Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Mamaia

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,038 in Mamaia, rent and utilities included – about $1,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Mamaia
Learn more

Mamaia Living Index

Jump to prices

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Mamaia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,038

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Mamaia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,038 in Mamaia.

Cebu $918
Mamaia $1,038

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,573 in Mamaia.

Cebu $1,409
Mamaia $1,573

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,108 in Mamaia.

Cebu $1,900
Mamaia $2,108

Living in Cebu costs roughly 12% less than in Mamaia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Mamaia 23% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$9.93 RON 46.98

-68.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$45.60 RON 216

-46.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$7.60 RON 35.96

-48.42%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$2.65 RON 12.55

-5.28%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$1.97 RON 9.34

-19.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$1.80 RON 8.52

-70.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$2.28 RON 10.77

-21.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$2.83 RON 13.38

-23.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.46 RON 6.92

31.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.24 RON 5.89

9.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$1.68 RON 7.96

-39.88%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.36 RON 15.91

-39.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$8.27 RON 39.11

19.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$6.74 RON 31.88

-34.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$9.56 RON 45.24

-20.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$1.17 RON 5.54

182.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.58 RON 7.46

-12.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.62 RON 7.65

43.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$2.23 RON 10.53

-32.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$0.81 RON 3.81

191.36%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$0.89 RON 4.19

113.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.93 RON 4.40

27.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.78 RON 3.67

-19.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$5.85 RON 27.68

-48.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$6.14 RON 29.04

-1.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.06 RON 5.02

16.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.61 RON 7.62

8.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$0.67 RON 3.19

-62.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$19.50 RON 92.3

-35.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$0.71 RON 3.36

8.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.76 RON 3.58

-69.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$6.96 RON 32.95

-35.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.55 RON 7.34

-15.48%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$27.6K RON 130.7K

-23.09%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$27.7K RON 131.0K

-30.83%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$146 RON 693

-17.93%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$7.93 RON 37.52

76.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$9.06 RON 42.86

203.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$41.75 RON 198

-22.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$18.91 RON 89.5

-64.83%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$6.96 RON 32.94

-18.82%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$429 RON 2,027

-35.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$6,889 RON 32.6K

14.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$69.6 RON 329

-29.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$39.57 RON 187

-36.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$75.0 RON 355

2.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$93.5 RON 442

-38.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$390 RON 1,845

28.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$296 RON 1,400

4.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$583 RON 2,758

84.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$432 RON 2,042

42.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$1,901 RON 8,996

51.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$1,517 RON 7,175

26.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

6.5

10.77%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mamaia: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Mamaia

$296 28.5% 4.2% $13

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Mamaia

$205 19.8% 0.2% $0.5

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Mamaia

$163 15.7% 1.1% $1.7

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Mamaia

$125 12% 33% $31

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Mamaia

$166 16% 88.3% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Mamaia

$56 5.4% 27.6% $12

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Mamaia

$27 2.6% 71.4% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $390 in Mamaia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $46.00 in Mamaia. Groceries flip the comparison at $206 vs $205, with Mamaia cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇷🇴 Mamaia

🕒 Local time

08:48 8:48 AM

03:48 3:48 AM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

441

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, 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).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Mamaia 9,630 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Mamaia

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 Mamaia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 13% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $1,557 in Mamaia 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 $390 in Mamaia. 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 $1,038 in Mamaia – a 13% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 54% less than in Mamaia. 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 Cebu gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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

Safety-wise, Cebu and Mamaia 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 13% less than in Mamaia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.