Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Butuan and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $578 in Butuan, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

28

Cost of Living Index in Butuan
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Butuan Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

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Butuan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$578

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Butuan and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $578 in Butuan versus $406 in Dhaka.

Butuan $578
Dhaka $406

Estimated couple costs with rent: $913 in Butuan versus $687 in Dhaka.

Butuan $913
Dhaka $687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,248 in Butuan versus $969 in Dhaka.

Butuan $1,248
Dhaka $969

Living in Butuan is roughly 43% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Butuan 57% lower, Dhaka 70% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.67 ₱294

$2.28 ৳282

104.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.83 ₱1,689

$12.33 ৳1,523

117.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.41 ₱152

$3.95 ৳488

-38.99%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$2.09 ₱131

$2.28 ৳281

-8.33%

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

$0.33 ₱21.01

$0.33 ৳40.88

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.23 ₱14.47

$0.16 ৳19.86

43.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.57 ₱98.8

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 ₱155

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱123

$0.85 ৳104

129.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₱68.9

$0.60 ৳74.5

81.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.87 ₱55.0

$0.69 ৳85.4

26.09%

Eggs

$1.86 ₱117

$1.23 ৳152

51.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.21 ₱391

$8.80 ৳1,087

-29.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.84 ₱305

$3.33 ৳412

45.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.32 ₱587

$6.63 ৳819

40.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 ₱169

$2.85 ৳352

-5.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₱69.7

$0.90 ৳111

23.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.42 ₱152

$2.34 ৳289

3.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 ₱75.8

$0.63 ৳78.4

90.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 ₱127

$0.24 ৳29.59

741.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.51 ₱221

$0.46 ৳57.3

663.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 ₱79.0

$0.35 ৳42.79

257.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.40

$0.28 ৳34.24

139.29%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.39 ₱150

$3.28 ৳405

-27.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.13 ₱512

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 ₱78.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 ₱106

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.78 ₱49.31

$1.19 ৳147

-34.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.25 ₱15.83

$0.39 ৳48.71

-35.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.96 ₱123

$3.28 ৳406

-40.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ₱66.1

$1.10 ৳136

-4.55%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$29.4K ৳3.6M

-27.86%

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

$19.0K ₱1.2M

$32.2K ৳4.0M

-40.83%

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

$107 ₱6,745

$38.28 ৳4,729

179.86%

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

$18.89 ₱1,189

$4.09 ৳506

361.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.87 ₱1,944

$9.02 ৳1,114

242.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.85 ₱1,502

$13.66 ৳1,688

74.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

Cinema Ticket

$4.37 ₱275

$4.11 ৳508

6.33%

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

$108 ₱6,790

$90.7 ৳11.2K

18.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,696 ₱484.6K

$2,591 ৳320.2K

197.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.7 ₱3,885

$17.06 ৳2,108

261.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.28 ₱1,970

$21.38 ৳2,641

46.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.8 ₱4,523

$51.4 ৳6,355

39.67%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$62.2 ₱3,916

$36.78 ৳4,545

69.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

10.48

-20.71%

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

Last update for Butuan: October 12, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Butuan

$200 34.6%

Dhaka

$124 30.5% 38.2% $76

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Butuan

$157 27.1%

Dhaka

$51 12.7% 67.2% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Butuan

$102 17.7%

Dhaka

$57 14.1% 44.2% $45

Eating Out

Butuan

$85 14.6%

Dhaka

$59 14.6% 29.8% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Butuan

$33 5.6%

Dhaka

$22 5.4% 32.8% $11

Getting Around

Butuan

$2 * 0.4%

Dhaka

$27 6.7% 1238% $25

Accommodation & Living

Butuan

- * 0%

Dhaka

$65 16%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $27.00 in Butuan vs $12.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $200 vs $124 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Butuan

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

04:47 4:47 AM

02:47 2:47 AM

2 h behind Butuan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

337,063

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

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).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Butuan Dhaka 4,080 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Butuan
Dhaka

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

Butuan vs Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka wins on cost – living expenses run 43% lower than in Butuan. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Dhaka the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $867 in Butuan and $609 in Dhaka to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $108 in Butuan versus $90.7 in Dhaka. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dhaka – a meal for two runs $12.00 versus $27.00 in Butuan. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka 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, Butuan and Dhaka 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Butuan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.