Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Bhilai

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhilai: $326 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
16

Cost of Living Index in Bhilai
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Bhilai Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Bhilai

🇮🇳 India

$326

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Bhilai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $326 in Bhilai.

Cebu $918
Bhilai $326

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $555 in Bhilai.

Cebu $1,409
Bhilai $555

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $784 in Bhilai.

Cebu $1,900
Bhilai $784

Living in Cebu is roughly 182% more expensive than in Bhilai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Bhilai 76% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$2.59 ₹246

19.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$9.13 ₹867

165.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$3.09 ₹293

26.86%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.97 ₹187

27.41%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.29 ₹27.28

448.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.20 ₹18.62

165.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$1.55 ₹147

14.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$2.86 ₹271

-24.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$0.51 ₹48.54

276.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$0.35 ₹33.68

288.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$0.63 ₹60.0

60.32%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$0.95 ₹90.2

113.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$4.13 ₹392

138.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$2.88 ₹273

52.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.31 ₹219

42.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$0.57 ₹54.3

143.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$0.87 ₹83.0

167.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$0.44 ₹41.59

240.91%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$0.38 ₹36.44

521.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$0.48 ₹45.82

295.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.25 ₹23.54

376.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.29 ₹27.38

117.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$5.10 ₹484

-41.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$4.58 ₹435

31.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.64 ₹156

-25.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.65 ₹252

-33.96%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.83 ₹364

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$0.38 ₹36.12

-34.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$6.62 ₹629

90.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$1.06 ₹101

-27.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.22 ₹20.91

4.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$1.85 ₹176

141.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.10 ₹104

19.09%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$11.7K ₹1.1M

80.95%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$18.4K ₹1.7M

4.02%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$31.51 ₹2,992

281.56%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$3.12 ₹297

348.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$4.74 ₹450

481.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$6.97 ₹662

363.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$3.20 ₹303

107.81%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$3.46 ₹329

63.29%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$80.2 ₹7,617

243.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$1,061 ₹100.7K

646.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$23.55 ₹2,236

109.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$28.89 ₹2,744

-12.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$23.92 ₹2,272

221.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$23.95 ₹2,275

138.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$72.1 ₹6,842

593.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$56.5 ₹5,361

447.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$259 ₹24.6K

315.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$206 ₹19.6K

198.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$651 ₹61.8K

-46.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

8.82

-18.37%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bhilai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Bhilai

$56 17.3% 81.7% $252

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Bhilai

$92 28.1% 55.5% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Bhilai

$39 12.1% 75.7% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Bhilai

$45 13.9% 51.9% $49

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Bhilai

$69 21.2% 21.8% $19

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Bhilai

$14 4.3% 68.1% $30

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Bhilai

$10 3.2% 33.8% $5.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $72.1 in Bhilai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bhilai pays 88% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $9.00 in Bhilai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $92.0 per month, with Bhilai cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇮🇳 Bhilai

🕒 Local time

00:32 12:32 AM

22:02 10:02 PM

2 h 30 min behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

627,734

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, 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).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Bhilai 4,690 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Bhilai

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 Bhilai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu and Bhilai differ by about 182% in total monthly costs ($918 vs $326 including rent). Bhilai is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 88% lower in Bhilai. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $72.1 in Bhilai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $275 in Cebu versus $80.2 in Bhilai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 125% higher in Cebu. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Bhilai 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, Cebu and Bhilai 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 Bhilai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 182% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.