Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Skovde

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $915 a month against $1,791 in Skovde, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$915
/mo nomad
Skovde
🇸🇪 Sweden
$1,791
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Skovde

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $915 in Cebu versus $1,791 in Skovde.

  • Cebu $915
  • Skovde $1,791

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,418 in Cebu versus $2,796 in Skovde.

  • Cebu $1,418
  • Skovde $2,796

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,921 in Cebu versus $3,801 in Skovde.

  • Cebu $1,921
  • Skovde $3,801

Living in Cebu costs roughly 49% less than in Skovde, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 33% below, Skovde is 32% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.05 ₱192
$13.15 SEK 130
-76.81%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.00 ₱1,511
$82.2 SEK 814
-70.80%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.99 ₱251
$10.25 SEK 102
-61.07%
Cappuccino
$2.50 ₱157
$4.14 SEK 41.06
-39.61%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.54 ₱97.1
$3.04 SEK 30.12
-49.34%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.50 ₱31.37
$2.33 SEK 23.09
-78.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
$8.12 SEK 80.5
-78.08%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱136
$10.05 SEK 99.6
-78.41%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.00 ₱126
$1.40 SEK 13.84
42.86%
White Bread (500g)
$1.37 ₱86.2
$2.86 SEK 28.30
-52.10%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.03 ₱64.9
$4.59 SEK 45.50
-77.56%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$3.58 SEK 35.49
-43.30%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.20 ₱642
$10.08 SEK 99.9
1.19%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.45 ₱280
$12.86 SEK 127
-65.40%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.67 ₱483
$17.98 SEK 178
-57.34%
Apples (1kg)
$3.31 ₱208
$4.13 SEK 40.94
-19.85%
Banana (1kg)
$1.46 ₱91.8
$2.67 SEK 26.48
-45.32%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.32 ₱146
$3.66 SEK 36.23
-36.61%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.49 ₱94.0
$5.17 SEK 51.2
-71.18%
Potato (1kg)
$2.34 ₱147
$1.52 SEK 15.10
53.95%
Onion (1kg)
$1.94 ₱122
$1.76 SEK 17.44
10.23%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.16 ₱73.0
$2.66 SEK 26.36
-56.39%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.68 ₱42.89
$1.33 SEK 13.17
-48.87%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$2.99 ₱188
$8.00 SEK 79.3
-62.63%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.24 ₱393
$8.20 SEK 81.2
-23.90%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.3
$2.42 SEK 23.95
-49.17%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.73 ₱109
$2.62 SEK 25.93
-33.97%
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.23 ₱14.36
$3.61 SEK 35.73
-93.63%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.34 ₱777
$84.5 SEK 838
-85.40%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.79 ₱49.96
$5.55 SEK 55.0
-85.77%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.22 ₱13.86
$1.29 SEK 12.76
-82.95%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.54 ₱286
$62.5 SEK 620
-92.74%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.32 ₱82.9
$1.77 SEK 17.54
-25.42%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.0K ₱1.3M
$33.1K SEK 327.9K
-36.52%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.4K ₱1.2M
$33.6K SEK 332.6K
-42.20%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$119 ₱7,464
$113 SEK 1,122
4.66%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.22 ₱896
$11.00 SEK 109
29.27%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.47 ₱1,730
$47.37 SEK 469
-42.01%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.31 ₱2,034
$38.41 SEK 381
-15.88%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.50 ₱409
$27.31 SEK 271
-76.20%
Cinema Ticket
$5.40 ₱340
$18.25 SEK 181
-70.41%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$276 ₱17.4K
$129 SEK 1,274
114.63%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,866 ₱495.3K
$4,654 SEK 46.1K
69.02%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.37 ₱3,108
$107 SEK 1,065
-54.06%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$24.58 ₱1,548
$30.76 SEK 305
-20.09%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$76.6 ₱4,825
$61.6 SEK 611
24.33%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$58.9 ₱3,706
$205 SEK 2,032
-71.30%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$503 ₱31.7K
$793 SEK 7,853
-36.47%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$305 ₱19.2K
$615 SEK 6,089
-50.45%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,075 ₱67.7K
$1,336 SEK 13.2K
-19.55%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$632 ₱39.8K
$1,014 SEK 10.0K
-37.66%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,870 ₱180.7K
$4,079 SEK 40.4K
-29.66%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,877 ₱118.2K
$2,821 SEK 28.0K
-33.45%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Skovde
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$336 ₱21.1K
$3,350 SEK 33.2K
-89.97%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
3
140.00%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Last update for Skovde: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$305
Skovde
$615 102% $310
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$210
Skovde
$369 76.2% $160
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$160
Skovde
$172 7.1% $11
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Skovde
$182 93.3% $88
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Skovde
$268 205% $180
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$43
Skovde
$75 73.8% $32
Getting Around
Cebu
$15
Skovde
$111 632% $96

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $503 in Cebu and $793 in Skovde. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Skovde pays 897% 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 $82.0 in Skovde for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $369 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇵🇭 Cebu
🇸🇪 Skovde
🕒 Local time
00:52 12:52 AM
18:52 6:52 PM
6 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
34,466
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, 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).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Skovde 10,160 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Skovde

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 Skovde: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Skovde cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 96% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Cebu or Skovde?
On paper, salaries run 897% lower in Skovde. 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 Skovde?
Rent for a central apartment: $503 in Cebu versus $793 in Skovde. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Skovde?
All in, you'll spend $915 per month in Cebu versus $1,791 in Skovde – a 96% 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 585% less than in Skovde. 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 Skovde?
At $915 in Cebu versus $1,791 in Skovde, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Skovde. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Skovde more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Skovde, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Skovde?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Skovde 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 96% less than in Skovde. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Cebu vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?