Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $426 a month against $934 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 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
21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$426

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Dhaka

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $426 in Dhaka.

Cebu $934
Dhaka $426

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $735 in Dhaka.

Cebu $1,415
Dhaka $735

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $1,043 in Dhaka.

Cebu $1,896
Dhaka $1,043

Living in Cebu is roughly 119% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 30% lower, Dhaka 68% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱191

$2.49 ৳306

21.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,476

$13.06 ৳1,605

79.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱257

$4.83 ৳594

-15.32%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 ৳606

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 ৳504

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$2.34 ৳287

7.69%

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

$1.54 ₱97.2

$0.30 ৳37.39

413.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.06

$0.16 ৳19.96

206.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱113

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$0.80 ৳98.1

143.75%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.9

$0.65 ৳79.3

120.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱64.0

$0.71 ৳87.3

43.66%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$1.21 ৳149

70.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱617

$8.67 ৳1,065

13.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱290

$3.21 ৳395

43.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱484

$6.70 ৳823

14.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱208

$2.73 ৳335

21.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱91.2

$0.88 ৳109

64.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$2.37 ৳291

-0.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.6

$0.65 ৳79.6

136.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$0.24 ৳29.20

883.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$0.49 ৳60.7

306.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.3

$0.32 ৳38.88

259.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.26

$0.30 ৳37.31

123.33%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.07 ৳1,483

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.51 ৳677

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.66 ৳819

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$3.23 ৳396

-7.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱399

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱82.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱109

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.82

$0.42 ৳52.1

-40.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱796

$22.54 ৳2,770

-43.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.44

$1.19 ৳147

-37.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.15

$0.40 ৳48.60

-47.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱272

$3.35 ৳411

29.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.7

$1.15 ৳141

15.65%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$30.3K ৳3.7M

-28.15%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$33.0K ৳4.1M

-41.28%

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

$121 ₱7,583

$46.32 ৳5,692

160.32%

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

$14.45 ₱909

$4.33 ৳532

233.72%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,779

$10.63 ৳1,306

166.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,055

$16.37 ৳2,012

99.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱402

$16.14 ৳1,983

-60.41%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱343

$4.13 ৳508

32.20%

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

$273 ₱17.2K

$90.7 ৳11.1K

201.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱512.9K

$2,649 ৳325.5K

207.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,117

$16.48 ৳2,025

200.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,564

$21.00 ৳2,580

18.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,817

$50.3 ৳6,175

52.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,727

$36.46 ৳4,480

62.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.8K

$152 ৳18.6K

233.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.5K

$73.6 ৳9,044

320.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.1K

$436 ৳53.6K

141.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.9K

$214 ৳26.3K

189.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱183.4K

$1,622 ৳199.3K

79.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.4K

$761 ৳93.5K

145.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.5K

$249 ৳30.6K

37.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

10.48

-31.30%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Dhaka

$74 17.1% 76.2% $236

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Dhaka

$123 28.5% 41.7% $88

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Dhaka

$61 14.3% 62.5% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Dhaka

$56 13% 40.9% $39

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Dhaka

$64 15% 27.3% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Dhaka

$25 5.7% 43.5% $19

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Dhaka

$27 6.4% 77.5% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $152 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 37% 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 $13.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $123 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

11:31 11:31 AM

09:31 9:31 AM

2 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, USD, EUR 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).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 123 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.14 USD). 1 EUR = 138 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.26 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Dhaka 3,850 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Dhaka

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 Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 119% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Cebu, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $506 in Cebu versus $152 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $934 per month in Cebu versus $426 in Dhaka – a 119% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 78% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Dhaka is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cebu, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Dhaka 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 119% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.