Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Blackburn

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $2,048 in Blackburn, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 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
99

Cost of Living Index in Blackburn
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Blackburn Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Blackburn

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Blackburn

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

A single person spends $918 per month in Cebu vs $2,048 in Blackburn, rent included.

Cebu $918
Blackburn $2,048

A couple spends around $1,409 per month in Cebu vs $3,031 in Blackburn, rent included.

Cebu $1,409
Blackburn $3,031

A family of three spends $1,900 per month in Cebu vs $4,015 in Blackburn, rent included.

Cebu $1,900
Blackburn $4,015

Cebu is about 55% cheaper than Blackburn, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cebu sits 32% below the global median, while Blackburn is 52% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$14.48 £10.86

-78.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$55.6 £41.73

-56.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$8.15 £6.11

-51.90%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$4.06 £3.04

-38.18%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$2.71 £2.03

-41.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$1.45 £1.09

-63.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$4.40 £3.30

-59.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$5.32 £3.99

-59.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.61 £1.21

19.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.49 £1.12

-8.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$2.37 £1.78

-57.38%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.43 £2.57

-40.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$11.02 £8.27

-10.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$8.71 £6.54

-49.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$15.51 £11.64

-51.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$1.56 £1.17

111.54%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.63 £1.22

-14.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$2.35 £1.76

-0.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$3.06 £2.30

-50.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.48 £1.11

59.46%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.52 £1.14

25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.45 £0.33

164.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.73 £0.55

-13.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$20.27 £15.21

-85.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$9.43 £7.07

-36.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$2.20 £1.65

-44.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.93 £1.45

-9.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$2.66 £1.99

-90.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$73.1 £54.8

-82.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$2.56 £1.92

-69.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$1.99 £1.49

-88.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$17.82 £13.37

-74.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$2.00 £1.50

-34.50%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$37.8K £28.3K

-43.73%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$40.6K £30.5K

-52.88%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$251 £189

-52.16%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$16.61 £12.46

-15.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$28.77 £21.58

-4.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$44.83 £33.63

-27.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$12.11 £9.08

-45.09%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$9.37 £7.03

-39.70%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$1,069 £802

-74.25%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$22.4K £16.8K

-64.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$87.5 £65.6

-43.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$47.07 £35.31

-46.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$89.6 £67.2

-14.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$68.5 £51.4

-16.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$1,200 £901

-58.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$950 £713

-67.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$1,885 £1,414

-42.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$1,681 £1,261

-63.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$4,975 £3,732

-41.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$3,792 £2,845

-49.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$2,119 £1,590

-83.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

4.99

44.29%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Blackburn: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Blackburn

$950 46.4% 208% $642

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Blackburn

$271 13.3% 31.8% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Blackburn

$297 14.5% 83.4% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Blackburn

$132 6.4% 40.2% $38

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Blackburn

$238 11.6% 170% $150

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Blackburn

$64 3.1% 45.7% $20

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Blackburn

$96 4.7% 518% $81

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $500 in Cebu versus $1,200 in Blackburn. 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 512% higher in Blackburn, 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 $24.00 in Cebu versus $56.0 in Blackburn. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $206 vs $271 – making Cebu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇬🇧 Blackburn

🕒 Local time

03:50 3:50 AM

20:50 8:50 PM

7 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

105,000

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Blackburn 11,300 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Blackburn

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 Blackburn: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $918 in Cebu, $2,048 in Blackburn – roughly 123% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,377 per month in Cebu and $3,072 in Blackburn. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $918 in Cebu and $2,048 in Blackburn. That's a gap of about 123%.

Public transport costs about 478% less in Cebu. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cebu, where all-in costs run around $918, than in Blackburn at $2,048. In Cebu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Blackburn 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 $918 in Cebu to $2,048 in Blackburn. 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, Blackburn makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.