Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Amsterdam and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $3,504 in Amsterdam, rent and utilities included – about $30,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

169

Cost of Living Index in Amsterdam
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Amsterdam Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Amsterdam

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$3,504

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $3,504 per month in Amsterdam vs $934 in Cebu, rent included.

Amsterdam $3,504
Cebu $934

A couple spends around $5,010 per month in Amsterdam vs $1,415 in Cebu, rent included.

Amsterdam $5,010
Cebu $1,415

A family of three spends $6,516 per month in Amsterdam vs $1,896 in Cebu, rent included.

Amsterdam $6,516
Cebu $1,896

Amsterdam costs about 275% more than Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Amsterdam sits 161% above the global median, while Cebu is 30% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.37 €19.96

$3.03 ₱190

638.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.0 €81.2

$23.48 ₱1,473

287.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.36 €13.71

$4.09 ₱256

275.55%

Cappuccino

$4.60 €4.11

$2.52 ₱158

82.54%

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

$3.74 €3.33

$1.54 ₱96.9

142.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.03 €2.70

$0.49 ₱30.98

518.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.41 €6.62

$1.79 ₱112

313.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.68 €5.07

$2.26 ₱142

151.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 €1.36

$1.95 ₱122

-22.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 €2.13

$1.43 ₱89.7

66.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.02 ₱63.8

149.02%

Eggs

$5.24 €4.68

$2.06 ₱129

154.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.95 €15.13

$9.81 ₱615

72.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.41 €11.97

$4.61 ₱289

190.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.00 €20.53

$7.70 ₱483

198.70%

Apples (1kg)

$2.75 €2.45

$3.31 ₱207

-16.92%

Banana (1kg)

$2.83 €2.52

$1.45 ₱90.9

95.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.63 €2.35

$2.36 ₱148

11.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.87 €3.45

$1.54 ₱96.4

151.30%

Potato (1kg)

$2.39 €2.13

$2.36 ₱148

1.27%

Onion (1kg)

$1.71 €1.53

$1.99 ₱125

-14.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 €1.28

$1.15 ₱72.1

24.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 €1.59

$0.67 ₱42.15

165.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.48 €12.92

$3.00 ₱188

382.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.21 €8.22

$6.35 ₱398

45.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 €1.59

$1.31 ₱81.9

35.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.53 €2.26

$1.73 ₱108

46.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.72 €3.32

$0.25 ₱15.78

1388.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$116 €104

$12.65 ₱793

818.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 €4.19

$0.74 ₱46.32

535.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.40 €3.04

$0.21 ₱13.11

1519.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.74 €34.57

$4.33 ₱271

794.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.61 €2.33

$1.33 ₱83.5

96.24%

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

$41.7K €37.2K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

91.47%

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

$38.2K €34.1K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

96.71%

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

$298 €266

$121 ₱7,563

147.01%

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

$22.98 €20.51

$14.45 ₱907

59.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.0 €47.26

$28.29 ₱1,774

87.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.4 €53.9

$32.68 ₱2,050

84.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.40 €31.59

$6.39 ₱401

453.99%

Cinema Ticket

$16.86 €15.05

$5.46 ₱342

208.79%

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

$2,764 €2,466

$273 ₱17.1K

910.76%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.1K €15.3K

$8,156 ₱511.5K

109.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.3 €83.2

$49.57 ₱3,109

88.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.20 €36.77

$24.87 ₱1,560

65.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$100 €89.3

$76.6 ₱4,804

30.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 €119

$59.3 ₱3,717

124.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,605 €2,325

$506 ₱31.7K

415.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,927 €1,720

$309 ₱19.4K

522.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,903 €3,483

$1,052 ₱66.0K

271.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,115 €2,780

$619 ₱38.8K

403.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$10.3K €9,201

$2,915 ₱182.9K

253.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,540 €5,836

$1,867 ₱117.1K

250.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,524 €4,038

$341 ₱21.4K

1226.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.27

7.2

-54.58%

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

Last update for Amsterdam: October 3, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Amsterdam

$1.9K 55.8%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 83.9% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Amsterdam

$388 11.2%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 45.7% $177

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Amsterdam

$374 10.8%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 56.3% $210

Eating Out

Amsterdam

$356 10.3%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 75.2% $267

Clothing & Footwear

Amsterdam

$165 4.8%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 42.8% $71

Getting Around

Amsterdam

$153 4.4%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 89.9% $137

Sport & Entertainment

Amsterdam

$94 2.7%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 53.7% $51

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,605 in Amsterdam versus $506 in Cebu. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1226% higher in Amsterdam, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Amsterdam versus $23.00 in Cebu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $388 vs $210 – making Cebu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Amsterdam

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

12:24 12:24 PM

18:24 6:24 PM

6 h ahead of Amsterdam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

881,933 Capital

964,169

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Amsterdam Cebu 10,970 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Amsterdam
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

Amsterdam vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Amsterdam is pricier by about 275%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,255 per month in Amsterdam and $1,401 in Cebu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cebu, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 819% less in Cebu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,764 per month in Amsterdam and $273 in Cebu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cebu, where all-in costs run around $934, than in Amsterdam at $3,504. In Cebu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Amsterdam it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cebu – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Cebu. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Amsterdam makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.