Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Ubon Ratchathani

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubon Ratchathani: $781 a month against $915 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cebu outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Ubon Ratchathani
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Ubon Ratchathani Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$915

/mo nomad

Ubon Ratchathani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$781

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Ubon Ratchathani

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $915 in Cebu versus $781 in Ubon Ratchathani.

Cebu $915
Ubon Ratchathani $781

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,418 in Cebu versus $1,444 in Ubon Ratchathani.

Cebu $1,418
Ubon Ratchathani $1,444

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,921 in Cebu versus $2,106 in Ubon Ratchathani.

Cebu $1,921
Ubon Ratchathani $2,106

Living in Cebu is roughly 17% more expensive than in Ubon Ratchathani, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 33% lower, Ubon Ratchathani 42% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.05 ₱192

$4.66 ฿156

-34.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.00 ₱1,511

$20.60 ฿689

16.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.99 ₱251

$7.41 ฿248

-46.15%

Cappuccino

$2.50 ₱157

$1.81 ฿60.3

38.12%

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

$1.54 ₱97.1

$1.30 ฿43.60

18.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₱31.37

$0.54 ฿17.99

-7.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$2.40 ฿80.2

-25.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱136

$3.62 ฿121

-40.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.00 ₱126

$1.81 ฿60.6

10.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 ₱86.2

$1.46 ฿48.84

-6.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ₱64.9

$1.38 ฿46.15

-25.36%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$2.05 ฿68.6

-0.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.20 ₱642

$17.08 ฿571

-40.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.45 ₱280

$2.35 ฿78.6

89.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.67 ₱483

$11.02 ฿368

-30.40%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱208

$2.99 ฿99.9

10.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 ₱91.8

$1.01 ฿33.59

44.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.32 ₱146

$2.13 ฿71.2

8.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.49 ₱94.0

$2.06 ฿68.9

-27.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.34 ₱147

$1.42 ฿47.54

64.79%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 ₱122

$1.06 ฿35.58

83.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.16 ₱73.0

$1.12 ฿37.44

3.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.89

$0.49 ฿16.51

38.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.99 ₱188

$4.25 ฿142

-29.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.24 ₱393

$13.55 ฿453

-53.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.3

$1.66 ฿55.4

-25.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱109

$2.85 ฿95.1

-39.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.23 ₱14.36

$0.85 ฿28.51

-72.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.34 ₱777

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.79 ₱49.96

$1.21 ฿40.40

-34.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.86

$1.04 ฿34.82

-78.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 ₱286

$6.56 ฿219

-30.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 ₱82.9

$1.22 ฿40.86

8.20%

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

$21.0K ₱1.3M

$28.1K ฿939.2K

-25.26%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$31.4K ฿1.1M

-38.26%

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

$119 ₱7,464

$81.4 ฿2,719

45.73%

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

$14.22 ₱896

$12.16 ฿407

16.94%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.47 ₱1,730

$14.40 ฿481

90.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.31 ₱2,034

$47.95 ฿1,603

-32.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.50 ₱409

$13.14 ฿439

-50.53%

Cinema Ticket

$5.40 ₱340

$6.70 ฿224

-19.40%

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

$276 ₱17.4K

$497 ฿16.6K

-44.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,866 ₱495.3K

$12.4K ฿413.4K

-36.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.37 ₱3,108

$56.4 ฿1,885

-12.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.58 ₱1,548

$28.54 ฿954

-13.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,825

$85.2 ฿2,847

-10.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.9 ₱3,706

$75.8 ฿2,534

-22.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$503 ₱31.7K

$235 ฿7,843

114.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$305 ₱19.2K

$143 ฿4,785

112.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,075 ₱67.7K

$1,049 ฿35.1K

2.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$632 ₱39.8K

$724 ฿24.2K

-12.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,870 ₱180.7K

$2,096 ฿70.0K

36.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,877 ₱118.2K

$1,243 ฿41.5K

51.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 ₱21.1K

$353 ฿11.8K

-4.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.57

29.26%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Last update for Ubon Ratchathani: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$305 33.3%

Ubon Ratchathani

$143 18.3% 53% $161

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.9%

Ubon Ratchathani

$240 30.8% 14.6% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$160 17.5%

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8% 32.7% $52

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.3%

Ubon Ratchathani

$111 14.2% 17.4% $16

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8% 22.8% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$43 4.7%

Ubon Ratchathani

$61 7.9% 42.4% $18

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Ubon Ratchathani

$9.8 * 1.3% 35.1% $5.3

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 $235 in Ubon Ratchathani. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ubon Ratchathani pays 5% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $21.00 in Ubon Ratchathani. Groceries flip the comparison at $210 vs $240, with Cebu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇹🇭 Ubon Ratchathani

🕒 Local time

03:55 3:55 AM

02:55 2:55 AM

1 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

74,977

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

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).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cebu Ubon Ratchathani 2,140 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Ubon Ratchathani

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 Ubon Ratchathani: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ubon Ratchathani is cheaper overall, especially in utilities and transport. The 17% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 5% lower in Ubon Ratchathani. 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: $503 in Cebu versus $235 in Ubon Ratchathani. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Cebu pay roughly 15% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $915 per month in Cebu versus $781 in Ubon Ratchathani – a 17% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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

For families, Ubon Ratchathani 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.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Ubon Ratchathani 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 Ubon Ratchathani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 17% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.