Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Southwark

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,473 in Southwark, rent and utilities included – about $6,700 less a year. The total is higher in Southwark despite lower rent and utilities.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Southwark
Learn more

Southwark Living Index

Jump to prices

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Southwark

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,473

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Southwark

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,473 in Southwark.

Cebu $918
Southwark $1,473

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $4,277 in Southwark.

Cebu $1,409
Southwark $4,277

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $7,080 in Southwark.

Cebu $1,900
Southwark $7,080

Living in Cebu costs roughly 38% less than in Southwark, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Southwark is 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$24.89 £18.67

-87.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$98.4 £73.8

-75.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$10.65 £7.99

-63.19%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$5.71 £4.28

-56.04%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$2.97 £2.22

-46.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$2.50 £1.87

-78.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$9.43 £7.07

-81.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$8.01 £6.01

-72.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.95 £1.47

-1.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$2.04 £1.53

-33.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$2.10 £1.58

-51.90%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$4.40 £3.30

-53.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$11.64 £8.74

-15.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$9.39 £7.04

-53.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$14.91 £11.19

-49.03%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$2.95 £2.21

11.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.36 £1.02

2.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$2.87 £2.15

-18.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$3.38 £2.53

-55.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.65 £1.24

43.03%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.73 £1.30

9.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.30 £0.98

-8.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$1.78 £1.33

-64.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$23.70 £17.78

-87.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$11.87 £8.91

-49.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$3.02 £2.27

-59.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$3.23 £2.42

-45.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$3.90 £2.93

-93.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$159 £119

-92.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$5.05 £3.79

-84.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$2.70 £2.02

-91.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$39.31 £29.49

-88.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$2.14 £1.60

-38.79%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$38.6K £28.9K

-44.94%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$40.2K £30.2K

-52.43%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$329 £247

-63.47%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$17.85 £13.39

-21.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$40.79 £30.60

-32.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$17.69 £13.27

-68.06%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$2,484 £1,864

-88.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$29.9K £22.4K

-73.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$90.9 £68.2

-45.76%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$46.17 £34.63

-45.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$103 £77.1

-25.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$89.2 £66.9

-35.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$2,309 £1,732

-78.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$5,679 £4,260

-81.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$3,867 £2,901

-84.09%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$4,165 £3,124

-91.69%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.12

40.63%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Southwark: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Southwark

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Southwark

$324 22% 57.4% $118

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Southwark

$388 26.3% 140% $226

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Southwark

$148 10.1% 57.6% $54

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Southwark

$385 26.1% 336% $296

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Southwark

$35 * 2.4% 18.9% $8.3

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Southwark

$193 13.1% 1142% $178

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 $500 in Cebu and $2,309 in Southwark. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Southwark pays 1104% 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 $98.0 in Southwark for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $324 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇬🇧 Southwark

🕒 Local time

05:32 5:32 AM

22:32 10:32 PM

7 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

71,552

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Southwark 11,310 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Southwark

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 Southwark: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 61% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 1104% lower in Southwark. 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: $500 in Cebu versus $2,309 in Southwark. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $1,473 in Southwark – a 61% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 1160% less than in Southwark. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,473 in Southwark, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Southwark. 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 Southwark, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Southwark 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 61% less than in Southwark. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.