Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Sabah Al Salem

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,404 in Sabah Al Salem, rent and utilities included – about $5,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Sabah Al Salem
Learn more

Sabah Al Salem Living Index

Jump to prices

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Sabah Al Salem

🇰🇼 Kuwait

$1,404

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Sabah Al Salem

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 Sabah Al Salem actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $1,404 in Sabah Al Salem.

Cebu $934
Sabah Al Salem $1,404

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $2,448 in Sabah Al Salem.

Cebu $1,415
Sabah Al Salem $2,448

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $3,492 in Sabah Al Salem.

Cebu $1,896
Sabah Al Salem $3,492

Living in Cebu costs roughly 33% less than in Sabah Al Salem, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 30% below, Sabah Al Salem is 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱190

$8.29 KWD 2.57

-63.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,473

$70.4 KWD 21.83

-66.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱256

$9.36 KWD 2.90

-56.30%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 KWD 0.99

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 KWD 0.99

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$6.51 KWD 2.02

-61.29%

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

$1.54 ₱96.9

$0.49 KWD 0.15

214.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$0.50 KWD 0.16

-2.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.91 KWD 0.59

2.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.7

$1.32 KWD 0.41

8.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱63.8

$2.12 KWD 0.66

-51.89%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$3.04 KWD 0.94

-32.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱615

$7.35 KWD 2.28

33.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱289

$5.56 KWD 1.72

-17.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱483

$10.28 KWD 3.18

-25.10%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱207

$2.39 KWD 0.74

38.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱90.9

$1.88 KWD 0.58

-22.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.28 KWD 0.40

84.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.4

$1.49 KWD 0.46

3.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.31 KWD 0.40

80.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$0.92 KWD 0.28

116.30%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$1.65 KWD 0.51

-30.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.15

$0.47 KWD 0.14

42.55%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$3.62 KWD 1.12

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 KWD 0.37

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 KWD 0.49

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱188

$2.51 KWD 0.78

19.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$0.79 KWD 0.25

-68.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱793

$113 KWD 35.03

-88.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.32

$3.68 KWD 1.14

-79.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$2.78 KWD 0.86

-92.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱271

$14.47 KWD 4.49

-70.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.5

$0.33 KWD 0.10

303.03%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$18.8K KWD 5,840

15.51%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$18.8K KWD 5,827

3.18%

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

$121 ₱7,563

$38.57 KWD 11.95

212.63%

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

$14.45 ₱907

$24.68 KWD 7.65

-41.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,774

$39.63 KWD 12.28

-28.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,050

$131 KWD 40.62

-75.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱401

$39.05 KWD 12.10

-83.64%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱342

$11.52 KWD 3.57

-52.60%

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

$273 ₱17.1K

$283 KWD 87.6

-3.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱511.5K

$7,527 KWD 2,333

8.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,109

$38.19 KWD 11.84

29.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,560

$38.92 KWD 12.06

-36.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,804

$98.1 KWD 30.41

-21.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,717

$89.1 KWD 27.62

-33.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.7K

$792 KWD 245

-36.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$557 KWD 173

-44.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.0K

$1,769 KWD 548

-40.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.8K

$1,325 KWD 411

-53.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱182.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.4K

$2,960 KWD 917

-88.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

6.53

10.26%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Sabah Al Salem: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Sabah Al Salem

$557 38.9% 80.1% $248

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Sabah Al Salem

$187 13.1% 11% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Sabah Al Salem

$103 7.2% 37% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Sabah Al Salem

$119 8.3% 25.7% $24

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Sabah Al Salem

$176 12.3% 99.7% $88

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Sabah Al Salem

$154 10.8% 253% $110

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Sabah Al Salem

$134 9.4% 766% $118

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $792 in Sabah Al Salem. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sabah Al Salem pays 768% 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: $23.00 in Cebu vs $70.0 in Sabah Al Salem. Groceries flip the comparison at $210 vs $187, with Sabah Al Salem cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇰🇼 Sabah Al Salem

🕒 Local time

18:47 6:47 PM

13:47 1:47 PM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

92,818

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Kuwaiti Dinar KWD د.ك

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 KWD = 3.23 USD

1 KWD = 2.88 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KWD, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Kuwaiti Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.31 KWD (1 KWD = 3.23 USD). 1 EUR = 0.347 KWD (1 KWD = 2.88 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Sabah Al Salem 8,080 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Sabah Al Salem

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 Sabah Al Salem: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 50% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 768% lower in Sabah Al Salem. 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: $506 in Cebu versus $792 in Sabah Al Salem. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $934 per month in Cebu versus $1,404 in Sabah Al Salem – a 50% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 793% less than in Sabah Al Salem. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $1,404 in Sabah Al Salem, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Sabah Al Salem. 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 Sabah Al Salem, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Sabah Al Salem 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 50% less than in Sabah Al Salem. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.