Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Kohima

For one person, living is cheaper in Kohima: $369 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
17

Cost of Living Index in Kohima
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Kohima Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Kohima

🇮🇳 India

$369

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Kohima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $369 in Kohima.

Cebu $918
Kohima $369

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $577 in Kohima.

Cebu $1,409
Kohima $577

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $785 in Kohima.

Cebu $1,900
Kohima $785

Living in Cebu is roughly 149% more expensive than in Kohima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Kohima 73% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$2.34 ₹222

32.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$8.66 ₹822

179.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$3.68 ₹350

6.52%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.60 ₹152

56.87%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.40 ₹38.28

297.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.10 ₹9.79

430.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$1.26 ₹120

41.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$3.44 ₹327

-36.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$0.66 ₹62.8

190.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$0.41 ₹38.79

231.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$0.54 ₹51.4

87.04%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$0.83 ₹78.8

144.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$2.76 ₹262

257.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$3.39 ₹322

29.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.21 ₹209

49.32%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$0.66 ₹62.7

110.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$0.94 ₹89.1

147.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$0.67 ₹63.5

123.88%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$0.30 ₹28.42

686.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$0.35 ₹32.90

442.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.31 ₹29.31

283.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.29 ₹27.63

117.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$2.13 ₹202

40.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$7.02 ₹667

-14.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.64 ₹155

-25.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.50 ₹237

-30.00%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.08 ₹293

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$0.26 ₹24.79

-3.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$7.14 ₹678

77.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$0.73 ₹69.1

5.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.30 ₹28.81

-23.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$1.35 ₹128

230.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.00 ₹94.8

31.00%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$12.3K ₹1.2M

72.20%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$16.2K ₹1.5M

18.14%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$35.29 ₹3,351

240.69%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$3.19 ₹303

338.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$6.36 ₹604

333.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$14.01 ₹1,330

130.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$7.13 ₹677

-6.73%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$3.19 ₹303

77.12%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$27.89 ₹2,649

887.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$2,260 ₹214.6K

250.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$17.33 ₹1,646

184.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$30.67 ₹2,912

-17.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$38.15 ₹3,623

101.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$26.80 ₹2,545

113.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$106 ₹10.0K

372.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$80.8 ₹7,676

282.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$301 ₹28.6K

257.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$176 ₹16.7K

249.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$870 ₹82.6K

231.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$512 ₹48.6K

274.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$208 ₹19.7K

66.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

7.38

-2.44%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Kohima: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Kohima

$81 21.9% 73.8% $228

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Kohima

$97 26.3% 52.9% $109

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Kohima

$45 12.2% 72.3% $117

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Kohima

$51 13.8% 45.9% $43

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Kohima

$64 17.4% 27.3% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Kohima

$20 5.5% 53.3% $23

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Kohima

$10 2.8% 33% $5.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $106 in Kohima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 67% 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: $24.00 in Cebu vs $9.00 in Kohima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $97.0 per month, with Kohima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇮🇳 Kohima

🕒 Local time

04:20 4:20 AM

01:50 1:50 AM

2 h 30 min behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

115,283

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Kohima 3,570 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Kohima

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 Kohima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Kohima is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 149% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 67% 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: $500 in Cebu versus $106 in Kohima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $369 in Kohima – a 149% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Kohima runs roughly 77% 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 Kohima gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Kohima 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 Kohima 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 Kohima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 149% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.