Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Targu Mures

For one person, living costs are similar in Cebu and in Targu Mures: $934 and $942 a month, rent and utilities included.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index
46

Cost of Living Index in Targu Mures
Learn more

Targu Mures Living Index

Jump to prices

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Targu Mures

🇷🇴 Romania

$942

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Targu Mures

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $942 in Targu Mures.

Cebu $934
Targu Mures $942

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $1,446 in Targu Mures.

Cebu $1,415
Targu Mures $1,446

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $1,950 in Targu Mures.

Cebu $1,896
Targu Mures $1,950

Living in Cebu costs roughly 1% less than in Targu Mures, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 30% lower, Targu Mures 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱190

$9.02 RON 42.67

-66.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,473

$42.09 RON 199

-44.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱256

$8.17 RON 38.64

-49.94%

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$2.21 RON 10.43

14.03%

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

$1.54 ₱96.9

$1.46 RON 6.90

5.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$1.22 RON 5.78

-59.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

$1.94 RON 9.15

-7.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

$2.35 RON 11.12

-3.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.36 RON 6.41

43.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.7

$1.12 RON 5.29

27.68%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱63.8

$1.39 RON 6.59

-26.62%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$2.92 RON 13.81

-29.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱615

$7.83 RON 37.04

25.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱289

$5.78 RON 27.32

-20.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱483

$10.20 RON 48.24

-24.51%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱207

$0.93 RON 4.39

255.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱90.9

$1.27 RON 6.01

14.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.45 RON 6.87

62.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.4

$1.90 RON 8.99

-18.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$0.72 RON 3.39

227.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$0.52 RON 2.46

282.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$0.88 RON 4.15

30.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.15

$0.76 RON 3.59

-11.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱188

$5.81 RON 27.49

-48.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

$7.32 RON 34.64

-13.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

$1.07 RON 5.07

22.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

$1.55 RON 7.33

11.61%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$0.65 RON 3.07

-61.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱793

$25.67 RON 121

-50.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.32

$0.85 RON 4.03

-12.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$0.81 RON 3.82

-74.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱271

$7.60 RON 35.94

-43.03%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.5

$1.87 RON 8.85

-28.88%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$29.1K RON 137.7K

-25.25%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$25.2K RON 119.2K

-23.03%

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

$121 ₱7,563

$102 RON 482

18.44%

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

$14.45 ₱907

$9.28 RON 43.89

55.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,774

$8.35 RON 39.49

238.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,050

$41.67 RON 197

-21.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱401

$17.94 RON 84.9

-64.38%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱342

$6.21 RON 29.38

-12.08%

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

$273 ₱17.1K

$1,335 RON 6,312

-79.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱511.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,109

$53.4 RON 253

-7.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,560

$30.39 RON 144

-18.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,804

$75.7 RON 358

1.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,717

$78.4 RON 371

-24.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.7K

$421 RON 1,990

20.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$290 RON 1,371

6.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.0K

$646 RON 3,055

62.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.8K

$485 RON 2,294

27.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱182.9K

$2,236 RON 10.6K

30.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.1K

$1,482 RON 7,008

26.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.4K

$998 RON 4,722

-65.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

7.47

-3.61%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Targu Mures: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Targu Mures

$290 30.7% 6.3% $20

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Targu Mures

$191 20.3% 9% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Targu Mures

$119 12.7% 26.9% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Targu Mures

$107 11.4% 13.1% $12

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Targu Mures

$148 15.7% 67.7% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Targu Mures

$54 5.7% 24.1% $11

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Targu Mures

$33 3.5% 115% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $421 in Targu Mures. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Targu Mures pays 193% 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: $23.00 in Cebu vs $42.00 in Targu Mures. Groceries flip the comparison at $210 vs $191, with Targu Mures cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇷🇴 Targu Mures

🕒 Local time

18:07 6:07 PM

13:07 1:07 PM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

134,290

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Targu Mures 9,880 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Targu Mures

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 Targu Mures: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, eating out, and leisure. The 1% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 193% lower in Targu Mures. 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: $506 in Cebu versus $421 in Targu Mures. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $934 per month in Cebu versus $942 in Targu Mures – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 103% less than in Targu Mures. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Cebu gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Targu Mures, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Targu Mures 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 1% less than in Targu Mures. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.