Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Zebbug

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,935 in Zebbug, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 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
98

Cost of Living Index in Zebbug
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Zebbug Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Zebbug

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,935

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Zebbug

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $918 in Cebu versus $1,935 in Zebbug.

Cebu $918
Zebbug $1,935

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,409 in Cebu versus $3,072 in Zebbug.

Cebu $1,409
Zebbug $3,072

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,900 in Cebu versus $4,208 in Zebbug.

Cebu $1,900
Zebbug $4,208

Living in Cebu costs roughly 53% less than in Zebbug, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 32% below, Zebbug is 43% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.09 ₱194

$19.75 €17.57

-84.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.22 ₱1,525

$79.6 €70.8

-69.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 ₱247

$7.23 €6.43

-45.78%

Cappuccino

$2.51 ₱158

$3.08 €2.74

-18.51%

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

$1.59 ₱100

$2.26 €2.01

-29.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.43

$1.09 €0.97

-51.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

$4.59 €4.08

-61.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

$4.76 €4.24

-54.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.92 ₱121

$1.30 €1.16

47.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.36 ₱85.4

$1.39 €1.24

-2.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.01 ₱63.5

$3.58 €3.18

-71.79%

Eggs

$2.03 ₱128

$4.39 €3.91

-53.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.86 ₱621

$10.18 €9.06

-3.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.39 ₱277

$11.79 €10.49

-62.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.60 ₱479

$18.45 €16.41

-58.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$3.66 €3.26

-9.84%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 ₱87.8

$2.79 €2.48

-50.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱147

$3.85 €3.43

-39.48%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.50 ₱94.3

$3.68 €3.27

-59.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$1.93 €1.71

22.28%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱119

$3.44 €3.06

-44.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 ₱74.9

$2.27 €2.02

-47.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.63 ₱39.71

$1.51 €1.34

-58.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱189

$6.16 €5.48

-51.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

$5.77 €5.14

4.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

$2.46 €2.19

-50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

$2.33 €2.07

-24.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.86

$2.39 €2.13

-89.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 ₱48.62

$3.89 €3.46

-80.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.53

$1.82 €1.62

-87.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.46 ₱281

$32.86 €29.23

-86.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.8

$1.46 €1.30

-10.27%

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

$21.2K ₱1.3M

$27.4K €24.4K

-22.42%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$38.5K €34.2K

-50.25%

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

$120 ₱7,569

$158 €140

-23.85%

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

$14.00 ₱882

$31.32 €27.86

-55.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.54 ₱1,734

$29.42 €26.17

-6.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.33 ₱2,035

$59.6 €53.0

-45.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$5.65 ₱356

$11.30 €10.05

-50.00%

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

$275 ₱17.3K

$275 €245

0.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,918 ₱498.5K

$12.5K €11.1K

-36.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.33 ₱3,106

$56.3 €50.1

-12.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.24 ₱1,589

$67.6 €60.1

-62.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$77.0 ₱4,846

$110 €97.4

-29.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.2 ₱3,601

$130 €116

-55.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$500 ₱31.5K

$1,232 €1,096

-59.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$845 €752

-63.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,078 ₱67.9K

$1,763 €1,568

-38.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 ₱38.7K

$1,637 €1,456

-62.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,886 ₱181.7K

$3,894 €3,464

-25.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,917 ₱120.7K

$3,048 €2,711

-37.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

4.05

77.78%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Last update for Zebbug: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.6%

Zebbug

$845 43.7% 174% $536

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$206 22.4%

Zebbug

$341 17.6% 65.6% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$162 17.6%

Zebbug

$219 11.3% 35.2% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$94 10.2%

Zebbug

$163 8.5% 74% $70

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Zebbug

$263 13.6% 198% $174

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.8%

Zebbug

$82 4.3% 88.5% $39

Getting Around

Cebu

$16 1.7%

Zebbug

$23 * 1.2% 45% $7

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 $1,232 in Zebbug. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $24.00 in Cebu vs $80.0 in Zebbug for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $206 vs $341 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇲🇹 Zebbug

🕒 Local time

11:15 11:15 AM

05:15 5:15 AM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

1,770

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Zebbug 11,050 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Zebbug

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 Zebbug: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 111% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,377 in Cebu and $2,903 in Zebbug to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $500 in Cebu versus $1,232 in Zebbug. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Zebbug. 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 $1,935 in Zebbug – a 111% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,935 in Zebbug, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Zebbug. 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 Zebbug, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Cebu and Zebbug 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 111% less than in Zebbug. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.