Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Buon Ma Thuot

For one person, living is cheaper in Buon Ma Thuot: $757 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Buon Ma Thuot
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Buon Ma Thuot Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Buon Ma Thuot

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$757

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Buon Ma Thuot

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 Buon Ma Thuot actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $918 per month in Cebu vs $757 in Buon Ma Thuot, rent included.

Cebu $918
Buon Ma Thuot $757

A couple spends around $1,409 per month in Cebu vs $1,197 in Buon Ma Thuot, rent included.

Cebu $1,409
Buon Ma Thuot $1,197

A family of three spends $1,900 per month in Cebu vs $1,637 in Buon Ma Thuot, rent included.

Cebu $1,900
Buon Ma Thuot $1,637

Cebu costs about 21% more than Buon Ma Thuot, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Cebu and Buon Ma Thuot are more affordable than the global median – Cebu 32% lower, Buon Ma Thuot 44% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$2.03 ₫52.6K

52.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$11.39 ₫294.9K

112.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$4.31 ₫111.5K

-9.05%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.00 ₫25.8K

151.00%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.36 ₫9,357

341.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.33 ₫8,617

60.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$1.28 ₫33.2K

39.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$1.30 ₫33.6K

66.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.48 ₫38.4K

29.73%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.10 ₫28.4K

23.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$0.99 ₫25.7K

2.02%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$1.53 ₫39.6K

32.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$11.17 ₫289.3K

-11.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$3.81 ₫98.6K

15.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$10.04 ₫260.0K

-24.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.07 ₫79.5K

7.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.09 ₫28.1K

27.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.30 ₫33.7K

79.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$1.22 ₫31.7K

22.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.03 ₫26.8K

129.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.11 ₫28.7K

71.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.64 ₫16.6K

85.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.55 ₫14.1K

14.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$1.37 ₫35.6K

118.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$11.95 ₫309.3K

-49.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$0.88 ₫22.8K

39.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.63 ₫42.3K

7.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$0.32 ₫8,256

-21.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$6.68 ₫172.9K

89.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$0.77 ₫19.9K

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.55 ₫14.3K

-58.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$2.42 ₫62.7K

84.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$0.90 ₫23.2K

45.56%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$30.7K ₫795.2M

-30.84%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$30.3K ₫784.4M

-36.81%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$75.7 ₫2.0M

58.80%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$5.69 ₫147.2K

146.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$8.71 ₫225.4K

216.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$21.98 ₫568.9K

47.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$7.82 ₫202.4K

-14.96%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$3.01 ₫77.9K

87.71%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$162 ₫4.2M

70.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$12.2K ₫316.4M

-35.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$45.58 ₫1.2M

8.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$26.78 ₫693.3K

-5.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$84.6 ₫2.2M

-9.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$78.5 ₫2.0M

-27.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$414 ₫10.7M

20.55%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$271 ₫7.0M

13.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$754 ₫19.5M

42.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$605 ₫15.7M

1.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$2,867 ₫74.2M

0.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$1,326 ₫34.3M

44.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

8.46

-14.89%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Buon Ma Thuot: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Buon Ma Thuot

$271 35.8% 12.2% $38

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Buon Ma Thuot

$198 26.1% 3.9% $8.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Buon Ma Thuot

$90 11.9% 44.3% $72

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Buon Ma Thuot

$106 14% 12.8% $12

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Buon Ma Thuot

$53 7% 40% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Buon Ma Thuot

$28 3.7% 35.8% $16

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Buon Ma Thuot

$11 1.5% 26.3% $4.1

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $500 in Cebu versus $414 in Buon Ma Thuot. 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 $11.00 in Buon Ma Thuot. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $206 vs $198 – making Buon Ma Thuot the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇻🇳 Buon Ma Thuot

🕒 Local time

22:05 10:05 PM

21:05 9:05 PM

1 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

245,951

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

VND, 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).

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 25,889 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,105 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cebu Buon Ma Thuot 1,750 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Buon Ma Thuot

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 Buon Ma Thuot: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $918 in Cebu, $757 in Buon Ma Thuot – roughly 21% 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 $1,136 in Buon Ma Thuot. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Buon Ma Thuot, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $24.00 in Cebu and $11.00 in Buon Ma Thuot. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $918 in Cebu and $757 in Buon Ma Thuot. That's a gap of about 21%.

$1,200 covers both cities comfortably – all-in costs are $918 in Cebu and $757 in Buon Ma Thuot, leaving budget for savings and extras in both cases.

It depends on your priorities. Cebu has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $757 in Buon Ma Thuot to $918 in Cebu. 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 Buon Ma Thuot. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Cebu makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.