250-300k depending on what and where I eat. This is not roadside food but a proper sit down restaurant.

> price for a coffee or a drink

Coffee - well you can buy a sachet at the roadside warung for 2000 and make your own or you can go to Starbucks and pay 30,000 for your cappuccino. Depends what you prefer!

> price for cinema tickets
Regular cinema is 50k the more swanky and 5 str cinema experience is 100k (but worth every rupiah!)

> accommodation prices
For a two bedroom house that needs A LOT of work: IDR 8,000,000

> public transportation fares (tube, bus etc.)
Taxis Daily: IDR 75,000/- or more depending on where you need to go. Average trip is between 30-50,000/- each way.
Weekends around 200,000/- per day

> food prices (your monthly budget)
For two people we spend about IDR 7,000,000/- in groceries
Indonesian Street Food Lunch around 30,000/-
Indonesian Sit down restauran lunch t with drink around 80,000/-
Western restaurant lunch with drink ~120.000/-

> health prices (for those who need medical insurance)

Depending on your doctor around 350,000/- for a visit.
Dentist teeth cleaning ~ 500,000/-

> education prices
NA

> energy prices (oil, electricity)

Electricity is about 1,200,000/- per month
Gas ~9-10,000/- per litre

> common bills (Internet, television, telephone, mobile phone)

Internet and cable TV 650,000/month
Cell ~100,000/month

> price for a good menu in a traditional restaurant

300,000 per person with one alcoholic drink.

> price for a coffee or a drink

In a cafe, 30-40,000 per drink

> price for cinema tickets
between 50-70,000 depending on the day of the week and for the Premium theatre, its about 100-200,000/-

I live in Surabaya in a large apartment complex with swimming pool and fitness. Price 50 million a year (55 square meter, 2 bedrooms) plus 10% tax and service charge around 80 000 per month.
Electricity is not cheap here. Last month I payed 1.2 million and I am alone. The AC is on for about 6 hours a day, then there is fridge, tv, and waterboiler. But I can make it cheaper when I am more careful I guess.
TV I pay 250 000 per month, internet 350 000 per month
Laundry: I pay 55 000 per kilo with delivery. But a friend of mine pays only 6000 per kilo. So there is a lot of difference.
Bintang beer: 16 000 rp for 33 cl in a shop. and from 25 000 to 60 000 in restaurants, bars and clubs without tax.
Restaurants have a wide variety. You can have an excellent pizza margherita for 50 000, in an very nice italian restaurant. Elsewhere pizza's may be cheaper.
In a proper restaurant you will pay about 250 000 for a very nice 4 course menu, without drinks. But you can do cheaper or more expensive, depending on the place.
Teeth whitening: I payed 2.5 million, check up included, but I had offers for 5 million. And no pain!!! I have very sensitive teeth!
That's all for now

Hi,
I live on Bali.
I pay:
rent 1500 USD/month including all; it is a 2 br joglo with a swimming pool in Canggu.
car rent: 300 USD/month+ gasoline: 100 USD/month
food: 1000 USD/month for 2 persons
travelling, sight-seeing: 200 USD/month
school for my 10 year old daughter: 9000 USD/year
clothes, etc: 150 USD/month
We eat at Bali Buddha for about 100-150.000 IDR and at 5 elements at about 400.000 IDR
Total: 4000 USD/month

Holy cow (and I don't mean Nandi)...you and your 10 year old daughter go through $1,000.00 a month on food?

Do you cook at home at all or always eat out? 

Your profile says Ubud but you also say you rent in Canggu (an hour's drive from Ubud).   

There are 5 people in our house. We spend 2.4 million on food,  280k on water, up to 600k on Electricity and 300 on cable TV a month.  No Internet connection,  no telephone.  Use bolt but that often won't connect but that is 100k a month.
No car so we use a bike,  the bus or taxi.  Spend around 500k a month on taxis.  2 million on health care.
Eat out every weekend as there is only so much rice I can eat.

My haircut costs less than 20k.  I have a bakso seller, fried chicken sellers, nasi goreng man, tempe ,  tofu, nasi padang seller less than 20 meters away from the gate. There is a coconut store, bike repair shop and a small mini market opposite me. 

If I walk to indomaret then I have access to Atms, airline tickets and beer. The Sari Roti man rides by frequently as does everyone else selling things so I am never hungry, never bored and never in silence.

The security are the neighbours and ojek men at the either end of the street. The street is closed at midnight and the patrol smokes cigarettes and wanders around until 4 am. For that I pay 20k a month. Rubbish collected 3x a week for 10 a month and we give money to street head whenever we are asked.

I am 5 minutes from a Transjakarta bus stop and there are sadly 8 very large malls max 20 minutes away as is Kemang and Kuninghan. I work on the other side of the city and that takes up 40 minutes to get there and 55 to get home. Thats my choice as the wifes family are so close i can almost see their house but it helps with everything else as well and free food.

Indonesia is a large country so it depends upon our life style and purchasing ability. I lived as a university student there. I paid 2.5 million per year for one bed room (250 USD per year not per month).. and spend 2.5 million per month on electricity, water, food, internet, house maid, transportation, mobile phone credit.

Wow wow wow but are you sure that you are living in bali???????  unbelievable......i spend around 700 usd for month

Hi guys!

Cheers for the information. I was just wondering what you are all doing in Indonesia ? I'm currently working a little online and would love to be able to move abroad, but currently not earning nearly enough to do so. I was thinking of maybe teaching some english or something?

Also what are the visa requirements?

Thanks
Troy

Valentodd I was not living in Bali, I lived 40 km away from Jakarta... It may be unbelievable for you, but you should remember how much is the average salary for Indonesians. They do not earn more than 300 to 400 dollars per month.. Lots of them even live less than that...

I also stayed in Bali, paying 8 dollars per night at a hotel near to Kuta, and rented a Motorbike for 5 Dollars for whole day. Indonesia have huge variety, it depends what kind of lifestyle you want..

So dont be surprised that I paid 250 dollars for a nice single room for one year, room was fully furnished with furniture and bed.. However no AC.. If you search around you will find many cheap accommodations...

I am 70 years old. I have an income of about $2000/month, want to live in Djakarta. What are the cost of the different items :
1-Accommodation (renting a two bedrooms cleaned with a bathroom and toilet furnished with a bed, wardrobe. Also a small kitchen, I am budgeting 300-400 dollars
2-food budget $5/day
3- health what is the cost of an health insurance ( I suffer from high blood pressure, high cholesterol, I take medication and see the doctor once a month and I am 70 years old
4- Energy price or electricity ( I use the AC)
5- cost of internet, TV, mobile phone
6-cost of a cinema ticket
7- Price of a traditional dish

$2000 per month is more than enough in Jakarta... Getting into a hospital for treatment is expensive, unless you have some kind of insurance ... Price of a traditional dish cost around $2- $3 with Hot/Cold tea (You can even find Indonesian restaurants offering food for 1 dollar as well).. Cinema ticket cost $4. You can find nice accommodation with $300 per month if you dont mind to live a bit far from city cente, even inside the city you still may find such accommodation, but you have to search by yourself... internet cost will differ, it may range from 25 dollars per month to 35 dollars.. You can buy a Mobile Phone for $20 if you are only interested in basic functions of a mobile phone... You can buy a TV for $50, quality may not be very good, but still fine..

It depend where in Jakarta you intend to stay, basically $ 2.000 per month is enough as long you have a decent life style. If you stick to local food can eat out at a warung you should be fine but in case you also like to hang out once a while in one of the well known pubs/ bars for dining and drinking it might be tough.

Important here is having a good health insurance (in my point of view) and have enough funds ready for transport etc.

$ 8 for a hotel you may can get in Jakarta or Bali but that's not what I think is a standard one should consider being an expat here.

That makes no sense if one has a budget of $ 2.000.....

Why not put it all in a downloadable MsExcell file, bcs the txt becomes very little.

We look forward to hearing about cost of living in Bali. We intend to move to Bali in July this year. Our last visit there in November on holidays we thought prices had risen dramatically. Some questions we have. Electricity costs? Gym membership costs, yoga class costs. Just to start this blog going....Thanks everyone. Gayle and Chris