Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Braintree

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $2,191 in Braintree, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Braintree
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Braintree Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Braintree

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,191

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Braintree

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

A single person spends $918 per month in Cebu vs $2,191 in Braintree, rent included.

Cebu $918
Braintree $2,191

A couple spends around $1,409 per month in Cebu vs $3,260 in Braintree, rent included.

Cebu $1,409
Braintree $3,260

A family of three spends $1,900 per month in Cebu vs $4,329 in Braintree, rent included.

Cebu $1,900
Braintree $4,329

Cebu is about 58% cheaper than Braintree, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cebu sits 32% below the global median, while Braintree is 62% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$20.01 £15.01

-84.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$91.5 £68.6

-73.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$10.44 £7.83

-62.45%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$4.61 £3.46

-45.55%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$1.82 £1.36

-12.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$1.13 £0.85

-53.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$6.71 £5.03

-73.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$5.90 £4.42

-63.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.43 £1.07

34.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.38 £1.03

-1.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$1.64 £1.23

-38.41%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$2.95 £2.21

-31.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$8.65 £6.49

13.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$7.74 £5.81

-43.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$12.97 £9.73

-41.40%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.15 £2.36

4.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.40 £1.05

-0.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$2.58 £1.94

-9.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$2.78 £2.08

-46.04%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.65 £1.24

43.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.41 £1.06

34.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.19 £0.89

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$1.36 £1.02

-53.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$23.37 £17.53

-87.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$9.00 £6.75

-33.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$2.69 £2.02

-54.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.34 £1.75

-25.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$3.42 £2.56

-92.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$94.4 £70.9

-86.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$4.77 £3.58

-83.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$1.29 £0.97

-82.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$21.52 £16.14

-79.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$2.09 £1.57

-37.32%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$37.4K £28.0K

-43.18%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$40.0K £30.0K

-52.15%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$249 £186

-51.62%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$14.35 £10.77

-2.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$40.48 £30.37

-31.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$45.52 £34.15

-28.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$21.07 £15.81

-73.18%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$1,070 £802

-74.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$19.9K £14.9K

-60.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$69.7 £52.3

-29.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$31.23 £23.43

-19.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$77.9 £58.4

-1.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$49.97 £37.49

14.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$1,220 £915

-59.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$1,010 £758

-69.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$2,060 £1,545

-47.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$1,682 £1,262

-63.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$5,118 £3,839

-43.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$3,798 £2,850

-49.54%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

4.67

54.18%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Braintree: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Braintree

$1K 46.1% 227% $701

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Braintree

$263 12% 27.9% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Braintree

$303 13.9% 87.5% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Braintree

$103 4.7% 9.6% $9

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Braintree

$304 13.9% 244% $216

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Braintree

$88 4% 101% $44

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Braintree

$119 5.5% 666% $104

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $500 in Cebu versus $1,220 in Braintree. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24.00 in Cebu versus $91.0 in Braintree. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $206 vs $263 – making Cebu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇬🇧 Braintree

🕒 Local time

11:20 11:20 AM

04:20 4:20 AM

7 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

151,677

💱 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 18, 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 18, 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 Braintree 11,250 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Braintree

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 Braintree: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $918 in Cebu, $2,191 in Braintree – roughly 139% 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 $3,286 in Braintree. 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.

Groceries cost about 28% more in Braintree, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24.00 in Cebu and $91.0 in Braintree. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Cebu, where all-in costs run around $918, than in Braintree at $2,191. In Cebu it covers expenses comfortably, while in Braintree 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 $2,191 in Braintree. 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, Braintree makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.