Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Qatif

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,102 in Qatif, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Qatif
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Qatif Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Qatif

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,102

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Qatif

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,102 in Qatif.

Cebu $918
Qatif $1,102

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,642 in Qatif.

Cebu $1,409
Qatif $1,642

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,183 in Qatif.

Cebu $1,900
Qatif $2,183

Living in Cebu costs roughly 17% less than in Qatif, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Qatif 18% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$3.48 SAR 13.07

-11.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$34.45 SAR 129

-29.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$6.59 SAR 24.75

-40.52%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.82 SAR 6.84

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 SAR 8.60

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$3.15 SAR 11.81

-20.32%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.78 SAR 2.92

103.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.20 SAR 0.76

165.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.81 SAR 6.78

6.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$0.97 SAR 3.63

40.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$1.86 SAR 6.96

-45.70%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$2.12 SAR 7.94

-4.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$5.96 SAR 22.35

65.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$7.77 SAR 29.16

-43.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$12.73 SAR 47.77

-40.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.20 SAR 8.25

50.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.70 SAR 6.36

-18.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.58 SAR 5.94

47.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$0.69 SAR 2.59

117.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.12 SAR 4.19

110.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.15 SAR 4.32

65.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$0.97 SAR 3.66

22.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.55 SAR 2.06

14.55%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.71 SAR 10.18

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 SAR 5.42

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.13 SAR 7.98

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$6.24 SAR 23.42

-51.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$1.10 SAR 4.13

-77.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$36.81 SAR 138

-65.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$2.42 SAR 9.09

-68.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.55 SAR 2.07

-58.18%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$13.11 SAR 49.19

-65.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$0.62 SAR 2.34

111.29%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$35.9K SAR 134.6K

-40.78%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$20.7K SAR 77.8K

-7.68%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$107 SAR 400

12.70%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$32.52 SAR 122

-56.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$58.1 SAR 218

-52.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$81.9 SAR 307

-60.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$21.75 SAR 81.6

-69.43%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$13.33 SAR 50.0

-57.61%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$268 SAR 1,005

2.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$8,092 SAR 30.4K

-2.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$31.99 SAR 120

54.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$21.32 SAR 80.0

18.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$96.9 SAR 364

-20.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$90.0 SAR 338

-36.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$575 SAR 2,159

-13.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$367 SAR 1,375

-15.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$832 SAR 3,121

29.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$573 SAR 2,151

7.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$976 SAR 3,663

195.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$790 SAR 2,963

142.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$2,275 SAR 8,537

-84.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.5

30.91%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Qatif: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Qatif

$367 33.3% 18.7% $58

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Qatif

$186 16.9% 9.8% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Qatif

$197 17.9% 21.9% $35

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Qatif

$108 9.8% 15.1% $14

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Qatif

$89 8.1% 1.2% $1.1

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Qatif

$109 9.9% 149% $65

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Qatif

$46 4.2% 198% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $575 in Qatif. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Qatif pays 558% 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 $34.00 in Qatif. Groceries flip the comparison at $206 vs $186, with Qatif cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇸🇦 Qatif

🕒 Local time

00:01 12:01 AM

19:01 7:01 PM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

87,332

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SAR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.22 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Qatif 7,910 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Qatif

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 Qatif: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 20% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 558% lower in Qatif. 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 $575 in Qatif. 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 $1,102 in Qatif – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 191% less than in Qatif. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,102 in Qatif, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Qatif. 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 Qatif, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Qatif 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 20% less than in Qatif. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.