Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Vulcanesti

For one person, living is cheaper in Vulcanesti: $766 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Vulcanesti
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Vulcanesti Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Vulcanesti

🇲🇩 Moldova

$766

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Vulcanesti

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $766 in Vulcanesti.

Cebu $918
Vulcanesti $766

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $1,130 in Vulcanesti.

Cebu $1,409
Vulcanesti $1,130

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $1,494 in Vulcanesti.

Cebu $1,900
Vulcanesti $1,494

Living in Cebu is roughly 20% more expensive than in Vulcanesti, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cebu 32% lower, Vulcanesti 43% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$6.61 MDL 117

-53.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$29.79 MDL 529

-18.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$10.38 MDL 184

-62.24%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$1.14 MDL 20.21

120.18%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$0.81 MDL 14.46

96.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$0.37 MDL 6.61

43.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$1.10 MDL 19.61

61.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$1.42 MDL 25.27

52.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$0.93 MDL 16.59

106.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$0.46 MDL 8.19

195.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$1.65 MDL 29.22

-38.79%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$2.24 MDL 39.72

-9.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$6.68 MDL 119

47.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$4.70 MDL 83.5

-6.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$8.24 MDL 146

-7.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$1.24 MDL 22.09

166.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$1.71 MDL 30.34

-18.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$1.75 MDL 31.01

33.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$1.84 MDL 32.63

-18.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$0.64 MDL 11.42

268.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$0.33 MDL 5.79

475.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$2.13 MDL 37.75

-44.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$0.41 MDL 7.22

53.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$3.39 MDL 60.2

-11.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$2.42 MDL 42.91

149.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$0.88 MDL 15.65

39.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$1.25 MDL 22.20

40.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$0.33 MDL 5.83

-24.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$1.11 MDL 19.66

-30.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$0.19 MDL 3.34

21.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$3.29 MDL 58.4

35.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.24 MDL 21.95

5.65%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$23.2K MDL 412.2K

-8.48%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$20.7K MDL 366.8K

-7.30%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$104 MDL 1,855

15.10%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$5.15 MDL 91.6

171.84%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$5.53 MDL 98.3

398.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$16.80 MDL 298

92.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$7.70 MDL 137

-26.62%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$113 MDL 2,003

144.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$5,159 MDL 91.6K

53.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$30.51 MDL 542

61.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$25.59 MDL 455

-1.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$82.3 MDL 1,461

-6.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$138 MDL 2,443

-58.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$277 MDL 4,913

80.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$222 MDL 3,946

38.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$285 MDL 5,053

116.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$868 MDL 15.4K

232.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$852 MDL 15.1K

124.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

$705 MDL 12.5K

-50.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

7.5

-4.00%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Vulcanesti: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Vulcanesti

$222 29% 28% $87

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Vulcanesti

$158 20.6% 23.2% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Vulcanesti

$115 15% 28.8% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Vulcanesti

$124 16.2% 32.2% $30

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Vulcanesti

$111 14.5% 25.6% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Vulcanesti

$32 4.2% 26.2% $11

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Vulcanesti

$3.4 * 0.4% 78.4% $12

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 $277 in Vulcanesti. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vulcanesti pays 104% 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 $30.00 in Vulcanesti. Groceries flip the comparison at $206 vs $158, with Vulcanesti cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇲🇩 Vulcanesti

🕒 Local time

14:40 2:40 PM

09:40 9:40 AM

5 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

22,000

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Moldovan Leu MDL L

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MDL, 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).

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Vulcanesti 9,610 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Vulcanesti

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 Vulcanesti: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Vulcanesti is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, leisure, and utilities. The 20% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 104% lower in Vulcanesti. 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 $277 in Vulcanesti. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 30% higher in Cebu. 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 $766 in Vulcanesti – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Vulcanesti gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Vulcanesti 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 Vulcanesti 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 Vulcanesti gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.