Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bulacan and Chengdu

For one person, living is cheaper in Bulacan: $638 a month against $741 in Chengdu, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Bulacan
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Bulacan Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Chengdu
Learn more

Chengdu Living Index

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Bulacan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$638

/mo nomad

Chengdu

🇨🇳 China

$741

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bulacan and in Chengdu

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 Chengdu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $638 per month in Bulacan vs $741 in Chengdu, rent included.

Bulacan $638
Chengdu $741

A couple spends around $927 per month in Bulacan vs $1,204 in Chengdu, rent included.

Bulacan $927
Chengdu $1,204

A family of three spends $1,215 per month in Bulacan vs $1,667 in Chengdu, rent included.

Bulacan $1,215
Chengdu $1,667

Bulacan is about 14% cheaper than Chengdu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Bulacan and Chengdu are more affordable than the global median – Bulacan 53% lower, Chengdu 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.00 ₱126

$2.80 ¥18.69

-28.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.88 ₱1,000

$22.37 ¥149

-29.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.71 ₱171

$4.91 ¥32.81

-44.81%

Cappuccino

$1.79 ₱112

$2.88 ¥19.26

-37.85%

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

$0.44 ₱27.72

$0.50 ¥3.37

-12.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 ₱16.39

$0.28 ¥1.88

-7.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.93 ₱58.4

$1.53 ¥10.19

-39.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ₱101

$2.19 ¥14.59

-26.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 ₱102

$1.90 ¥12.71

-15.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 ₱73.1

$1.50 ¥10.01

-22.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ₱60.1

$0.99 ¥6.61

-4.04%

Eggs

$1.79 ₱113

$1.56 ¥10.40

14.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.80 ₱176

$14.54 ¥97.1

-80.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.45 ₱217

$3.66 ¥24.45

-5.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.03 ₱380

$11.19 ¥74.7

-46.11%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 ₱130

$1.85 ¥12.38

11.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 ₱98.2

$1.37 ¥9.18

13.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$1.09 ¥7.27

82.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.04 ₱65.4

$1.16 ¥7.73

-10.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 ₱101

$0.70 ¥4.70

130.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 ₱109

$0.72 ¥4.83

140.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₱39.14

$0.62 ¥4.16

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.07

$0.54 ¥3.63

-9.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ₱191

$3.72 ¥24.86

-18.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.53 ₱222

$4.58 ¥30.57

-22.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₱56.3

$0.82 ¥5.48

8.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ₱98.1

$1.48 ¥9.85

5.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 ₱11.81

$0.43 ¥2.87

-55.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.68 ₱421

$24.50 ¥164

-72.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.69 ₱43.19

$1.30 ¥8.69

-46.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.15 ₱9.67

$0.29 ¥1.94

-48.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 ₱118

$4.46 ¥29.81

-58.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₱66.7

$1.32 ¥8.80

-19.70%

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

$21.7K ₱1.4M

$19.6K ¥130.7K

10.74%

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

$16.4K ₱1.0M

$17.4K ¥115.9K

-5.61%

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

$112 ₱7,031

$47.19 ¥315

136.64%

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

$17.26 ₱1,087

$9.21 ¥61.5

87.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.39 ₱1,472

$12.45 ¥83.1

87.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.17 ₱2,340

$26.80 ¥179

38.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$0.78 ₱49.15

$11.39 ¥76.1

-93.15%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 ₱320

$6.08 ¥40.57

-16.28%

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

$96.7 ₱6,088

$379 ¥2,531

-74.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$941 ₱59.3K

$14.8K ¥98.9K

-93.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.48 ₱1,793

$25.28 ¥169

12.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.39 ₱1,221

$27.77 ¥185

-30.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 ₱4,756

$56.9 ¥380

32.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.5 ₱3,493

$52.6 ¥351

5.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$237 ₱14.9K

$464 ¥3,099

-48.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$146 ₱9,223

$248 ¥1,657

-40.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$385 ₱24.2K

$813 ¥5,429

-52.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$215 ₱13.5K

$533 ¥3,560

-59.73%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,879 ₱118.3K

$3,762 ¥25.1K

-50.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,458 ₱91.8K

$1,902 ¥12.7K

-23.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$290 ₱18.2K

$1,252 ¥8,356

-76.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.38

99.70%

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

Last update for Bulacan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Chengdu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bulacan

$152 23.9%

Chengdu

$69 9.3% 54.8% $83

Groceries & Markets

Bulacan

$147 23%

Chengdu

$196 26.5% 33.8% $50

Accommodation & Living

Bulacan

$146 23%

Chengdu

$248 33.5% 69.4% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Bulacan

$81 12.6%

Chengdu

$73 9.9% 9.1% $7.3

Eating Out

Bulacan

$56 8.8%

Chengdu

$87 11.7% 54.5% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Bulacan

$47 7.4%

Chengdu

$39 5.3% 17.7% $8.4

Getting Around

Bulacan

$8.9 1.4%

Chengdu

$29 3.9% 226% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $237 in Bulacan versus $464 in Chengdu. 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 332% higher in Chengdu, 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 $16.00 in Bulacan versus $22.00 in Chengdu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $147 vs $196 – making Bulacan the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Bulacan

🇨🇳 Chengdu

🕒 Local time

15:23 3:23 PM

Same time as Bulacan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,700,000

20,937,757

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CNY, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

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).

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.68 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.51 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bulacan Chengdu 2,460 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bulacan
Chengdu

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 Chengdu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Chengdu costs about 16% more than Bulacan, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $958 per month in Bulacan and $1,112 in Chengdu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $638 in Bulacan and $741 in Chengdu. That's a gap of about 16%.

Public transport costs about 267% less in Bulacan. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

$800 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $638 in Bulacan and $741 in Chengdu, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

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

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