Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Kumamoto

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,275 in Kumamoto, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
63

Cost of Living Index in Kumamoto
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Kumamoto Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Kumamoto

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,275

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Kumamoto

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,275 in Kumamoto.

Cebu $918
Kumamoto $1,275

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,968 in Kumamoto.

Cebu $1,409
Kumamoto $1,968

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,661 in Kumamoto.

Cebu $1,900
Kumamoto $2,661

Living in Cebu costs roughly 28% less than in Kumamoto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Kumamoto 6% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$7.11 ¥1,123

-56.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$31.31 ¥4,947

-22.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$6.04 ¥955

-35.10%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$3.21 ¥507

-21.81%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.99 ¥157

60.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.76 ¥121

-30.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$3.75 ¥593

-52.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$2.24 ¥353

-3.13%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.35 ¥213

42.22%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.85 ¥292

-26.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$6.70 ¥1,058

-84.93%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$1.86 ¥293

9.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$18.45 ¥2,915

-46.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$5.47 ¥865

-19.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$18.63 ¥2,944

-59.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.57 ¥565

-7.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.85 ¥292

-24.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$2.89 ¥457

-19.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$3.39 ¥535

-55.75%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$2.19 ¥347

7.76%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$2.62 ¥414

-27.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.06 ¥168

12.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.98 ¥154

-35.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$3.87 ¥611

-22.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$5.63 ¥890

7.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.66 ¥262

-25.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.90 ¥300

-7.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$1.37 ¥217

-81.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$57.2 ¥9,037

-77.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$3.85 ¥608

-80.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$2.08 ¥329

-88.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$18.13 ¥2,865

-75.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.10 ¥175

19.09%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$22.0K ¥3.5M

-3.47%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$17.7K ¥2.8M

8.13%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$207 ¥32.7K

-41.96%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$24.29 ¥3,838

-42.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$33.05 ¥5,222

-16.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$45.67 ¥7,215

-29.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$10.98 ¥1,735

-48.54%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$126 ¥20.0K

117.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$12.1K ¥1.9M

-34.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$48.65 ¥7,685

1.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$26.06 ¥4,118

-3.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$65.7 ¥10.4K

17.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$46.35 ¥7,323

23.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$524 ¥82.8K

-4.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$325 ¥51.3K

-4.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$1,110 ¥175.3K

-2.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$722 ¥114.1K

-14.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$4,521 ¥714.2K

-36.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$1,747 ¥276.0K

9.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

1.97

265.48%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Kumamoto: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Kumamoto

$325 25.5% 5.1% $16

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Kumamoto

$313 24.6% 52.3% $108

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Kumamoto

$265 20.8% 63.5% $103

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Kumamoto

$84 6.6% 10.5% $9.9

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Kumamoto

$144 11.3% 62.8% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Kumamoto

$68 5.3% 55% $24

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Kumamoto

$77 6% 394% $61

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $524 in Kumamoto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $31.00 in Kumamoto for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $313 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇯🇵 Kumamoto

🕒 Local time

15:20 3:20 PM

16:20 4:20 PM

1 h ahead of Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

738,865

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

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).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Kumamoto 2,600 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Kumamoto

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 Kumamoto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 39% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $1,912 in Kumamoto 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $524 in Kumamoto. 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 $1,275 in Kumamoto – a 39% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 353% less than in Kumamoto. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,275 in Kumamoto, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Kumamoto. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Cebu and Kumamoto 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 39% less than in Kumamoto. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.