Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Janub-as-surrah

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,266 in Janub-as-surrah, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$918
/mo nomad
Janub-as-surrah
🇰🇼 Kuwait
$1,266
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Janub-as-surrah

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 Janub-as-surrah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,266 in Janub-as-surrah.

  • Cebu $918
  • Janub-as-surrah $1,266

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,141 in Janub-as-surrah.

  • Cebu $1,409
  • Janub-as-surrah $2,141

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $3,015 in Janub-as-surrah.

  • Cebu $1,900
  • Janub-as-surrah $3,015

Living in Cebu costs roughly 28% less than in Janub-as-surrah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Janub-as-surrah 6% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.09 ₱194
$8.80 KWD 2.71
-64.89%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.22 ₱1,525
$66.2 KWD 20.39
-63.41%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.92 ₱247
$8.28 KWD 2.55
-52.66%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$3.22 KWD 0.99
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$3.06 KWD 0.94
-
Cappuccino
$2.51 ₱158
$5.56 KWD 1.71
-54.86%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.59 ₱100
$0.52 KWD 0.16
205.77%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 ₱33.43
$0.30 KWD 0.09
76.67%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱137
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 ₱121
$1.29 KWD 0.40
48.84%
White Bread (500g)
$1.36 ₱85.4
$0.90 KWD 0.28
51.11%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.01 ₱63.5
$1.82 KWD 0.56
-44.51%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$1.88 KWD 0.58
7.98%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.86 ₱621
$4.86 KWD 1.50
102.88%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.39 ₱277
$6.22 KWD 1.92
-29.42%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.60 ₱479
$9.68 KWD 2.98
-21.49%
Apples (1kg)
$3.30 ₱208
$2.24 KWD 0.69
47.32%
Banana (1kg)
$1.39 ₱87.8
$1.90 KWD 0.59
-26.84%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.33 ₱147
$1.35 KWD 0.42
72.59%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 ₱94.3
$1.71 KWD 0.53
-12.28%
Potato (1kg)
$2.36 ₱149
$1.34 KWD 0.41
76.12%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 ₱119
$0.86 KWD 0.27
120.93%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 ₱74.9
$1.42 KWD 0.44
-16.20%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.63 ₱39.71
$0.54 KWD 0.17
16.67%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$3.08 KWD 0.95
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$0.92 KWD 0.28
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$1.30 KWD 0.40
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₱189
$2.39 KWD 0.74
25.52%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.03 ₱379
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.7
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 ₱110
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 ₱15.86
$0.80 KWD 0.25
-68.75%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.64 ₱796
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.77 ₱48.62
$3.17 KWD 0.98
-75.71%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.23 ₱14.53
$3.34 KWD 1.03
-93.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.46 ₱281
$15.85 KWD 4.88
-71.86%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 ₱82.8
$0.34 KWD 0.10
285.29%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K ₱1.3M
$20.3K KWD 6,249
4.74%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.1K ₱1.2M
$21.0K KWD 6,469
-8.81%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ₱7,569
$71.9 KWD 22.17
67.13%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.00 ₱882
$21.29 KWD 6.56
-34.24%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.54 ₱1,734
$32.26 KWD 9.94
-14.63%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.33 ₱2,035
$92.8 KWD 28.58
-65.14%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.65 ₱419
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.65 ₱356
$11.56 KWD 3.56
-51.12%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$275 ₱17.3K
$306 KWD 94.2
-9.91%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,918 ₱498.5K
$6,692 KWD 2,062
18.33%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.33 ₱3,106
$42.91 KWD 13.22
14.96%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.24 ₱1,589
$41.90 KWD 12.91
-39.76%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.0 ₱4,846
$90.2 KWD 27.79
-14.68%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$57.2 ₱3,601
$81.8 KWD 25.21
-30.09%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$500 ₱31.5K
$760 KWD 234
-34.31%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ₱19.4K
$555 KWD 171
-44.39%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,078 ₱67.9K
$1,534 KWD 473
-29.72%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$615 ₱38.7K
$1,258 KWD 388
-51.11%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,886 ₱181.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,917 ₱120.7K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Janub-as-surrah
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$346 ₱21.8K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
6.53
10.26%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Janub-as-surrah: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$309
Janub-as-surrah
$555 79.8% $247
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$206
Janub-as-surrah
$166 19.4% $40
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$162
Janub-as-surrah
$125 22.4% $36
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Janub-as-surrah
$116 23% $22
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Janub-as-surrah
$165 87.2% $77
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$44
Janub-as-surrah
$116 166% $72
Getting Around
Cebu
$16
Janub-as-surrah
$23 * 48.3% $7.5

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $760 in Janub-as-surrah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $66.0 in Janub-as-surrah. Groceries flip the comparison at $206 vs $166, with Janub-as-surrah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇰🇼 Janub-as-surrah
🕒 Local time
20:40 8:40 PM
15:40 3:40 PM
5 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
18,496
💱 Currency
Kuwaiti Dinar KWD د.ك
Exchange rates and currency converter

KWD, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

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).

Kuwaiti Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.308 KWD (1 KWD = 3.25 USD). 1 EUR = 0.346 KWD (1 KWD = 2.89 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Janub-as-surrah 8,090 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Janub-as-surrah

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 Janub-as-surrah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Janub-as-surrah cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 38% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $1,900 in Janub-as-surrah to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
What is the rent difference between Cebu and Janub-as-surrah?
Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $760 in Janub-as-surrah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do food prices compare in Cebu and in Janub-as-surrah?
Shoppers in Janub-as-surrah pay roughly 24% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Janub-as-surrah?
All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $1,266 in Janub-as-surrah – a 38% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Cebu or in Janub-as-surrah?
At $918 in Cebu versus $1,266 in Janub-as-surrah, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Janub-as-surrah. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Janub-as-surrah more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Janub-as-surrah, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Janub-as-surrah?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Janub-as-surrah are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Janub-as-surrah. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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