Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Al Muharraq and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,089 in Al Muharraq, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Al Muharraq
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Al Muharraq Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Al Muharraq

🇧🇭 Bahrain

$1,089

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Al Muharraq and in Cebu

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Al Muharraq and in Cebu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,089 in Al Muharraq versus $918 in Cebu.

Al Muharraq $1,089
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,621 in Al Muharraq versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Al Muharraq $1,621
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,152 in Al Muharraq versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Al Muharraq $2,152
Cebu $1,900

Living in Al Muharraq is roughly 19% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Al Muharraq 19% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.67 BHD 1.01

$3.09 ₱194

-13.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.28 BHD 9.92

$24.22 ₱1,525

8.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.94 BHD 2.24

$3.92 ₱247

51.53%

Cappuccino

$4.04 BHD 1.52

$2.51 ₱158

60.96%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.89 BHD 0.33

$1.59 ₱100

-44.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 BHD 0.12

$0.53 ₱33.43

-39.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.49 BHD 2.45

$1.78 ₱112

264.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.82 BHD 2.57

$2.17 ₱137

214.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 BHD 0.51

$1.92 ₱121

-30.21%

White Bread (500g)

$1.05 BHD 0.40

$1.36 ₱85.4

-22.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.29 BHD 0.86

$1.01 ₱63.5

126.73%

Eggs

$2.24 BHD 0.84

$2.03 ₱128

10.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.64 BHD 1.37

$9.86 ₱621

-63.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.82 BHD 1.82

$4.39 ₱277

9.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.40 BHD 3.17

$7.60 ₱479

10.53%

Apples (1kg)

$1.03 BHD 0.39

$3.30 ₱208

-68.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 BHD 0.71

$1.39 ₱87.8

35.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.09 BHD 0.41

$2.33 ₱147

-53.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.38 BHD 0.52

$1.50 ₱94.3

-8.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.02 BHD 0.38

$2.36 ₱149

-56.78%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 BHD 0.19

$1.90 ₱119

-72.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.52 BHD 0.19

$1.19 ₱74.9

-56.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 BHD 0.19

$0.63 ₱39.71

-19.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.40 BHD 2.04

$3.00 ₱189

80.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.89 BHD 7.13

$6.03 ₱379

213.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.63 BHD 1.37

$1.23 ₱77.7

195.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 BHD 1.03

$1.75 ₱110

56.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.40 BHD 2.04

$0.77 ₱48.62

601.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.33 BHD 0.50

$0.23 ₱14.53

478.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.35 BHD 2.02

$4.46 ₱281

19.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.51 BHD 0.19

$1.31 ₱82.8

-61.07%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$37.6K BHD 14.2K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

77.01%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$20.7K BHD 7,827

$19.1K ₱1.2M

8.32%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$151 BHD 57.1

$120 ₱7,569

25.79%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$21.42 BHD 8.08

$14.00 ₱882

53.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.71 BHD 13.48

$27.54 ₱1,734

29.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$10.65 BHD 4.02

$5.65 ₱356

88.50%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$488 BHD 184

$275 ₱17.3K

77.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.8K BHD 4,092

$7,918 ₱498.5K

36.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.7 BHD 19.14

$49.33 ₱3,106

2.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.3 BHD 22.00

$25.24 ₱1,589

130.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$88.7 BHD 33.46

$77.0 ₱4,846

15.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 BHD 33.38

$57.2 ₱3,601

54.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$466 BHD 176

$500 ₱31.5K

-6.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 BHD 142

$309 ₱19.4K

21.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$977 BHD 369

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-9.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$741 BHD 280

$615 ₱38.7K

20.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,015 BHD 760

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-30.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,582 BHD 597

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-17.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,773 BHD 669

$346 ₱21.8K

412.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.21

7.2

-13.75%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Al Muharraq: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Al Muharraq

$376 34.5%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 17.8% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Al Muharraq

$208 19.1%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 22.4% $47

Groceries & Markets

Al Muharraq

$204 18.7%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 1.1% $2.2

Eating Out

Al Muharraq

$139 12.7%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 36.3% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Al Muharraq

$129 11.8%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 27% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Al Muharraq

$21 * 2%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 105% $22

Getting Around

Al Muharraq

$12 * 1.1%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 29.1% $3.5

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $466 in Al Muharraq and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Al Muharraq pays 413% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $26.00 in Al Muharraq vs $24.00 in Cebu. Groceries flip the comparison at $204 vs $206, with Al Muharraq cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇭 Al Muharraq

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

14:26 2:26 PM

19:26 7:26 PM

5 h ahead of Al Muharraq

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

75,000

964,169

💱 Currency

Bahraini Dinar BHD .د.ب

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 BHD = 2.65 USD

1 BHD = 2.36 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to BHD – Bahraini Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇭 Bahraini Dinar (.د.ب)

Bahraini Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.377 BHD (1 BHD = 2.65 USD). 1 EUR = 0.424 BHD (1 BHD = 2.36 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to BHD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Al Muharraq Cebu 7,850 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Al Muharraq
Cebu

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Al Muharraq vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Al Muharraq and Cebu differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($1,089 vs $918 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 413% higher in Al Muharraq, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $466 in Al Muharraq versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Al Muharraq pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,089 per month in Al Muharraq versus $918 in Cebu – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,089 in Al Muharraq, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Al Muharraq. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Al Muharraq and Cebu are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Al Muharraq. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.