Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Sidoarjo

For one person, living is cheaper in Sidoarjo: $615 a month against $915 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$915
/mo nomad
Sidoarjo
🇮🇩 Indonesia
$615
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Sidoarjo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $915 in Cebu versus $615 in Sidoarjo.

  • Cebu $915
  • Sidoarjo $615

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,418 in Cebu versus $956 in Sidoarjo.

  • Cebu $1,418
  • Sidoarjo $956

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,921 in Cebu versus $1,297 in Sidoarjo.

  • Cebu $1,921
  • Sidoarjo $1,297

Living in Cebu is roughly 49% more expensive than in Sidoarjo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 33% lower, Sidoarjo 55% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.05 ₱192
$1.69 Rp 30.3K
80.47%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.00 ₱1,511
$10.97 Rp 197.5K
118.78%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.99 ₱251
$3.15 Rp 56.7K
26.67%
Cappuccino
$2.50 ₱157
$0.54 Rp 9,639
362.96%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.54 ₱97.1
$0.43 Rp 7,767
258.14%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.50 ₱31.37
$0.28 Rp 5,052
78.57%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
$2.27 Rp 40.9K
-21.59%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱136
$4.08 Rp 73.4K
-46.81%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.00 ₱126
$1.26 Rp 22.7K
58.73%
White Bread (500g)
$1.37 ₱86.2
$0.97 Rp 17.5K
41.24%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.03 ₱64.9
$0.88 Rp 15.8K
17.05%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$1.20 Rp 21.6K
69.17%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.20 ₱642
$7.53 Rp 135.5K
35.46%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.45 ₱280
$1.85 Rp 33.4K
140.54%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.67 ₱483
$5.52 Rp 99.4K
38.95%
Apples (1kg)
$3.31 ₱208
$0.91 Rp 16.4K
263.74%
Banana (1kg)
$1.46 ₱91.8
$0.54 Rp 9,807
170.37%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.32 ₱146
$0.70 Rp 12.6K
231.43%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.49 ₱94.0
$0.58 Rp 10.4K
156.90%
Potato (1kg)
$2.34 ₱147
$0.76 Rp 13.6K
207.89%
Onion (1kg)
$1.94 ₱122
$1.01 Rp 18.3K
92.08%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.16 ₱73.0
$0.27 Rp 4,799
329.63%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.68 ₱42.89
$0.40 Rp 7,159
70.00%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.99 ₱188
$1.98 Rp 35.6K
51.01%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.24 ₱393
$25.24 Rp 454.3K
-75.28%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.3
$1.67 Rp 30.1K
-26.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.73 ₱109
$2.88 Rp 51.9K
-39.93%
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.23 ₱14.36
$0.29 Rp 5,226
-20.69%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.34 ₱777
-
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.79 ₱49.96
$0.41 Rp 7,334
92.68%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.22 ₱13.86
$0.38 Rp 6,759
-42.11%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.54 ₱286
$1.10 Rp 19.8K
312.73%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 ₱82.9
$0.80 Rp 14.4K
65.00%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.0K ₱1.3M
$25.1K Rp 451.7M
-16.30%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.4K ₱1.2M
$32.2K Rp 579.8M
-39.77%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$119 ₱7,464
$85.1 Rp 1.5M
39.37%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.22 ₱896
$4.66 Rp 84.0K
205.15%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.47 ₱1,730
$11.34 Rp 204.1K
142.24%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.31 ₱2,034
$19.28 Rp 347.0K
67.58%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.50 ₱409
$8.15 Rp 146.7K
-20.25%
Cinema Ticket
$5.40 ₱340
$2.66 Rp 47.9K
103.01%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$276 ₱17.4K
$95.3 Rp 1.7M
189.78%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,866 ₱495.3K
$9,510 Rp 171.2M
-17.28%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.37 ₱3,108
$71.3 Rp 1.3M
-30.77%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$24.58 ₱1,548
$39.51 Rp 711.2K
-37.79%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$76.6 ₱4,825
$79.6 Rp 1.4M
-3.75%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$58.9 ₱3,706
$74.3 Rp 1.3M
-20.79%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$503 ₱31.7K
$225 Rp 4.1M
123.40%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$305 ₱19.2K
$147 Rp 2.7M
106.76%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 ₱67.7K
$549 Rp 9.9M
95.88%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$632 ₱39.8K
$361 Rp 6.5M
74.91%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,870 ₱180.7K
$1,149 Rp 20.7M
149.69%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,877 ₱118.2K
$800 Rp 14.4M
134.70%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Sidoarjo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$336 ₱21.1K
-
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
7.5
-4.00%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Last update for Sidoarjo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$305
Sidoarjo
$147 51.6% $157
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$210
Sidoarjo
$167 20.2% $42
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$160
Sidoarjo
$101 36.9% $59
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Sidoarjo
$119 26.4% $25
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Sidoarjo
$52 41.1% $36
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$43
Sidoarjo
$25 42.9% $18
Getting Around
Cebu
$15
Sidoarjo
$3.5 * 77.2% $12

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $503 in Cebu and $225 in Sidoarjo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $11.00 in Sidoarjo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $167 per month, with Sidoarjo cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇮🇩 Sidoarjo
🕒 Local time
01:40 1:40 AM
00:40 12:40 AM
1 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
201,115
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

IDR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

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).

Indonesian Rupiah exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 18,000 IDR (100,000 IDR = 5.56 USD). 1 EUR = 20,236 IDR (100,000 IDR = 4.94 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Sidoarjo 2,330 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Sidoarjo

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 Sidoarjo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Sidoarjo cheaper than Cebu?
Sidoarjo is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 49% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
What income do you need for each city?
You'd need roughly $1,372 in Cebu and $922 in Sidoarjo to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
What is the rent difference between Cebu and Sidoarjo?
Rent for a central apartment: $503 in Cebu versus $225 in Sidoarjo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do food prices compare in Cebu and in Sidoarjo?
Supermarket bills run roughly 25% higher in Cebu. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Sidoarjo?
All in, you'll spend $915 per month in Cebu versus $615 in Sidoarjo – a 49% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Is $1,000 enough for either Cebu or Sidoarjo?
Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Sidoarjo gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.
Is Cebu or Sidoarjo more family-friendly?
For families, Sidoarjo 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.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Sidoarjo?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Sidoarjo 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 Sidoarjo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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