Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Braga

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,581 in Braga, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
76

Cost of Living Index in Braga
Learn more

Braga Living Index

Jump to prices

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Braga

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,581

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Braga

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $1,581 in Braga.

Cebu $934
Braga $1,581

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $2,229 in Braga.

Cebu $1,415
Braga $2,229

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $2,877 in Braga.

Cebu $1,896
Braga $2,877

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

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 30% below, Braga is 18% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱191

$11.07 €9.87

-72.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,476

$46.89 €41.81

-49.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱257

$8.94 €7.97

-54.25%

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$1.94 €1.73

29.90%

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

$1.54 ₱97.2

$2.11 €1.88

-27.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.06

$1.22 €1.09

-59.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱113

$3.29 €2.93

-45.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

$2.19 €1.95

3.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.07 €0.95

82.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.9

$2.03 €1.81

-29.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱64.0

$1.75 €1.56

-41.71%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$3.44 €3.07

-40.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱617

$9.57 €8.54

2.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱290

$7.85 €7.00

-41.27%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱484

$14.87 €13.26

-48.22%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱208

$2.40 €2.14

37.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱91.2

$1.35 €1.20

7.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.85 €1.65

27.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.6

$2.82 €2.52

-45.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.93 €1.72

22.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$1.91 €1.71

4.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.3

$1.21 €1.08

-4.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.26

$0.89 €0.79

-24.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$6.40 €5.70

-53.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱399

$4.57 €4.07

38.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱82.1

$1.26 €1.12

3.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱109

$1.68 €1.50

2.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.82

$1.71 €1.53

-85.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱796

$22.56 €20.12

-43.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.44

$4.43 €3.95

-83.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.15

$1.77 €1.58

-88.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱272

$16.45 €14.67

-73.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.7

$2.19 €1.95

-39.27%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$34.1K €30.4K

-36.25%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$37.6K €33.5K

-48.44%

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

$121 ₱7,583

$110 €98.3

9.41%

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

$14.45 ₱909

$16.98 €15.14

-14.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,779

$45.96 €40.98

-38.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,055

$44.90 €40.03

-27.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱402

$13.18 €11.75

-51.52%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱343

$8.74 €7.79

-37.53%

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

$273 ₱17.2K

$342 €305

-19.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱512.9K

$9,863 €8,794

-17.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,117

$65.4 €58.3

-24.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,564

$37.66 €33.57

-33.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,817

$82.3 €73.4

-6.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,727

$99.1 €88.3

-40.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.8K

$919 €820

-45.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.5K

$728 €649

-57.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.1K

$1,376 €1,226

-23.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.9K

$1,043 €930

-40.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱183.4K

$2,539 €2,264

14.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.4K

$1,849 €1,649

0.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.5K

$1,258 €1,122

-72.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

3.55

102.82%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Braga: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Braga

$728 46.8% 135% $419

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Braga

$250 16% 18.8% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Braga

$173 11.1% 6% $9.8

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Braga

$128 8.2% 35.3% $33

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Braga

$173 11.1% 95.6% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Braga

$62 4% 43.1% $19

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Braga

$43 2.7% 177% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $919 in Braga. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Braga pays 269% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $23.00 in Cebu vs $47.00 in Braga for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $250 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇵🇹 Braga

🕒 Local time

13:03 1:03 PM

06:03 6:03 AM

7 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

193,349

💱 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 = 62.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.54 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 Braga 12,470 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Braga

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 Braga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu and Braga differ by about 69% in total monthly costs ($934 vs $1,581 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 269% lower in Braga. 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: $506 in Cebu versus $919 in Braga. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $273 in Cebu versus $342 in Braga. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 19% higher in Braga. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $934 in Cebu versus $1,581 in Braga, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Braga. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Braga 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 69% less than in Braga. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.