Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albacete and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,551 in Albacete, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Albacete
🇪🇸 Spain
$1,551
/mo nomad
Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$918
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Albacete 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 Albacete and in Cebu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,551 in Albacete versus $918 in Cebu.

  • Albacete $1,551
  • Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,230 in Albacete versus $1,409 in Cebu.

  • Albacete $2,230
  • Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,910 in Albacete versus $1,900 in Cebu.

  • Albacete $2,910
  • Cebu $1,900

Living in Albacete is roughly 69% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Albacete is 15% above, Cebu is 32% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$14.35 €12.77
$3.09 ₱194
364.40%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$48.40 €43.05
$24.22 ₱1,525
99.83%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.24 €8.22
$3.92 ₱247
135.71%
Cappuccino
$2.18 €1.94
$2.51 ₱158
-13.15%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.34 €2.08
$1.59 ₱100
47.17%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.66 €1.48
$0.53 ₱33.43
213.21%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.82 €2.51
$1.78 ₱112
58.43%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.73 €4.20
$2.17 ₱137
117.97%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.82 €0.73
$1.92 ₱121
-57.29%
White Bread (500g)
$0.82 €0.73
$1.36 ₱85.4
-39.71%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.68 €1.49
$1.01 ₱63.5
66.34%
Eggs
$2.98 €2.65
$2.03 ₱128
46.80%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$16.58 €14.75
$9.86 ₱621
68.15%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$5.69 €5.06
$4.39 ₱277
29.61%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.42 €15.49
$7.60 ₱479
129.21%
Apples (1kg)
$2.64 €2.35
$3.30 ₱208
-20.00%
Banana (1kg)
$2.08 €1.85
$1.39 ₱87.8
49.64%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.49 €2.21
$2.33 ₱147
6.87%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.51 €2.23
$1.50 ₱94.3
67.33%
Potato (1kg)
$2.21 €1.96
$2.36 ₱149
-6.36%
Onion (1kg)
$2.17 €1.93
$1.90 ₱119
14.21%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.56 €1.38
$1.19 ₱74.9
31.09%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.54 €0.48
$0.63 ₱39.71
-14.29%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.53 €5.81
$3.00 ₱189
117.67%
Wine (Bottle)
$5.32 €4.73
$6.03 ₱379
-11.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.21 €1.08
$1.23 ₱77.7
-1.63%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.20 €1.96
$1.75 ₱110
25.71%
🚌 Getting Around
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.36 €1.21
$0.25 ₱15.86
444.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$16.75 €14.90
$12.64 ₱796
32.52%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.81 €3.39
$0.77 ₱48.62
394.81%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.55 €1.38
$0.23 ₱14.53
573.91%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$29.98 €26.67
$4.46 ₱281
572.20%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.67 €1.49
$1.31 ₱82.8
27.48%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.6K €30.7K
$21.2K ₱1.3M
62.68%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$29.5K €26.2K
$19.1K ₱1.2M
53.88%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$187 €166
$120 ₱7,569
55.63%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$18.20 €16.19
$14.00 ₱882
30.00%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$16.99 €15.11
$27.54 ₱1,734
-38.31%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
-
$32.33 ₱2,035
-
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$4.43 €3.94
$6.65 ₱419
-33.38%
Cinema Ticket
$9.07 €8.07
$5.65 ₱356
60.53%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$676 €602
$275 ₱17.3K
145.62%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$17.5K €15.6K
$7,918 ₱498.5K
121.45%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$82.5 €73.4
$49.33 ₱3,106
67.28%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$43.22 €38.44
$25.24 ₱1,589
71.24%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$90.1 €80.1
$77.0 ₱4,846
17.02%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$113 €101
$57.2 ₱3,601
98.18%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$920 €818
$500 ₱31.5K
84.15%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$662 €589
$309 ₱19.4K
114.34%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,240 €1,103
$1,078 ₱67.9K
15.07%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$947 €843
$615 ₱38.7K
53.97%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,301 €2,047
$2,886 ₱181.7K
-20.27%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,041 €1,816
$1,917 ₱120.7K
6.50%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Albacete
Cebu
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,959 €1,743
$346 ₱21.8K
466.33%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.14
7.2
-56.39%

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

Last update for Albacete: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Albacete
$662
Cebu
$309 53.3% $353
Groceries & Markets
Albacete
$258
Cebu
$206 20.3% $52
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Albacete
$222
Cebu
$162 27.2% $61
Eating Out
Albacete
$208
Cebu
$88 57.6% $120
Clothing & Footwear
Albacete
$148
Cebu
$94 36.6% $54
Getting Around
Albacete
$34
Cebu
$16 53.8% $18
Sport & Entertainment
Albacete
$18 *
Cebu
$44 140% $25

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 $920 in Albacete and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Albacete pays 466% 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: $48.00 in Albacete vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $206 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇪🇸 Albacete
🇵🇭 Cebu
🕒 Local time
08:43 8:43 AM
14:43 2:43 PM
6 h ahead of Albacete
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
173,206
964,169
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

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).

On the map
Between locations
  • Albacete Cebu 12,180 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Albacete
  • 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
Albacete vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Albacete and in Cebu?
Albacete and Cebu differ by about 69% in total monthly costs ($1,551 vs $918 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Albacete or Cebu?
Average pay runs 466% higher in Albacete, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Albacete and in Cebu?
Rent for a central apartment: $920 in Albacete versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Cebu – a meal for two runs $24.00 versus $48.00 in Albacete. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more expensive overall: Albacete or Cebu?
All in, you'll spend $1,551 per month in Albacete versus $918 in Cebu – a 69% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $918 in Cebu versus $1,551 in Albacete, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Albacete. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Albacete and Cebu?
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.
Is Albacete or Cebu safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Albacete 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.
Where should expats move: Albacete or Cebu?
Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Albacete. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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