Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Cardiff

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $2,463 in Cardiff, rent and utilities included – about $18,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,463

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Cardiff

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $2,463 in Cardiff.

Cebu $934
Cardiff $2,463

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $3,467 in Cardiff.

Cebu $1,415
Cardiff $3,467

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $4,470 in Cardiff.

Cebu $1,896
Cardiff $4,470

Living in Cebu costs roughly 62% less than in Cardiff, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 30% below, Cardiff is 84% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱190

$19.59 £14.80

-84.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,473

$82.6 £62.4

-71.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱256

$10.73 £8.11

-61.88%

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$4.60 £3.47

-45.22%

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

$1.54 ₱96.9

$2.98 £2.25

-48.32%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$2.00 £1.51

-75.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

$7.79 £5.88

-77.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

$6.42 £4.85

-64.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.72 £1.30

13.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.7

$1.47 £1.11

-2.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱63.8

$2.25 £1.70

-54.67%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$3.72 £2.81

-44.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱615

$9.18 £6.93

6.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱289

$8.75 £6.61

-47.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱483

$16.29 £12.31

-52.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱207

$2.81 £2.12

17.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱90.9

$1.54 £1.16

-5.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$2.98 £2.25

-20.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.4

$3.65 £2.76

-57.81%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.90 £1.43

24.21%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$1.48 £1.12

34.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$1.11 £0.84

3.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.15

$1.63 £1.23

-58.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱188

$23.34 £17.64

-87.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

$11.17 £8.44

-43.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

$3.11 £2.35

-57.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

$3.33 £2.52

-48.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$3.30 £2.50

-92.42%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱793

$78.6 £59.4

-83.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.32

$4.56 £3.45

-83.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$1.74 £1.31

-87.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱271

$35.83 £27.08

-87.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.5

$2.14 £1.62

-37.85%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$37.8K £28.6K

-42.49%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$41.3K £31.2K

-52.98%

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

$121 ₱7,563

$343 £259

-64.88%

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

$14.45 ₱907

$25.85 £19.54

-44.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,774

$43.60 £32.95

-35.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,050

$38.02 £28.73

-14.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱401

$11.52 £8.70

-44.53%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱342

$10.65 £8.05

-48.73%

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

$273 ₱17.1K

$1,978 £1,495

-86.18%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱511.5K

$32.8K £24.8K

-75.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,109

$100 £75.6

-50.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,560

$47.31 £35.75

-47.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,804

$120 £90.6

-36.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,717

$99.3 £75.0

-40.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.7K

$1,158 £875

-56.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$1,097 £829

-71.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.0K

$2,185 £1,651

-51.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.8K

$1,514 £1,144

-59.10%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱182.9K

$5,353 £4,045

-45.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.1K

$3,479 £2,629

-46.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.4K

$3,223 £2,435

-89.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.11

40.90%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cardiff: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.6% 255% $788

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Cardiff

$307 12.5% 45.7% $96

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Cardiff

$413 16.8% 153% $249

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Cardiff

$165 6.7% 74.3% $70

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Cardiff

$316 12.8% 257% $227

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Cardiff

$59 2.4% 36.1% $16

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Cardiff

$105 4.3% 581% $90

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $1,158 in Cardiff. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cardiff pays 845% 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 $83.0 in Cardiff for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $307 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🕒 Local time

20:05 8:05 PM

13:05 1:05 PM

7 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

346,100

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cebu Cardiff 11,480 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Cardiff

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 Cardiff: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu and Cardiff differ by about 164% in total monthly costs ($934 vs $2,463 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 845% lower in Cardiff. 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 $1,158 in Cardiff. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cebu – a meal for two runs $23.00 versus $83.0 in Cardiff. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $934 per month in Cebu versus $2,463 in Cardiff – a 164% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $934 in Cebu versus $2,463 in Cardiff, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Cardiff. 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 Cardiff 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 164% less than in Cardiff. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.