Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Vasteras

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,818 in Vasteras, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 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
88

Cost of Living Index in Vasteras
Learn more

Vasteras Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Vasteras

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,818

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Vasteras

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,818 in Vasteras.

Cebu $918
Vasteras $1,818

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,764 in Vasteras.

Cebu $1,409
Vasteras $2,764

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $3,710 in Vasteras.

Cebu $1,900
Vasteras $3,710

Living in Cebu costs roughly 50% less than in Vasteras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Vasteras is 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$13.70 SEK 136

-77.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$64.6 SEK 640

-62.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$9.91 SEK 98.2

-60.44%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$4.23 SEK 41.92

-40.66%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$2.25 SEK 22.27

-29.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$2.22 SEK 21.97

-76.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$7.15 SEK 70.8

-75.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$7.08 SEK 70.2

-69.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.40 SEK 13.87

37.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$3.00 SEK 29.70

-54.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$3.57 SEK 35.37

-71.71%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$3.89 SEK 38.55

-47.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$12.11 SEK 120

-18.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$12.74 SEK 126

-65.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$22.30 SEK 221

-65.92%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.19 SEK 31.59

3.45%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$2.53 SEK 25.05

-45.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$3.67 SEK 36.37

-36.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$4.39 SEK 43.46

-65.83%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.47 SEK 14.55

60.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$1.70 SEK 16.80

11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$2.18 SEK 21.62

-45.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$1.49 SEK 14.73

-57.72%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$7.08 SEK 70.2

-57.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$13.30 SEK 132

-54.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$1.32 SEK 13.10

-6.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.17 SEK 21.54

-19.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$3.32 SEK 32.88

-92.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

$70.7 SEK 700

-82.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$3.51 SEK 34.78

-78.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$2.50 SEK 24.78

-90.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$81.0 SEK 802

-94.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.66 SEK 16.49

-21.08%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$33.2K SEK 328.6K

-35.95%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$32.0K SEK 317.5K

-40.24%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$183 SEK 1,817

-34.44%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$22.17 SEK 220

-36.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$43.15 SEK 428

-36.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$34.14 SEK 338

-5.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

$19.65 SEK 195

-66.16%

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$16.74 SEK 166

-66.25%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$151 SEK 1,499

81.94%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$4,881 SEK 48.4K

62.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$101 SEK 1,002

-51.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$40.24 SEK 399

-37.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$86.7 SEK 859

-11.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$134 SEK 1,323

-57.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$750 SEK 7,429

-33.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$601 SEK 5,957

-48.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$1,366 SEK 13.5K

-21.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$997 SEK 9,880

-38.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$3,564 SEK 35.3K

-19.02%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$2,404 SEK 23.8K

-20.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$2,996 SEK 29.7K

-88.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

3.53

103.97%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Vasteras: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Vasteras

$601 33.1% 94.7% $292

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Vasteras

$380 20.9% 84.8% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Vasteras

$249 13.7% 53.7% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Vasteras

$163 9% 73.3% $69

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Vasteras

$258 14.2% 192% $170

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Vasteras

$68 3.7% 55% $24

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Vasteras

$100 5.5% 542% $84

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $750 in Vasteras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vasteras pays 766% 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 $65.0 in Vasteras for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $380 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇸🇪 Vasteras

🕒 Local time

07:34 7:34 AM

01:34 1:34 AM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

110,877

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cebu Vasteras 9,970 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Vasteras

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 Vasteras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 98% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 766% lower in Vasteras. 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 $750 in Vasteras. 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 $1,818 in Vasteras – a 98% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 459% less than in Vasteras. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,818 in Vasteras, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Vasteras. 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 Vasteras, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Vasteras 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 98% less than in Vasteras. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.