Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bacau and Cebu

For one person, living costs are similar in Bacau and in Cebu: $913 and $918 a month, rent and utilities included.

44

Cost of Living Index in Bacau
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Bacau Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Bacau

🇷🇴 Romania

$913

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $913 per month in Bacau vs $918 in Cebu, rent included.

Bacau $913
Cebu $918

A couple spends around $1,548 per month in Bacau vs $1,409 in Cebu, rent included.

Bacau $1,548
Cebu $1,409

A family of three spends $2,182 per month in Bacau vs $1,900 in Cebu, rent included.

Bacau $2,182
Cebu $1,900

Bacau is about 1% cheaper than Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Bacau and Cebu are more affordable than the global median – Bacau 32% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.05 RON 66.5

$3.09 ₱194

354.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.1 RON 402

$24.22 ₱1,525

251.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.39 RON 34.96

$3.92 ₱247

88.52%

Cappuccino

$1.98 RON 9.37

$2.51 ₱158

-21.12%

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

$1.94 RON 9.16

$1.59 ₱100

22.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 RON 8.97

$0.53 ₱33.43

258.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$1.78 ₱112

39.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.16 RON 14.96

$2.17 ₱137

45.62%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.22 RON 5.76

$1.92 ₱121

-36.46%

White Bread (500g)

$0.65 RON 3.09

$1.36 ₱85.4

-52.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 RON 7.74

$1.01 ₱63.5

62.38%

Eggs

$3.39 RON 16.03

$2.03 ₱128

67.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.79 RON 36.87

$9.86 ₱621

-20.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.43 RON 25.67

$4.39 ₱277

23.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.42 RON 39.86

$7.60 ₱479

10.79%

Apples (1kg)

$1.14 RON 5.41

$3.30 ₱208

-65.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 RON 7.06

$1.39 ₱87.8

7.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.55 RON 7.32

$2.33 ₱147

-33.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.74 RON 8.24

$1.50 ₱94.3

16.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 RON 3.43

$2.36 ₱149

-69.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.65 RON 3.07

$1.90 ₱119

-65.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 RON 3.59

$1.19 ₱74.9

-36.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 RON 3.23

$0.63 ₱39.71

7.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.47 RON 25.87

$3.00 ₱189

82.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.08 RON 24.02

$6.03 ₱379

-15.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 RON 4.46

$1.23 ₱77.7

-23.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 RON 5.78

$1.75 ₱110

-30.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 RON 3.51

$0.25 ₱15.86

196.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.14 RON 138

$12.64 ₱796

130.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.62 RON 2.92

$0.77 ₱48.62

-19.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.67 RON 3.17

$0.23 ₱14.53

191.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.08 RON 33.51

$4.46 ₱281

58.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 RON 8.50

$1.31 ₱82.8

37.40%

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

$28.9K RON 136.6K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

35.91%

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

$24.9K RON 117.9K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

30.10%

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

$106 RON 502

$120 ₱7,569

-11.71%

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

$7.51 RON 35.53

$14.00 ₱882

-46.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$4.83 RON 22.86

$27.54 ₱1,734

-82.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.72 RON 122

$32.33 ₱2,035

-20.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.83 RON 74.9

$6.65 ₱419

138.05%

Cinema Ticket

$6.44 RON 30.45

$5.65 ₱356

13.98%

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

$591 RON 2,794

$275 ₱17.3K

114.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,858 RON 23.0K

$7,918 ₱498.5K

-38.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$82.9 RON 392

$49.33 ₱3,106

67.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.49 RON 149

$25.24 ₱1,589

24.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.6 RON 282

$77.0 ₱4,846

-22.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.6 RON 395

$57.2 ₱3,601

46.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$400 RON 1,891

$500 ₱31.5K

-19.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$235 RON 1,113

$309 ₱19.4K

-23.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$546 RON 2,584

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-49.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$399 RON 1,889

$615 ₱38.7K

-35.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,818 RON 8,604

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-36.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,199 RON 5,673

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-37.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$933 RON 4,415

$346 ₱21.8K

169.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.97

7.2

-3.19%

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

Last update for Bacau: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bacau

$235 25.8%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 31.3% $74

Eating Out

Bacau

$192 21.1%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 54.1% $104

Groceries & Markets

Bacau

$176 19.3%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 16.9% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bacau

$118 13%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 36.5% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Bacau

$116 12.7%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 18.9% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Bacau

$39 4.2%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 13% $5

Getting Around

Bacau

$36 4%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 56.8% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $400 in Bacau versus $500 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 170% higher in Bacau, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Bacau versus $24.00 in Cebu. Groceries tell a different story – $176 in Bacau vs $206 in Cebu – so Bacau wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bacau

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

22:48 10:48 PM

03:48 3:48 AM

5 h ahead of Bacau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

144,307

964,169

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bacau Cebu 9,710 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Bacau
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

Bacau vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Cebu is pricier by about 1%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,369 per month in Bacau and $1,377 in Cebu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $85.0 in Bacau and $24.00 in Cebu. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $913 in Bacau and $918 in Cebu. That's a gap of about 1%.

$1,000 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $913 in Bacau and $918 in Cebu, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

Families tend to lean toward Bacau – 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 Bacau. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cebu makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.