Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bulacan and Baguio

For one person, living is cheaper in Bulacan: $638 a month against $757 in Baguio, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Bulacan
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Bulacan Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Baguio
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Baguio Living Index

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Bulacan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$638

/mo nomad

Baguio

🇵🇭 Philippines

$757

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bulacan and in Baguio

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $638 in Bulacan versus $757 in Baguio.

Bulacan $638
Baguio $757

Estimated couple costs with rent: $927 in Bulacan versus $1,171 in Baguio.

Bulacan $927
Baguio $1,171

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,215 in Bulacan versus $1,585 in Baguio.

Bulacan $1,215
Baguio $1,585

Living in Bulacan costs roughly 16% less than in Baguio, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bulacan 53% lower, Baguio 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.00 ₱126

$4.04 ₱255

-50.50%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.88 ₱1,000

$16.77 ₱1,056

-5.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.71 ₱171

$2.85 ₱180

-4.91%

Cappuccino

$1.79 ₱112

$1.86 ₱117

-3.76%

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

$0.44 ₱27.72

$0.59 ₱37.34

-25.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 ₱16.39

$0.30 ₱19.17

-13.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.93 ₱58.4

$0.97 ₱61.3

-4.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ₱101

$1.57 ₱98.9

1.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 ₱102

$1.69 ₱106

-4.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 ₱73.1

$1.12 ₱70.7

3.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ₱60.1

$0.96 ₱60.5

-1.04%

Eggs

$1.79 ₱113

$2.03 ₱128

-11.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.80 ₱176

$5.22 ₱329

-46.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.45 ₱217

$3.34 ₱210

3.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.03 ₱380

$8.04 ₱506

-25.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 ₱130

$2.31 ₱145

-10.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 ₱98.2

$1.59 ₱100

-1.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$2.35 ₱148

-15.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.04 ₱65.4

$1.08 ₱67.7

-3.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 ₱101

$1.69 ₱107

-4.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 ₱109

$1.76 ₱111

-1.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₱39.14

$0.62 ₱38.85

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.07

$0.50 ₱31.33

-2.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ₱191

$2.87 ₱181

5.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.53 ₱222

$9.00 ₱567

-60.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₱56.3

$0.92 ₱57.8

-3.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ₱98.1

$2.02 ₱127

-22.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 ₱11.81

$0.25 ₱15.84

-24.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.68 ₱421

$12.90 ₱812

-48.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.69 ₱43.19

$0.77 ₱48.34

-10.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.15 ₱9.67

$0.23 ₱14.44

-34.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 ₱118

$1.93 ₱121

-3.11%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₱66.7

$1.25 ₱78.7

-15.20%

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

$21.7K ₱1.4M

$21.5K ₱1.4M

0.93%

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

$16.4K ₱1.0M

$19.0K ₱1.2M

-13.77%

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

$112 ₱7,031

$138 ₱8,682

-19.02%

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

$17.26 ₱1,087

$17.71 ₱1,115

-2.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.39 ₱1,472

$23.76 ₱1,496

-1.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.17 ₱2,340

$21.05 ₱1,325

76.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$0.78 ₱49.15

$5.19 ₱327

-84.97%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 ₱320

$5.30 ₱334

-3.96%

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

$96.7 ₱6,088

$135 ₱8,486

-28.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$941 ₱59.3K

$10.7K ₱673.8K

-91.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.48 ₱1,793

$28.76 ₱1,811

-0.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.39 ₱1,221

$19.76 ₱1,244

-1.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 ₱4,756

$71.1 ₱4,479

6.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.5 ₱3,493

$56.4 ₱3,551

-1.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$237 ₱14.9K

$409 ₱25.8K

-41.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$146 ₱9,223

$200 ₱12.6K

-26.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$385 ₱24.2K

$836 ₱52.6K

-53.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$215 ₱13.5K

$466 ₱29.3K

-53.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,879 ₱118.3K

$2,647 ₱166.7K

-29.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,458 ₱91.8K

$930 ₱58.6K

56.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$290 ₱18.2K

$182 ₱11.4K

59.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

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

Last update for Bulacan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Baguio: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bulacan

$152 23.9%

Baguio

$179 23.7% 17.8% $27

Groceries & Markets

Bulacan

$147 23%

Baguio

$176 23.3% 20.1% $29

Accommodation & Living

Bulacan

$146 23%

Baguio

$200 26.4% 36.2% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Bulacan

$81 12.6%

Baguio

$79 10.5% 1.6% $1.3

Eating Out

Bulacan

$56 8.8%

Baguio

$75 9.9% 33.1% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Bulacan

$47 7.4%

Baguio

$32 4.2% 33.2% $16

Getting Around

Bulacan

$8.9 1.4%

Baguio

$16 2.1% 78.2% $6.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $237 in Bulacan and $409 in Baguio. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bulacan pays 59% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $16.00 in Bulacan vs $17.00 in Baguio for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $147 vs $176 per month, with Bulacan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Bulacan

🇵🇭 Baguio

🕒 Local time

15:59 3:59 PM

Same time as Bulacan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,700,000

366,358

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Bulacan Baguio 180 km

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Bulacan
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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

Bulacan vs Baguio: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bulacan wins on cost – living expenses run 19% lower than in Baguio. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bulacan the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 59% higher in Bulacan, 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: $237 in Bulacan versus $409 in Baguio. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $638 per month in Bulacan versus $757 in Baguio – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bulacan runs roughly 93% less than in Baguio. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Bulacan gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Bulacan and Baguio 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 Bulacan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Baguio. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.