Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Balzan

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,963 in Balzan, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in Balzan
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Balzan Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Balzan

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,963

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Balzan

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

A single person spends $934 per month in Cebu vs $1,963 in Balzan, rent included.

Cebu $934
Balzan $1,963

A couple spends around $1,415 per month in Cebu vs $2,917 in Balzan, rent included.

Cebu $1,415
Balzan $2,917

A family of three spends $1,896 per month in Cebu vs $3,871 in Balzan, rent included.

Cebu $1,896
Balzan $3,871

Cebu is about 52% cheaper than Balzan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cebu sits 30% below the global median, while Balzan is 46% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱190

$19.07 €17.02

-84.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,473

$91.5 €81.7

-74.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱256

$12.43 €11.09

-67.10%

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$3.22 €2.87

-21.74%

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

$1.54 ₱96.9

$2.02 €1.80

-23.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$1.01 €0.90

-51.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

$3.38 €3.02

-47.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

$2.51 €2.24

-9.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.28 €1.14

52.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.7

$1.00 €0.89

43.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱63.8

$3.63 €3.24

-71.90%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$4.26 €3.81

-51.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱615

$10.45 €9.33

-6.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱289

$9.05 €8.08

-49.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱483

$12.43 €11.09

-38.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱207

$2.67 €2.39

23.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱90.9

$1.98 €1.77

-26.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.80 €1.61

31.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.4

$1.17 €1.05

31.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$0.88 €0.79

168.18%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$0.87 €0.77

128.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$0.83 €0.74

38.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.15

$1.02 €0.91

-34.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱188

$6.23 €5.56

-51.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

$5.90 €5.27

7.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

$1.05 €0.94

24.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

$1.51 €1.35

14.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$3.19 €2.84

-92.16%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱793

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.32

$2.30 €2.05

-67.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$1.78 €1.59

-88.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱271

$32.65 €29.14

-86.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.5

$1.50 €1.34

-11.33%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$28.7K €25.6K

-24.16%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$32.8K €29.3K

-40.82%

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

$121 ₱7,563

$158 €141

-23.58%

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

$14.45 ₱907

$20.27 €18.09

-28.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,774

$29.53 €26.36

-4.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,050

$62.4 €55.7

-47.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱401

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱342

$11.75 €10.49

-53.53%

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

$273 ₱17.1K

$279 €249

-2.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱511.5K

$12.4K €11.1K

-34.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,109

$76.4 €68.2

-35.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,560

$63.3 €56.4

-60.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,804

$113 €101

-32.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,717

$133 €119

-55.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.7K

$1,170 €1,044

-56.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$949 €847

-67.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.0K

$1,804 €1,610

-41.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.8K

$1,504 €1,342

-58.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱182.9K

$3,953 €3,527

-26.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.1K

$2,826 €2,522

-33.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.4K

$1,019 €909

-66.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

4.05

77.78%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Balzan: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Balzan

$949 48.7% 207% $639

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Balzan

$247 12.7% 17.2% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Balzan

$208 10.7% 27.1% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Balzan

$174 8.9% 83.7% $79

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Balzan

$263 13.5% 197% $174

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Balzan

$86 4.4% 97% $42

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Balzan

$24 * 1.2% 55.1% $8.5

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $506 in Cebu versus $1,170 in Balzan. 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 199% higher in Balzan, 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 $23.00 in Cebu versus $92.0 in Balzan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $210 vs $247 – making Cebu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇲🇹 Balzan

🕒 Local time

16:23 4:23 PM

10:23 10:23 AM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

4,700

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

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

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Balzan 11,040 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Balzan

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

Cebu vs Balzan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $934 in Cebu, $1,963 in Balzan – roughly 110% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,401 per month in Cebu and $2,944 in Balzan. 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $23.00 in Cebu and $92.0 in Balzan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 17% more in Balzan, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cebu, where all-in costs run around $934, than in Balzan at $1,963. In Cebu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Balzan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Cebu has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $934 in Cebu to $1,963 in Balzan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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, Balzan makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.