Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Bra

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,544 in Bra, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
75

Cost of Living Index in Bra
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Bra Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Bra

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,544

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Bra

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,544 in Bra.

Cebu $918
Bra $1,544

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,240 in Bra.

Cebu $1,409
Bra $2,240

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,936 in Bra.

Cebu $1,900
Bra $2,936

Living in Cebu costs roughly 41% less than in Bra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Bra is 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$22.77 €20.25

-86.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$38.73 €34.45

-37.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$10.94 €9.73

-64.17%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.74 €1.55

44.25%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$3.75 €3.33

-57.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$1.69 €1.51

-68.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$5.53 €4.92

-67.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$4.53 €4.03

-52.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.66 €1.48

15.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$2.57 €2.28

-47.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$2.59 €2.31

-61.00%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.25 €2.89

-37.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$12.99 €11.55

-24.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$11.54 €10.27

-61.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$18.67 €16.61

-59.29%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.21 €1.97

49.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$2.18 €1.94

-36.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$2.19 €1.94

6.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$3.32 €2.96

-54.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.71 €1.52

38.01%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.69 €1.51

12.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.10 €0.98

8.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.57 €0.51

10.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$6.56 €5.83

-54.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$5.99 €5.32

0.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.64 €1.46

-25.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.22 €1.97

-21.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$1.71 €1.52

-85.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$44.74 €39.80

-71.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$7.85 €6.98

-90.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$2.29 €2.03

-89.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$11.11 €9.88

-59.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$2.08 €1.85

-37.02%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$26.4K €23.5K

-19.64%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$29.8K €26.5K

-35.77%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$111 €98.8

8.31%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$10.10 €8.98

38.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$28.41 €25.27

-3.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$79.3 €70.5

-59.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$9.02 €8.02

-37.36%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$113 €100

143.83%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$18.5K €16.4K

-57.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$102 €90.6

-51.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$50.4 €44.86

-49.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$114 €102

-32.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$133 €118

-56.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$656 €584

-23.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$440 €391

-29.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$553 €492

94.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$502 €446

22.61%

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

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

3.1

132.26%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bra: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Bra

$440 28.5% 42.5% $131

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Bra

$312 20.2% 51.7% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Bra

$150 9.7% 7.6% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Bra

$180 11.6% 91.3% $86

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Bra

$294 19.1% 234% $206

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Bra

$97 6.3% 123% $54

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Bra

$71 4.6% 355% $55

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $656 in Bra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $39.00 in Bra for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $312 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇮🇹 Bra

🕒 Local time

10:21 10:21 AM

04:21 4:21 AM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

30,224

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Bra 11,170 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Bra

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 Bra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu wins on cost – living expenses run 68% lower than in Bra. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Cebu the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $2,316 in Bra 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $656 in Bra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $275 in Cebu versus $113 in Bra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 52% higher in Bra. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,544 in Bra, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Bra. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Cebu delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $918 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Cebu hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Bra 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Bra. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.