Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Merthyr Tydfil

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$918
/mo nomad
Merthyr Tydfil
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$2,067
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Merthyr Tydfil

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil.

  • Cebu $918
  • Merthyr Tydfil $2,067

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,860 in Merthyr Tydfil.

  • Cebu $1,409
  • Merthyr Tydfil $2,860

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $3,654 in Merthyr Tydfil.

  • Cebu $1,900
  • Merthyr Tydfil $3,654

Living in Cebu costs roughly 56% less than in Merthyr Tydfil, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Merthyr Tydfil is 53% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.09 ₱194
$23.35 £17.52
-86.77%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.22 ₱1,525
$61.9 £46.41
-60.85%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.92 ₱247
$10.50 £7.88
-62.67%
Cappuccino
$2.51 ₱158
$4.62 £3.46
-45.67%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.59 ₱100
$2.50 £1.87
-36.40%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 ₱33.43
$1.70 £1.27
-68.82%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
$6.33 £4.75
-71.88%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱137
$5.76 £4.32
-62.33%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 ₱121
$1.38 £1.04
39.13%
White Bread (500g)
$1.36 ₱85.4
$0.60 £0.45
126.67%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.01 ₱63.5
$1.69 £1.27
-40.24%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$4.07 £3.05
-50.12%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.86 ₱621
$8.31 £6.24
18.65%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.39 ₱277
$8.83 £6.63
-50.28%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.60 ₱479
$12.98 £9.74
-41.45%
Apples (1kg)
$3.30 ₱208
$2.66 £1.99
24.06%
Banana (1kg)
$1.39 ₱87.8
$1.71 £1.28
-18.71%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.33 ₱147
$2.59 £1.94
-10.04%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 ₱94.3
$3.20 £2.40
-53.13%
Potato (1kg)
$2.36 ₱149
$1.22 £0.91
93.44%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 ₱119
$1.33 £1.00
42.86%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 ₱74.9
$1.16 £0.87
2.59%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.63 ₱39.71
$1.08 £0.81
-41.67%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₱189
$22.78 £17.09
-86.83%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.03 ₱379
$10.38 £7.79
-41.91%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.7
$2.75 £2.06
-55.27%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 ₱110
$3.53 £2.65
-50.42%
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 ₱15.86
-
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.64 ₱796
$97.5 £73.1
-87.03%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.77 ₱48.62
$3.52 £2.64
-78.13%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.23 ₱14.53
$1.68 £1.26
-86.31%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.46 ₱281
$26.25 £19.69
-83.01%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 ₱82.8
$2.06 £1.54
-36.41%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K ₱1.3M
$38.9K £29.2K
-45.37%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.1K ₱1.2M
$39.7K £29.8K
-51.80%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ₱7,569
$314 £236
-61.72%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.00 ₱882
$13.39 £10.04
4.56%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.54 ₱1,734
$36.97 £27.74
-25.51%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.33 ₱2,035
$39.66 £29.75
-18.48%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.65 ₱419
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$5.65 ₱356
$7.81 £5.86
-27.66%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$275 ₱17.3K
$2,255 £1,692
-87.79%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,918 ₱498.5K
$24.7K £18.5K
-67.94%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.33 ₱3,106
$102 £76.5
-51.64%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.24 ₱1,589
$48.36 £36.28
-47.81%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.0 ₱4,846
$105 £78.6
-26.59%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$57.2 ₱3,601
$96.9 £72.7
-40.99%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$500 ₱31.5K
$784 £588
-36.27%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ₱19.4K
$779 £585
-60.38%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,078 ₱67.9K
$1,144 £859
-5.82%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$615 ₱38.7K
$989 £742
-37.79%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,886 ₱181.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,917 ₱120.7K
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Merthyr Tydfil
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$346 ₱21.8K
$1,581 £1,186
-78.12%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
4.87
47.84%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Merthyr Tydfil: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$309
Merthyr Tydfil
$779 152% $471
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$206
Merthyr Tydfil
$266 29.3% $60
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$162
Merthyr Tydfil
$364 125% $203
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Merthyr Tydfil
$158 68.7% $65
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Merthyr Tydfil
$334 278% $245
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$44
Merthyr Tydfil
$55 26.7% $12
Getting Around
Cebu
$16
Merthyr Tydfil
$109 * 602% $94

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $784 in Merthyr Tydfil. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Merthyr Tydfil pays 357% 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 $62.0 in Merthyr Tydfil for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $266 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇬🇧 Merthyr Tydfil
🕒 Local time
06:21 6:21 AM
23:21 11:21 PM
7 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
43,820
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Merthyr Tydfil 11,480 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Merthyr Tydfil

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 Merthyr Tydfil: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Merthyr Tydfil cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 125% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Cebu or Merthyr Tydfil?
On paper, salaries run 357% lower in Merthyr Tydfil. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Cebu and Merthyr Tydfil?
Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $784 in Merthyr Tydfil. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Merthyr Tydfil?
All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil – a 125% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 671% less than in Merthyr Tydfil. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Cebu or in Merthyr Tydfil?
At $918 in Cebu versus $2,067 in Merthyr Tydfil, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Merthyr Tydfil. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Merthyr Tydfil more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Merthyr Tydfil, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Merthyr Tydfil?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Merthyr Tydfil are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 125% less than in Merthyr Tydfil. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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