Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Purwokerto

For one person, living is cheaper in Purwokerto: $500 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Purwokerto
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Purwokerto Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Purwokerto

🇮🇩 Indonesia

$500

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Purwokerto

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $500 in Purwokerto.

Cebu $918
Purwokerto $500

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $832 in Purwokerto.

Cebu $1,409
Purwokerto $832

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $1,164 in Purwokerto.

Cebu $1,900
Purwokerto $1,164

Living in Cebu is roughly 84% more expensive than in Purwokerto, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Purwokerto 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱195

$1.25 Rp 22.3K

147.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$8.13 Rp 145.8K

197.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$3.22 Rp 57.8K

21.74%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.38 Rp 24.7K

81.88%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.37 Rp 6,727

329.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.45

$0.17 Rp 3,128

211.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$2.13 Rp 38.3K

-16.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$3.06 Rp 54.9K

-29.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.08 Rp 19.4K

77.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.5

$0.85 Rp 15.3K

60.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.6

$0.77 Rp 13.8K

31.17%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$1.46 Rp 26.2K

39.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$7.10 Rp 127.5K

38.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$2.86 Rp 51.4K

53.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$7.32 Rp 131.4K

3.83%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.25 Rp 40.5K

46.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.10 Rp 19.7K

26.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.50 Rp 26.8K

55.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$0.90 Rp 16.1K

66.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.09 Rp 19.6K

116.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.91 Rp 34.2K

-0.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.69 Rp 12.4K

72.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.73

$0.31 Rp 5,643

103.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$2.30 Rp 41.3K

30.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱380

$21.56 Rp 386.9K

-72.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.85 Rp 33.1K

-33.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$3.13 Rp 56.2K

-44.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.87

$0.22 Rp 3,952

13.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$11.76 Rp 211.0K

7.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.64

$0.49 Rp 8,726

57.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.54

$0.32 Rp 5,718

-28.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$2.31 Rp 41.5K

93.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$0.86 Rp 15.4K

52.33%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$21.5K Rp 385.5M

-1.13%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$29.1K Rp 522.8M

-34.29%

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

$120 ₱7,573

$33.37 Rp 598.7K

260.29%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$2.71 Rp 48.6K

416.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,735

$19.22 Rp 344.8K

43.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,036

$19.30 Rp 346.2K

67.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$11.12 Rp 199.5K

-40.20%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$2.46 Rp 44.1K

129.67%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$95.2 Rp 1.7M

189.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.8K

$7,212 Rp 129.4M

9.79%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,107

$39.65 Rp 711.5K

24.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,590

$30.73 Rp 551.4K

-17.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,848

$70.7 Rp 1.3M

8.84%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,603

$70.3 Rp 1.3M

-18.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$141 Rp 2.5M

254.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.5K

$68.9 Rp 1.2M

348.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$591 Rp 10.6M

82.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.8K

$255 Rp 4.6M

141.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.8K

$1,372 Rp 24.6M

110.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$284 Rp 5.1M

575.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$116 Rp 2.1M

199.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

8.45

-14.79%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Purwokerto: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Purwokerto

$69 13.8% 77.7% $240

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Purwokerto

$186 37.3% 9.4% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Purwokerto

$55 11.1% 65.8% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Purwokerto

$95 19% 1.3% $1.2

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Purwokerto

$55 11% 37.6% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Purwokerto

$24 4.8% 44.5% $19

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Purwokerto

$15 2.9% 5.5% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $141 in Purwokerto. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 199% 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 $8.00 in Purwokerto for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $186 per month, with Purwokerto cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇮🇩 Purwokerto

🕒 Local time

12:36 12:36 PM

11:36 11:36 AM

1 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

292,782

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Indonesian Rupiah IDR Rp

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100,000 IDR = 5.57 USD

100,000 IDR = 4.95 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, 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 = 70.93 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 17,943 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.57 USD). 1 EUR = 20,204 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.95 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Purwokerto 2,550 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Purwokerto

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 Purwokerto: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Purwokerto is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 84% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 199% higher in Cebu, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $141 in Purwokerto. 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 $500 in Purwokerto – a 84% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Purwokerto runs roughly 7% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Purwokerto gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Purwokerto 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 Purwokerto 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 Purwokerto gentler on the wallet – expenses run 84% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.