Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Santiago de Compostela

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,439 in Santiago de Compostela, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$918
/mo nomad
Santiago de Compostela
🇪🇸 Spain
$1,439
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Santiago de Compostela

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 Santiago de Compostela actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,439 in Santiago de Compostela.

  • Cebu $918
  • Santiago de Compostela $1,439

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,215 in Santiago de Compostela.

  • Cebu $1,409
  • Santiago de Compostela $2,215

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,991 in Santiago de Compostela.

  • Cebu $1,900
  • Santiago de Compostela $2,991

Living in Cebu costs roughly 36% less than in Santiago de Compostela, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Santiago de Compostela is 7% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.09 ₱194
$13.22 €11.76
-76.63%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.22 ₱1,525
$66.5 €59.2
-63.58%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.92 ₱247
$9.21 €8.19
-57.44%
Cappuccino
$2.51 ₱158
$1.95 €1.74
28.72%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.59 ₱100
$2.69 €2.39
-40.89%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 ₱33.43
$2.17 €1.93
-75.58%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
$3.10 €2.76
-42.58%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱137
$3.87 €3.44
-43.93%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 ₱121
$1.20 €1.07
60.00%
White Bread (500g)
$1.36 ₱85.4
$1.17 €1.04
16.24%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.01 ₱63.5
$1.32 €1.17
-23.48%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$2.77 €2.47
-26.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.86 ₱621
$8.85 €7.88
11.41%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.39 ₱277
$6.67 €5.93
-34.18%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.60 ₱479
$17.00 €15.12
-55.29%
Apples (1kg)
$3.30 ₱208
$2.04 €1.81
61.76%
Banana (1kg)
$1.39 ₱87.8
$2.09 €1.86
-33.49%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.33 ₱147
$1.48 €1.32
57.43%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 ₱94.3
$2.86 €2.54
-47.55%
Potato (1kg)
$2.36 ₱149
$1.96 €1.74
20.41%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 ₱119
$1.47 €1.30
29.25%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 ₱74.9
$1.13 €1.01
5.31%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.63 ₱39.71
$0.84 €0.75
-25.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₱189
$5.97 €5.31
-49.75%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.03 ₱379
$5.12 €4.55
17.77%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.7
$1.45 €1.29
-15.17%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 ₱110
$2.37 €2.11
-26.16%
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 ₱15.86
$1.19 €1.06
-78.99%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.64 ₱796
$32.89 €29.26
-61.57%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.77 ₱48.62
$4.87 €4.33
-84.19%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.23 ₱14.53
$1.31 €1.17
-82.44%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.46 ₱281
$18.83 €16.75
-76.31%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 ₱82.8
$1.69 €1.50
-22.49%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K ₱1.3M
$35.4K €31.5K
-39.98%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.1K ₱1.2M
$28.8K €25.7K
-33.61%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ₱7,569
$155 €138
-22.51%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.00 ₱882
$21.74 €19.34
-35.60%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.54 ₱1,734
$32.64 €29.04
-15.63%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.33 ₱2,035
$51.2 €45.56
-36.88%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.65 ₱419
$2.19 €1.95
203.65%
Cinema Ticket
$5.65 ₱356
$10.11 €8.99
-44.11%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$275 ₱17.3K
$331 €294
-16.80%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,918 ₱498.5K
$8,249 €7,337
-4.01%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.33 ₱3,106
$87.7 €78.1
-43.78%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.24 ₱1,589
$62.9 €55.9
-59.84%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.0 ₱4,846
$100.0 €88.9
-23.02%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$57.2 ₱3,601
$92.3 €82.1
-38.01%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$500 ₱31.5K
$712 €633
-29.84%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ₱19.4K
$516 €459
-40.13%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,078 ₱67.9K
$1,047 €931
2.97%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$615 ₱38.7K
$869 €773
-29.20%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,886 ₱181.7K
$3,001 €2,670
-3.84%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,917 ₱120.7K
$2,094 €1,863
-8.49%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Santiago de Compostela
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$346 ₱21.8K
$1,870 €1,663
-81.50%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
2.96
143.24%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Santiago de Compostela: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$309
Santiago de Compostela
$516 67% $207
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$206
Santiago de Compostela
$240 16.4% $34
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$162
Santiago de Compostela
$210 29.5% $48
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Santiago de Compostela
$154 64.2% $60
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Santiago de Compostela
$199 126% $111
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$44
Santiago de Compostela
$71 63.8% $28
Getting Around
Cebu
$16
Santiago de Compostela
$49 215% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $712 in Santiago de Compostela. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Santiago de Compostela pays 441% 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 $66.0 in Santiago de Compostela for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $240 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇪🇸 Santiago de Compostela
🕒 Local time
04:29 4:29 AM
22:29 10:29 PM
6 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
98,687
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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 = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Santiago de Compostela 12,390 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Santiago de Compostela

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 Santiago de Compostela: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Santiago de Compostela cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 57% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Cebu or Santiago de Compostela?
On paper, salaries run 441% lower in Santiago de Compostela. 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 Santiago de Compostela?
Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $712 in Santiago de Compostela. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Santiago de Compostela?
All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $1,439 in Santiago de Compostela – a 57% 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 160% less than in Santiago de Compostela. 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 Santiago de Compostela?
At $918 in Cebu versus $1,439 in Santiago de Compostela, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Santiago de Compostela. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Santiago de Compostela more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Santiago de Compostela, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Santiago de Compostela?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Santiago de Compostela 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 57% less than in Santiago de Compostela. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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