Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Mandal

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $2,676 in Mandal, rent and utilities included – about $21,100 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
134

Cost of Living Index in Mandal
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Mandal Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Mandal

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,676

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Mandal

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $2,676 in Mandal.

Cebu $918
Mandal $2,676

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $4,083 in Mandal.

Cebu $1,409
Mandal $4,083

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $5,489 in Mandal.

Cebu $1,900
Mandal $5,489

Living in Cebu costs roughly 66% less than in Mandal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Mandal is 98% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$25.13 NOK 237

-87.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$95.9 NOK 902

-74.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$15.40 NOK 145

-74.55%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$6.19 NOK 58.3

-59.45%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$5.22 NOK 49.16

-69.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$4.33 NOK 40.79

-87.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$13.54 NOK 127

-86.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$12.24 NOK 115

-82.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$2.23 NOK 20.96

-13.90%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$3.45 NOK 32.48

-60.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$3.85 NOK 36.26

-73.77%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.08 NOK 28.98

-34.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$13.34 NOK 126

-26.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$16.74 NOK 158

-73.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$35.07 NOK 330

-78.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.44 NOK 32.34

-4.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$2.76 NOK 25.94

-49.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$3.47 NOK 32.64

-32.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$4.94 NOK 46.52

-69.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$2.56 NOK 24.06

-7.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$2.98 NOK 28.07

-36.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.59 NOK 14.93

-25.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$2.29 NOK 21.53

-72.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$17.56 NOK 165

-82.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$18.44 NOK 174

-67.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$3.20 NOK 30.14

-61.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.92 NOK 27.52

-40.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$5.21 NOK 49.04

-95.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$93.3 NOK 878

-86.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$5.61 NOK 52.8

-86.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$1.18 NOK 11.10

-80.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$104 NOK 977

-95.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$2.17 NOK 20.40

-39.63%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$48.1K NOK 452.9K

-55.84%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$41.5K NOK 390.9K

-53.90%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$241 NOK 2,269

-50.11%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$34.97 NOK 329

-59.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$83.0 NOK 781

-66.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$49.37 NOK 465

-34.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$34.13 NOK 321

-80.52%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$21.90 NOK 206

-74.20%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$319 NOK 2,998

-13.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$14.0K NOK 131.9K

-43.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$126 NOK 1,189

-60.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$60.7 NOK 571

-58.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$150 NOK 1,409

-48.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$203 NOK 1,910

-71.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$1,198 NOK 11.3K

-58.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$912 NOK 8,584

-66.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$2,038 NOK 19.2K

-47.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$1,563 NOK 14.7K

-60.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$5,532 NOK 52.1K

-47.83%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$4,103 NOK 38.6K

-53.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$4,367 NOK 41.1K

-92.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.27

36.62%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Mandal: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Mandal

$912 34.1% 195% $603

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Mandal

$492 18.4% 139% $286

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Mandal

$359 13.4% 122% $197

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Mandal

$243 9.1% 159% $149

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Mandal

$452 16.9% 412% $364

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Mandal

$93 3.5% 114% $50

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Mandal

$126 4.7% 707% $110

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $1,198 in Mandal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mandal pays 1162% 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 $96.0 in Mandal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $492 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇳🇴 Mandal

🕒 Local time

23:33 11:33 PM

17:33 5:33 PM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

11,477

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cebu Mandal 10,520 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Mandal

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 Mandal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 192% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 1162% lower in Mandal. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $1,198 in Mandal. 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 $2,676 in Mandal – a 192% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 638% less than in Mandal. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $2,676 in Mandal, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Mandal. 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 Mandal, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Mandal 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 192% less than in Mandal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.