💵Money & Currency in Indonesia

All about money

In Indonesia, you pay with the Indonesian rupiah (IDR). The exchange rate is roughly 1 euro = 16'000 - 18'000 IDR. The banknotes have high denominations, with the largest note being 100'000 IDR, which is equivalent to approximately 6 euros/dollar. This means that you quickly end up carrying a lot of notes around with you. Small bills are particularly useful for warungs (local restaurants), markets, parking fees, or short trips.

Cash plays a very important role in everyday life. Especially outside of Bali and away from tourist areas, almost everything is paid in cash. In larger cities and tourist areas, hotels, restaurants, and supermarkets often accept credit cards, usually Visa or Mastercard. (American Express is accepted much less frequently.) So always make sure you have enough cash with you.

To withdraw money, we recommend a good travel credit or debit card such as Wise or Revolut, which we have had good experiences with ourselves. These cards offer fair exchange rates and, depending on the subscription, allow a certain number of free withdrawals per month. However, it is important to note that many Indonesian banks charge their own ATM fees, usually between IDR 30k and IDR 75k per withdrawal. These fees may also apply to Wise or Revolut, so they are not always charged by your card.

International ATMs are readily available in cities and tourist areas, but can be difficult to find on smaller islands or in rural areas. In addition, there are often withdrawal limits per transaction, usually between IDR 1.2 million and IDR 3 million. Some ATMs only dispense IDR 50k notes, others IDR 100k notes, which you should take into account when planning.

Very important: When withdrawing or paying, always select the local currency IDR and decline the automatic conversion (“Continue without Conversion”). The conversion offered almost always has a worse exchange rate. It is best to take two different cards with you as backup.

Overall budget

In terms of price, Indonesia is a very affordable travel destination and perfect for both backpackers and families. Food, accommodation, and local transportation are usually very affordable. Only domestic flights can be comparatively expensive, especially if you book at short notice. If you plan early, you can often save a lot of money.

Our budget was 160 euro a day, for all of us (2 adults, 2 kids). This includes everything: flight, hotels, food, activities, ... so if you want, you can travel pretty cheap. Note: the longer you travel, the cheaper it gets.