Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Stilbaai

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,148 in Stilbaai, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Stilbaai
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Stilbaai Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Stilbaai

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,148

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Stilbaai

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,148 in Stilbaai.

Cebu $918
Stilbaai $1,148

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,832 in Stilbaai.

Cebu $1,409
Stilbaai $1,832

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $2,516 in Stilbaai.

Cebu $1,900
Stilbaai $2,516

Living in Cebu costs roughly 20% less than in Stilbaai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Stilbaai 15% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$11.91 R 196

-74.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$46.22 R 761

-47.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$6.10 R 100

-35.74%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$2.38 R 39.28

5.46%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$1.26 R 20.84

26.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.96 R 15.77

-44.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$2.95 R 48.65

-39.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$3.58 R 59.1

-39.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.38 R 22.74

39.13%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.26 R 20.69

7.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$2.20 R 36.30

-54.09%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$2.97 R 48.89

-31.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$8.94 R 147

10.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$6.94 R 114

-36.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$9.58 R 158

-20.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$1.92 R 31.62

71.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.94 R 32.00

-28.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.65 R 27.23

41.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$2.13 R 35.11

-29.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.55 R 25.57

52.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.47 R 24.20

29.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$1.28 R 21.04

-7.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$1.18 R 19.49

-46.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$3.56 R 58.7

-15.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$5.97 R 98.4

1.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.32 R 21.71

-6.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.15 R 35.46

-18.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$1.48 R 24.38

-83.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$0.59 R 9.68

30.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$1.53 R 25.16

-84.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$5.07 R 83.6

-12.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.52 R 25.00

-13.82%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$35.0K R 577.0K

-39.34%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$31.2K R 513.6K

-38.58%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$114 R 1,883

5.20%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$28.76 R 474

-51.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$39.29 R 647

-29.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$31.60 R 521

2.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$10.58 R 174

-37.15%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$8.83 R 145

-36.01%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$267 R 4,405

2.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$6,885 R 113.4K

15.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$56.3 R 928

-12.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$32.76 R 540

-22.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$120 R 1,981

-35.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$105 R 1,726

-45.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$387 R 6,374

29.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$363 R 5,973

-14.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$739 R 12.2K

45.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$742 R 12.2K

-17.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$864 R 14.2K

234.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$663 R 10.9K

189.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

10.97

-34.37%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Stilbaai: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Stilbaai

$363 31.6% 17.4% $54

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Stilbaai

$226 19.6% 9.6% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Stilbaai

$182 15.9% 12.7% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Stilbaai

$141 12.3% 50.5% $47

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Stilbaai

$173 15.1% 96% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Stilbaai

$49 4.3% 12.9% $5.6

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Stilbaai

$14 * 1.2% 9.2% $1.4

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 $387 in Stilbaai. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $46.00 in Stilbaai for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $226 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇿🇦 Stilbaai

🕒 Local time

21:59 9:59 PM

15:59 3:59 PM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

8,000

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Stilbaai 11,790 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Stilbaai

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 Stilbaai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 25% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $1,722 in Stilbaai 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $387 in Stilbaai. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Stilbaai. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $1,148 in Stilbaai – a 25% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,148 in Stilbaai, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Stilbaai. 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 Stilbaai, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Stilbaai 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 25% less than in Stilbaai. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.