Indonesian local currency, especially in Bali, is colorful. The Indonesian Rupiah is pronounced “ru-pee-ah”, or usually abbreviated (Rp). Prices of goods are usually written in full or with abbreviations according to the amount (for example, Rp. 20,000, or in some cases, Rp. 20k (or 20 Rb).  IDR is the official currency code for the Indonesian rupiah.
Where, the number of figures in rupiah tends to be quite a lot and looks big, because all zeros. Sometimes the price given with “thousands” is implied. For example, if someone says that something with a price of “fifty,” that means 50,000 rupiah – about $ 4.

Indonesian Rupiah – Bali Currency

For those of you who are confused about the value of the rupiah, there is this behavior (each Indonesian rupiah is divided into 100 cents). But the value of Sen in Bali or in Indonesia is so low that it is no longer circulating. 

Some places to exchange rupiah. 

Here, you are more often dealing with blue banknotes, 50,000 rupiah when traveling in Bali. Where can you get it? To make payments in Bali you must use local money. Because not all places can receive dollars. Some places to get Rupiah are: Money exchange offices, Bank Indonesia and ATMs.
Usually ATM machines issue banknotes with a nominal 100,000 rupiah (the biggest value). It can sometimes be difficult to rest in places other than restaurants and large hotels. Therefore it is strongly recommended to use smaller denominations if possible.
How to distinguish the value? Indonesian Rupiah has a variety of colors, making it easier to distinguish.
  1. Rp. 1,000, 2,000 roughly have the same color combination
  2. Rp. 5000 banknotes a little more brown
  3. Rp. 10,000 purple banknotes.
  4. Rp. 20,000 green banknotes.
  5. Rp. 50,000 blue banknotes (this is very common).
  6. Rp. 100,000 pink banknotes (this is the largest).

Coins

You can also find coins here, but the nominal value is very small, almost not important. So ignoring or eliminating it is no big deal. Very different from the UK or Europe. Sometimes the amount is often rounded up because the value is very small, almost worthless. Don’t be annoyed if you aren’t given coins for your change. In some shops and supermarkets will even hand over some sweets to compensate for the changes! 

How to pronounce Amount? 

Because of the relatively large amount of currencies in Indonesia, the word for one thousand (thousand) is often implied and abandoned in the end. Here are some common words in the language used when dealing with currencies in Bali:
  • 1,000: one thousand (seh-ree-boo)
  • 2,000: two thousand (do-ah-ree-boo)
  • 5,000: five thousand (lee-ma-ree-boo)
  • 10,000: ten thousand (seh-poo-loo ree-boo)
  • 20,000: twenty thousand (do-ah poo-loo ree-boo)
  • 50,000: fifty thousand (lee-ma poo-loo ree-boo)
  • 100,000: one hundred thousand (seh-rat-us ree-boo)
Well, hopefully the information above is useful and if you want to know tips for a holiday in Bali, please visit Bali Travel Guides