Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Medias

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,082 in Medias, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 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
53

Cost of Living Index in Medias
Learn more

Medias Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Medias

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,082

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Medias

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,082 in Medias.

Cebu $918
Medias $1,082

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,668 in Medias.

Cebu $1,409
Medias $1,668

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,254 in Medias.

Cebu $1,900
Medias $2,254

Living in Cebu costs roughly 15% less than in Medias, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Medias 20% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱195

$11.00 RON 52.1

-71.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$53.1 RON 251

-54.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$7.16 RON 33.88

-45.25%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$3.62 RON 17.12

-30.66%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$2.44 RON 11.57

-34.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.45

$2.14 RON 10.14

-75.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$3.09 RON 14.60

-42.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$3.37 RON 15.96

-35.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.28 RON 6.05

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.5

$1.44 RON 6.79

-5.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.6

$1.79 RON 8.46

-43.58%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.44 RON 16.27

-40.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$8.63 RON 40.85

14.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$6.79 RON 32.15

-35.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$12.40 RON 58.7

-38.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$1.53 RON 7.24

115.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.46 RON 6.90

-4.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.58 RON 7.45

47.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$2.60 RON 12.32

-42.31%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$0.83 RON 3.91

184.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$0.85 RON 4.04

123.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.90 RON 4.25

32.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.73

$0.76 RON 3.59

-17.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$5.92 RON 28.03

-49.32%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱380

$7.16 RON 33.86

-15.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.18 RON 5.56

4.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.87 RON 8.87

-6.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.87

$0.76 RON 3.60

-67.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$21.20 RON 100

-40.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.64

$0.64 RON 3.01

20.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.54

$0.66 RON 3.12

-65.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$6.70 RON 31.69

-33.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.41 RON 6.66

-7.09%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$28.8K RON 136.5K

-26.37%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$25.6K RON 120.9K

-25.09%

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

$120 ₱7,573

$177 RON 838

-32.13%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$7.69 RON 36.39

82.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,735

$9.07 RON 42.92

203.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,036

$38.04 RON 180

-15.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$20.64 RON 97.6

-67.78%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$6.49 RON 30.69

-12.94%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$454 RON 2,146

-39.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.8K

$7,061 RON 33.4K

12.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,107

$51.2 RON 242

-3.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,590

$35.26 RON 167

-28.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,848

$75.7 RON 358

1.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,603

$89.6 RON 424

-36.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$392 RON 1,854

27.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.5K

$281 RON 1,329

9.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$593 RON 2,806

81.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.8K

$449 RON 2,126

36.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.8K

$1,878 RON 8,887

53.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$1,322 RON 6,253

45.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Medias: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Medias

$281 26% 9.1% $28

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Medias

$222 20.5% 7.7% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Medias

$194 17.9% 19.9% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Medias

$113 10.5% 20.6% $19

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Medias

$193 17.9% 119% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Medias

$51 4.7% 17% $7.4

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Medias

$28 2.6% 81% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $392 in Medias. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $53.0 in Medias for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $222 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇷🇴 Medias

🕒 Local time

02:52 2:52 AM

21:52 9:52 PM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

53,564

💱 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.82 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 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

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Between locations

Cebu Medias 9,910 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Medias

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 Medias: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 18% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $1,623 in Medias 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 $392 in Medias. 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 $1,082 in Medias – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 68% less than in Medias. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,082 in Medias, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Medias. 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 Medias, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Medias 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 18% less than in Medias. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.