Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Sarpsborg

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $915 a month against $2,841 in Sarpsborg, rent and utilities included – about $23,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
135

Cost of Living Index in Sarpsborg
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Sarpsborg Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$915

/mo nomad

Sarpsborg

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,841

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Sarpsborg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $915 in Cebu versus $2,841 in Sarpsborg.

Cebu $915
Sarpsborg $2,841

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,418 in Cebu versus $4,154 in Sarpsborg.

Cebu $1,418
Sarpsborg $4,154

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,921 in Cebu versus $5,467 in Sarpsborg.

Cebu $1,921
Sarpsborg $5,467

Living in Cebu costs roughly 68% less than in Sarpsborg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 33% below, Sarpsborg is 110% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.05 ₱192

$40.33 NOK 380

-92.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.00 ₱1,511

$99.6 NOK 938

-75.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.99 ₱251

$19.43 NOK 183

-79.46%

Cappuccino

$2.50 ₱157

$5.72 NOK 53.8

-56.29%

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

$1.54 ₱97.1

$2.78 NOK 26.16

-44.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₱31.37

$2.60 NOK 24.48

-80.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$6.25 NOK 58.8

-71.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱136

$8.41 NOK 79.1

-74.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 ₱126

$2.80 NOK 26.36

-28.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 ₱86.2

$3.33 NOK 31.37

-58.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ₱64.9

$4.13 NOK 38.86

-75.06%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$4.28 NOK 40.27

-52.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.20 ₱642

$12.60 NOK 119

-19.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 ₱280

$15.89 NOK 150

-71.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.67 ₱483

$36.18 NOK 341

-78.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱208

$3.76 NOK 35.39

-11.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 ₱91.8

$2.83 NOK 26.60

-48.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 ₱146

$3.88 NOK 36.55

-40.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 ₱94.0

$5.00 NOK 47.07

-70.20%

Potato (1kg)

$2.34 ₱147

$2.98 NOK 28.05

-21.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 ₱122

$3.32 NOK 31.28

-41.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 ₱73.0

$2.60 NOK 24.45

-55.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.89

$2.61 NOK 24.58

-73.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 ₱188

$17.94 NOK 169

-83.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.24 ₱393

$17.77 NOK 167

-64.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.3

$3.30 NOK 31.02

-62.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱109

$4.59 NOK 43.22

-62.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 ₱14.36

$2.70 NOK 25.40

-91.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.34 ₱777

$75.1 NOK 707

-83.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.79 ₱49.96

$12.17 NOK 115

-93.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.86

$1.92 NOK 18.10

-88.54%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 ₱286

$62.9 NOK 592

-92.78%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ₱82.9

$2.23 NOK 21.00

-40.81%

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

$21.0K ₱1.3M

$54.3K NOK 511.0K

-61.31%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$43.0K NOK 405.0K

-54.90%

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

$119 ₱7,464

$299 NOK 2,815

-60.35%

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

$14.22 ₱896

$31.27 NOK 294

-54.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 ₱1,730

$54.1 NOK 509

-49.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.31 ₱2,034

$50.1 NOK 472

-35.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.50 ₱409

$40.34 NOK 380

-83.89%

Cinema Ticket

$5.40 ₱340

$19.99 NOK 188

-72.99%

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

$276 ₱17.4K

$243 NOK 2,286

13.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,866 ₱495.3K

$13.1K NOK 123.0K

-39.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.37 ₱3,108

$114 NOK 1,073

-56.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.58 ₱1,548

$62.2 NOK 586

-60.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,825

$115 NOK 1,086

-33.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.9 ₱3,706

$178 NOK 1,679

-67.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$503 ₱31.7K

$1,232 NOK 11.6K

-59.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ₱19.2K

$1,013 NOK 9,537

-69.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 ₱67.7K

$1,563 NOK 14.7K

-31.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$632 ₱39.8K

$1,370 NOK 12.9K

-53.86%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,870 ₱180.7K

$5,847 NOK 55.0K

-50.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,877 ₱118.2K

$4,175 NOK 39.3K

-55.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 ₱21.1K

$2,626 NOK 24.7K

-87.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.18

39.00%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Last update for Sarpsborg: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$305 33.3%

Sarpsborg

$1K 35.7% 233% $709

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.9%

Sarpsborg

$516 18.1% 146% $306

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$160 17.5%

Sarpsborg

$384 13.5% 140% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.3%

Sarpsborg

$211 7.4% 124% $117

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Sarpsborg

$519 18.3% 492% $431

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$43 4.7%

Sarpsborg

$90 3.2% 109% $47

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Sarpsborg

$108 3.8% 610% $92

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $503 in Cebu and $1,232 in Sarpsborg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sarpsborg pays 682% 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 $100 in Sarpsborg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $516 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇳🇴 Sarpsborg

🕒 Local time

07:25 7:25 AM

01:25 1:25 AM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

59,906

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Sarpsborg 10,260 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Sarpsborg

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 Sarpsborg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 211% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 682% lower in Sarpsborg. 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: $503 in Cebu versus $1,232 in Sarpsborg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $915 per month in Cebu versus $2,841 in Sarpsborg – a 211% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 508% less than in Sarpsborg. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $915 in Cebu versus $2,841 in Sarpsborg, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Sarpsborg. 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 Sarpsborg, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Sarpsborg 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 211% less than in Sarpsborg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.