Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Vaxjo

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,631 in Vaxjo, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

Cebu
🇵🇭 Philippines
$918
/mo nomad
Vaxjo
🇸🇪 Sweden
$1,631
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Vaxjo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,631 in Vaxjo.

  • Cebu $918
  • Vaxjo $1,631

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $2,467 in Vaxjo.

  • Cebu $1,409
  • Vaxjo $2,467

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $3,303 in Vaxjo.

  • Cebu $1,900
  • Vaxjo $3,303

Living in Cebu costs roughly 44% less than in Vaxjo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Vaxjo is 21% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$3.09 ₱194
$13.37 SEK 132
-76.89%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$24.22 ₱1,525
$63.6 SEK 630
-61.92%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.92 ₱247
$9.82 SEK 97.3
-60.08%
Cappuccino
$2.51 ₱158
$4.07 SEK 40.29
-38.33%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.59 ₱100
$1.52 SEK 15.06
4.61%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.53 ₱33.43
$1.30 SEK 12.88
-59.23%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.78 ₱112
$6.70 SEK 66.4
-73.43%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.17 ₱137
$6.40 SEK 63.4
-66.09%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.92 ₱121
$1.74 SEK 17.25
10.34%
White Bread (500g)
$1.36 ₱85.4
$2.49 SEK 24.64
-45.38%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.01 ₱63.5
$3.81 SEK 37.72
-73.49%
Eggs
$2.03 ₱128
$4.56 SEK 45.18
-55.48%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.86 ₱621
$13.27 SEK 131
-25.70%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$4.39 ₱277
$10.55 SEK 105
-58.39%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$7.60 ₱479
$12.01 SEK 119
-36.72%
Apples (1kg)
$3.30 ₱208
$3.13 SEK 31.05
5.43%
Banana (1kg)
$1.39 ₱87.8
$2.00 SEK 19.83
-30.50%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.33 ₱147
$2.04 SEK 20.24
14.22%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.50 ₱94.3
$4.61 SEK 45.64
-67.46%
Potato (1kg)
$2.36 ₱149
$1.40 SEK 13.90
68.57%
Onion (1kg)
$1.90 ₱119
$1.55 SEK 15.39
22.58%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.19 ₱74.9
$2.19 SEK 21.71
-45.66%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.63 ₱39.71
$1.37 SEK 13.54
-54.01%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$3.00 ₱189
$6.86 SEK 68.0
-56.27%
Wine (Bottle)
$6.03 ₱379
$7.62 SEK 75.5
-20.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.23 ₱77.7
$1.91 SEK 18.91
-35.60%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.75 ₱110
$1.56 SEK 15.45
12.18%
🚌 Getting Around
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.25 ₱15.86
$3.17 SEK 31.38
-92.11%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$12.64 ₱796
$64.8 SEK 642
-80.50%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$0.77 ₱48.62
$7.97 SEK 79.0
-90.34%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.23 ₱14.53
$1.95 SEK 19.28
-88.21%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$4.46 ₱281
$78.8 SEK 780
-94.34%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.31 ₱82.8
$1.75 SEK 17.34
-25.14%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$21.2K ₱1.3M
$32.7K SEK 324.5K
-35.13%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$19.1K ₱1.2M
$32.6K SEK 323.4K
-41.35%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$120 ₱7,569
$90.1 SEK 893
33.41%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.00 ₱882
$29.97 SEK 297
-53.29%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$27.54 ₱1,734
$30.98 SEK 307
-11.10%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$32.33 ₱2,035
$35.44 SEK 351
-8.78%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$6.65 ₱419
$20.01 SEK 198
-66.77%
Cinema Ticket
$5.65 ₱356
$15.63 SEK 155
-63.85%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$275 ₱17.3K
$150 SEK 1,483
83.99%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$7,918 ₱498.5K
-
-
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$49.33 ₱3,106
$97.6 SEK 967
-49.46%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$25.24 ₱1,589
$30.45 SEK 302
-17.11%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$77.0 ₱4,846
$68.4 SEK 678
12.48%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$57.2 ₱3,601
$84.9 SEK 841
-32.60%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$500 ₱31.5K
$794 SEK 7,867
-37.08%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$309 ₱19.4K
$625 SEK 6,192
-50.58%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,078 ₱67.9K
$1,499 SEK 14.8K
-28.08%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$615 ₱38.7K
$939 SEK 9,304
-34.48%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$2,886 ₱181.7K
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$1,917 ₱120.7K
$2,507 SEK 24.8K
-23.54%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Cebu
Vaxjo
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$346 ₱21.8K
$3,172 SEK 31.4K
-89.09%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
7.2
4.13
74.33%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Vaxjo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Cebu
$309
Vaxjo
$625 102% $316
Groceries & Markets
Cebu
$206
Vaxjo
$324 57.2% $118
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Cebu
$162
Vaxjo
$151 6.6% $11
Clothing & Footwear
Cebu
$94
Vaxjo
$127 34.8% $33
Eating Out
Cebu
$88
Vaxjo
$243 175% $155
Sport & Entertainment
Cebu
$44
Vaxjo
$67 52.9% $23
Getting Around
Cebu
$16
Vaxjo
$95 511% $80

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $500 in Cebu and $794 in Vaxjo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vaxjo pays 817% 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 $64.0 in Vaxjo 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
🇸🇪 Vaxjo
🕒 Local time
09:10 9:10 AM
03:10 3:10 AM
6 h behind Cebu
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
964,169
55,600
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

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).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Cebu Vaxjo 10,170 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Cebu
  • Vaxjo

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 Vaxjo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Vaxjo cheaper than Cebu?
Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 78% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Cebu or Vaxjo?
On paper, salaries run 817% lower in Vaxjo. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
What is the rent difference between Cebu and Vaxjo?
Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $794 in Vaxjo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Cebu and in Vaxjo?
All in, you'll spend $918 per month in Cebu versus $1,631 in Vaxjo – a 78% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 413% less than in Vaxjo. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,500 a realistic budget for living in Cebu or in Vaxjo?
At $918 in Cebu versus $1,631 in Vaxjo, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Vaxjo. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Is Cebu or Vaxjo more family-friendly?
For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Vaxjo, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Cebu or Vaxjo?
Safety-wise, Cebu and Vaxjo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Vaxjo. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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