Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Jeddah

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,360 in Jeddah, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$934
/mo nomad
Jeddah
🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia
$1,360
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Jeddah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $1,360 in Jeddah.

  • Cebu $934
  • Jeddah $1,360

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $2,168 in Jeddah.

  • Cebu $1,415
  • Jeddah $2,168

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $2,975 in Jeddah.

  • Cebu $1,896
  • Jeddah $2,975

Living in Cebu costs roughly 31% less than in Jeddah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 30% below, Jeddah is 2% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.03 ₱190
$6.04 SAR 22.68
-49.83%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$23.48 ₱1,473
$79.8 SAR 300
-70.57%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$4.09 ₱256
$8.75 SAR 32.85
-53.26%
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$2.43 SAR 9.11
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.63 SAR 9.88
-
Cappuccino
$2.52 ₱158
$3.77 SAR 14.16
-33.16%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.54 ₱96.9
$0.97 SAR 3.65
58.76%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.49 ₱30.98
$0.24 SAR 0.90
104.17%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.79 ₱112
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.26 ₱142
-
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.95 ₱122
$1.67 SAR 6.28
16.77%
White Bread (500g)
$1.43 ₱89.7
$1.33 SAR 4.99
7.52%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.02 ₱63.8
$2.37 SAR 8.89
-56.96%
Eggs
$2.06 ₱129
$2.48 SAR 9.31
-16.94%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.81 ₱615
$6.36 SAR 23.89
54.25%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.61 ₱289
$8.00 SAR 30.02
-42.37%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.70 ₱483
$13.31 SAR 49.98
-42.15%
Apples (1kg)
$3.31 ₱207
$2.10 SAR 7.90
57.62%
Banana (1kg)
$1.45 ₱90.9
$1.77 SAR 6.63
-18.08%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.36 ₱148
$1.54 SAR 5.80
53.25%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.54 ₱96.4
$1.69 SAR 6.36
-8.88%
Potato (1kg)
$2.36 ₱148
$1.13 SAR 4.26
108.85%
Onion (1kg)
$1.99 ₱125
$1.29 SAR 4.85
54.26%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.15 ₱72.1
$1.12 SAR 4.22
2.68%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.67 ₱42.15
$0.50 SAR 1.87
34.00%
Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)
-
$4.23 SAR 15.90
-
Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.84 SAR 6.92
-
Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.58 SAR 9.70
-
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₱188
$6.86 SAR 25.77
-56.27%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.35 ₱398
-
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.31 ₱81.9
-
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.73 ₱108
-
-
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 ₱15.78
$0.89 SAR 3.35
-71.91%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.65 ₱793
$55.5 SAR 208
-77.19%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.74 ₱46.32
$3.11 SAR 11.69
-76.21%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.21 ₱13.11
$1.77 SAR 6.65
-88.14%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.33 ₱271
$14.12 SAR 53.0
-69.33%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.33 ₱83.5
$0.59 SAR 2.21
125.42%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.8K ₱1.4M
$47.7K SAR 179.0K
-54.34%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.4K ₱1.2M
$21.4K SAR 80.4K
-9.44%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$121 ₱7,563
$90.3 SAR 339
33.50%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.45 ₱907
$39.04 SAR 147
-62.99%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.29 ₱1,774
$67.9 SAR 255
-58.33%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.68 ₱2,050
$79.6 SAR 299
-58.96%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.39 ₱401
$38.23 SAR 144
-83.29%
Cinema Ticket
$5.46 ₱342
$12.04 SAR 45.22
-54.65%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$273 ₱17.1K
$757 SAR 2,841
-63.86%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$8,156 ₱511.5K
$16.3K SAR 61.1K
-49.87%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.57 ₱3,109
$73.8 SAR 277
-32.80%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$24.87 ₱1,560
$56.0 SAR 210
-55.61%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$76.6 ₱4,804
$101 SAR 380
-24.35%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$59.3 ₱3,717
$94.3 SAR 354
-37.12%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$506 ₱31.7K
$790 SAR 2,966
-35.97%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ₱19.4K
$535 SAR 2,009
-42.17%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,052 ₱66.0K
$1,418 SAR 5,323
-25.81%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$619 ₱38.8K
$817 SAR 3,070
-24.28%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,915 ₱182.9K
$1,777 SAR 6,673
64.05%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,867 ₱117.1K
$1,143 SAR 4,291
63.38%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Jeddah
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$341 ₱21.4K
$1,646 SAR 6,180
-79.28%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
5.39
33.58%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Jeddah: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$309
Jeddah
$535 72.9% $226
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$210
Jeddah
$201 4.7% $9.8
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$163
Jeddah
$197 20.8% $34
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$95
Jeddah
$146 54.7% $52
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Jeddah
$125 41.1% $36
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$44
Jeddah
$104 138% $60
Getting Around
Cebu
$15
Jeddah
$71 360% $56

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $790 in Jeddah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Jeddah pays 383% 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 $80.0 in Jeddah. Groceries flip the comparison at $210 vs $201, with Jeddah cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇸🇦 Jeddah
🕒 Local time
19:59 7:59 PM
14:59 2:59 PM
5 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
3,430,697
💱 Currency
Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س
Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

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).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.238 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Jeddah 9,050 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Jeddah

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 Jeddah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Jeddah cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 46% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Cebu or Jeddah?
On paper, salaries run 383% lower in Jeddah. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Cebu and Jeddah?
Rent for a central apartment: $506 in Cebu versus $790 in Jeddah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Jeddah?
All in, you'll spend $934 per month in Cebu versus $1,360 in Jeddah – a 46% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 338% less than in Jeddah. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Cebu or in Jeddah?
At $934 in Cebu versus $1,360 in Jeddah, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Jeddah. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Jeddah more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Jeddah, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Jeddah?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Jeddah 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 46% less than in Jeddah. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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