Earn Here, Spend ThereWhat is this money worth over there?
KOOpen app
Journey will show you around
City pricesDaily travel budget & monthly costPrice mapTap a city, see it in your moneyTrip budgetPlan a multi-city trip budgetTravel difficultyEasiest & hardest cities to travelCompareTwo cities side by sideBlogTravel money stories & rankingsCurrencyQuick conversion tablesExpense trackerLog trip costs from a receiptPopular cities
Compare cities โบ Kathmandu vs Surabaya
Kathmandu vs Surabaya cost of living 2026
Which is cheaper, what exactly is cheaper, and how it feels on your money ยท Updated October 2026
๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu
๐ฎ๐ฉ SurabayaSurabaya is 13% cheaper than Kathmandu
Living on $749 a month in Kathmandu feels like about $738 in Surabaya โ same standard of living, compared by feel rather than exchange rate.
Cheaper on how many of 20 items?
Kathmandu 5tie 0Surabaya 15
One day's budget in Kathmandu ($62.5) lasts 1.3 days in Surabaya
Compare on YOUR lifestyleSet your rent, eating out, coffee & taxis โ see your real monthly difference ยท free
โบ
Per day
$62.5 vs $46.7
Per month
$749 vs $738
Local meal
Rs 300 vs Rp 20,000
$2.22 vs $1.23
Taxi 5 km
Rs 350 vs Rp 28,000
$2.59 vs $1.72
At a glance
FoodSurabaya 26% cheaper
Cafรฉs & drinkssimilar
TransportSurabaya 10% cheaper
Staysimilar
FunSurabaya 56% cheaper
- Where Surabaya is clearly cheaper: Entry ticket (88%โ), Laundry (67%โ), Massage (50%โ)
- Where Kathmandu is clearly cheaper: Transit (28%โ), Bottled water (25%โ), Studio rent (month) (20%โ)
By category
Salary equivalence
Enter a monthly income in Kathmandu to see what gives the same standard of living in Surabaya. Starts at the average Kathmandu salary.
Travel difficulty
Kathmandu
Surabaya
Overall
Hard3.2
Moderate2.4
Rip-offs & haggling
4
2
Language
2
3
Getting around
3
2
Payments
4
3
Safety
3
2
Surabaya is easier to travel (2.4 vs 3.2). Biggest gap: rip-offs & haggling โ Kathmandu 4 vs Surabaya 2. Closer to 1 is easier. Difficulty ranking โบ
Item by item
| Item | Kathmandu | Surabaya | Cheaper |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local mealper person | Rs 300$2.22 | Rp 20,000$1.23 | Surabaya โ45% |
| Street food1 item | Rs 150$1.11 | Rp 15,000$0.92 | Surabaya โ17% |
| Restaurant dinnerper person | Rs 1,000$7.41 | Rp 100,000$6.13 | Surabaya โ17% |
| Coffeeone cup | Rs 250$1.85 | Rp 35,000$2.15 | Kathmandu โ14% |
| Beerone bottle | Rs 450$3.33 | Rp 45,000$2.76 | Surabaya โ17% |
| Cocktail & wineone cup | Rs 800$5.93 | Rp 110,000$6.75 | Kathmandu โ12% |
| Bottled water | Rs 25$0.19 | Rp 4,000$0.25 | Kathmandu โ25% |
| Convenience store1 snack or drink | Rs 80$0.59 | Rp 8,000$0.49 | Surabaya โ17% |
| Taxi5 km in town | Rs 350$2.59 | Rp 28,000$1.72 | Surabaya โ34% |
| Tuk-tuk / moto taxishort hop | Rs 150$1.11 | Rp 12,000$0.74 | Surabaya โ34% |
| Transitone ride | Rs 30$0.22 | Rp 5,000$0.31 | Kathmandu โ28% |
| Scooter rentalper day | Rs 1,200$8.89 | Rp 80,000$4.91 | Surabaya โ45% |
| Hotel night3-star | Rs 5,000$37 | Rp 450,000$27.6 | Surabaya โ25% |
| Studio rent (month) | Rs 20,000$148 | Rp 3,000,000$184 | Kathmandu โ20% |
| Laundry | Rs 200$1.48 | Rp 8,000$0.49 | Surabaya โ67% |
| SIM card1 week data | Rs 700$5.19 | Rp 75,000$4.6 | Surabaya โ11% |
| Haircutcut | Rs 350$2.59 | Rp 40,000$2.45 | Surabaya โ5% |
| Massage1 hour | Rs 2,000$14.8 | Rp 120,000$7.36 | Surabaya โ50% |
| Half-day tourper person | Rs 3,000$22.2 | Rp 250,000$15.3 | Surabaya โ31% |
| Entry ticketTourist town | Rs 1,000$7.41 | Rp 15,000$0.92 | Surabaya โ88% |
Reference prices start as estimates from published price levels; items with 3+ traveler reports use the median of real reports. Hostels and local eateries cut both by 30%+.
Compare on your own lifestyle in the appSet your rent, eating out, coffee and taxis โ see your real monthly difference and live traveler prices. No sign-up.
Open free โบ
FAQ
Which is cheaper, Kathmandu or Surabaya?
Surabaya is 13% cheaper than Kathmandu. Daily budget $62.5 vs $46.7; a month $749 vs $738.
Which is easier to travel, Kathmandu or Surabaya?
Surabaya is easier: Surabaya 2.4/5 vs Kathmandu 3.2/5 (average of rip-offs, language, transport, payments and safety).
How do monthly costs compare between Kathmandu and Surabaya?
With a short-term studio and living costs, Kathmandu is about $749 and Surabaya about $738 per month.
Where do the numbers come from?
They start as estimates informed by published price levels; any item with 3+ traveler reports switches to the median of real reports. Live reports are in the app.
Related comparisons
๐ป๐ณ Da Nang vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ฆ๐ช Dubai vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ป๐ณ Hanoi vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ป๐ณ Ho Chi Minh City vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ฎ๐ณ Agra vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ฎ๐ฉ Bali vs ๐ฎ๐ฉ Surabaya๐ฎ๐ฉ Bandung vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu๐ฎ๐ณ Bengaluru vs ๐ณ๐ต Kathmandu