Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Nakhon Ratchasima

For one person, living is cheaper in Nakhon Ratchasima: $778 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cebu outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
38

Cost of Living Index in Nakhon Ratchasima
Learn more

Nakhon Ratchasima Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Nakhon Ratchasima

🇹🇭 Thailand

$778

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Nakhon Ratchasima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $778 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Cebu $918
Nakhon Ratchasima $778

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,275 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Cebu $1,409
Nakhon Ratchasima $1,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $1,773 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Cebu $1,900
Nakhon Ratchasima $1,773

Living in Cebu is roughly 18% more expensive than in Nakhon Ratchasima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Nakhon Ratchasima 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱195

$2.85 ฿95.2

8.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$26.19 ฿875

-7.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$5.92 ฿198

-33.78%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.90 ฿63.5

32.11%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.53 ฿17.68

200.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.45

$0.31 ฿10.41

70.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$1.81 ฿60.6

-1.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$2.70 ฿90.3

-19.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.66 ฿55.6

15.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.5

$1.22 ฿40.61

11.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.6

$1.26 ฿42.25

-19.84%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$1.50 ฿50.1

35.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$15.26 ฿510

-35.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$2.58 ฿86.1

70.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$10.27 ฿343

-26.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.15 ฿105

4.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.26 ฿42.10

10.32%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.92 ฿64.1

21.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$1.93 ฿64.6

-22.28%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.20 ฿40.12

96.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.04 ฿34.87

82.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.27 ฿42.32

-6.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.73

$0.37 ฿12.50

70.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$2.84 ฿95.0

5.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱380

$17.86 ฿597

-66.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.70 ฿57.0

-27.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.99 ฿100.0

-41.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.87

$0.46 ฿15.47

-45.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$19.17 ฿641

-34.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.64

$1.06 ฿35.51

-27.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.54

$1.09 ฿36.38

-78.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$7.29 ฿244

-38.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.33 ฿44.44

-1.50%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$45.1K ฿1.5M

-52.86%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$26.8K ฿894.2K

-28.44%

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

$120 ₱7,573

$89.1 ฿2,977

34.97%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$11.76 ฿393

19.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,735

$19.28 ฿644

42.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,036

$46.96 ฿1,569

-31.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$15.08 ฿504

-55.90%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$4.79 ฿160

17.95%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$176 ฿5,868

56.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.8K

$14.2K ฿475.9K

-44.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,107

$50.1 ฿1,674

-1.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,590

$28.96 ฿968

-12.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,848

$77.9 ฿2,604

-1.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,603

$67.1 ฿2,244

-14.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$221 ฿7,375

126.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.5K

$156 ฿5,221

97.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$487 ฿16.3K

121.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.8K

$418 ฿14.0K

47.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.8K

$3,378 ฿112.9K

-14.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$1,699 ฿56.8K

12.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$592 ฿19.8K

-41.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.1

41.18%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Nakhon Ratchasima: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$156 20.1% 49.4% $153

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$235 30.3% 14.4% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$120 15.4% 25.7% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$101 13% 7.4% $6.9

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$81 10.4% 8% $7.1

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$57 7.3% 29.6% $13

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$28 3.5% 76.8% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $221 in Nakhon Ratchasima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nakhon Ratchasima pays 71% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $26.00 in Nakhon Ratchasima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $235 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇹🇭 Nakhon Ratchasima

🕒 Local time

03:54 3:54 AM

02:54 2:54 AM

1 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

126,391

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, 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).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.58 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Nakhon Ratchasima 2,420 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Nakhon Ratchasima

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 Nakhon Ratchasima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

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

On paper, salaries run 71% lower in Nakhon Ratchasima. 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 $221 in Nakhon Ratchasima. 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 $778 in Nakhon Ratchasima – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Nakhon Ratchasima runs roughly 52% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Nakhon Ratchasima gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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

Safety-wise, Cebu and Nakhon Ratchasima 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 Nakhon Ratchasima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.