Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotabato City and Almaty

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotabato City: $764 a month against $1,363 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Cotabato City
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Cotabato City Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
Learn more

Almaty Living Index

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Cotabato City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$764

/mo nomad

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,363

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cotabato City and in Almaty

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cotabato City and in Almaty actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $764 per month in Cotabato City vs $1,363 in Almaty, rent included.

Cotabato City $764
Almaty $1,363

A couple spends around $1,169 per month in Cotabato City vs $2,131 in Almaty, rent included.

Cotabato City $1,169
Almaty $2,131

A family of three spends $1,574 per month in Cotabato City vs $2,900 in Almaty, rent included.

Cotabato City $1,574
Almaty $2,900

Cotabato City is about 44% cheaper than Almaty, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Cotabato City sits 44% below the global median, while Almaty is 1% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.65 ₱293

$13.05 ₸5,899

-64.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.57 ₱1,044

$43.44 ₸19.6K

-61.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.00 ₱252

$8.76 ₸3,962

-54.34%

Cappuccino

$2.23 ₱141

$3.32 ₸1,501

-32.83%

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

$1.04 ₱65.4

$1.34 ₸607

-22.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 ₱40.49

$0.83 ₸374

-22.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.17 ₱73.4

$3.36 ₸1,518

-65.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ₱120

$4.02 ₸1,818

-52.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ₱127

$1.65 ₸747

22.42%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.0

$0.93 ₸421

16.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.78 ₱49.16

$2.05 ₸927

-61.95%

Eggs

$1.89 ₱119

$2.46 ₸1,113

-23.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 ₱404

$12.49 ₸5,646

-48.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.67 ₱294

$6.71 ₸3,035

-30.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.06 ₱570

$10.85 ₸4,905

-16.50%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 ₱172

$1.78 ₸807

53.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₱69.9

$2.25 ₸1,018

-50.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.44 ₱154

$2.87 ₸1,299

-14.98%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 ₱75.3

$2.71 ₸1,227

-55.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 ₱122

$0.80 ₸362

142.50%

Onion (1kg)

$3.55 ₱224

$0.55 ₸249

545.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 ₱75.4

$1.62 ₸732

-25.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 ₱44.58

$1.00 ₸453

-29.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.47 ₱156

$2.58 ₸1,167

-4.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.06 ₱507

$11.15 ₸5,039

-27.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 ₱77.1

$1.26 ₸572

-3.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱106

$2.48 ₸1,120

-32.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₱16.40

$0.28 ₸128

-7.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.02 ₱694

$22.05 ₸9,970

-50.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.84 ₱52.8

$1.34 ₸607

-37.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.37

$0.64 ₸288

-64.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.94 ₱122

$11.04 ₸4,993

-82.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 ₱74.4

$0.72 ₸326

63.89%

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

$21.5K ₱1.4M

$28.1K ₸12.7M

-23.69%

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

$18.7K ₱1.2M

$31.8K ₸14.4M

-41.26%

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

$108 ₱6,788

$90.5 ₸40.9K

19.10%

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

$19.38 ₱1,220

$10.63 ₸4,805

82.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.55 ₱1,986

$18.12 ₸8,190

74.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.71 ₱2,060

$69.0 ₸31.2K

-52.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.78 ₱301

$26.98 ₸12.2K

-82.28%

Cinema Ticket

$4.64 ₱292

$6.77 ₸3,062

-31.46%

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

$107 ₱6,709

$444 ₸200.6K

-75.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,519 ₱473.4K

$12.0K ₸5.4M

-37.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.49 ₱2,109

$91.9 ₸41.5K

-63.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.69 ₱1,240

$47.80 ₸21.6K

-58.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.2 ₱4,483

$139 ₸63.0K

-48.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.8 ₱3,825

$131 ₸59.4K

-53.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 ₱17.0K

$777 ₸351.2K

-65.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$174 ₱11.0K

$494 ₸223.4K

-64.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$524 ₱33.0K

$1,439 ₸650.4K

-63.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₱22.5K

$905 ₸409.2K

-60.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,445 ₱154.0K

$2,470 ₸1.1M

-0.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$999 ₱62.9K

$1,517 ₸685.7K

-34.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$857 ₸387.2K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

20.65

-59.76%

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

Last update for Cotabato City: October 19, 2026

Last update for Almaty: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cotabato City

$199 26.1%

Almaty

$251 18.4% 25.7% $51

Accommodation & Living

Cotabato City

$174 22.8%

Almaty

$494 36.3% 184% $320

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotabato City

$159 20.8%

Almaty

$119 8.8% 24.9% $39

Eating Out

Cotabato City

$92 12.1%

Almaty

$204 15% 121% $112

Clothing & Footwear

Cotabato City

$83 10.9%

Almaty

$185 13.6% 122% $101

Sport & Entertainment

Cotabato City

$42 5.5%

Almaty

$83 6.1% 96.5% $41

Getting Around

Cotabato City

$14 1.8%

Almaty

$28 2% 97.4% $14

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $270 in Cotabato City versus $777 in Almaty. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $17.00 in Cotabato City versus $43.00 in Almaty. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $199 vs $251 – making Cotabato City the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cotabato City

🇰🇿 Almaty

🕒 Local time

01:14 1:14 AM

23:14 11:14 PM

2 h behind Cotabato City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

325,079

1,475,400

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cotabato City Almaty 6,090 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotabato City
Almaty

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

Cotabato City vs Almaty: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 78%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,146 per month in Cotabato City and $2,044 in Almaty. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Cotabato City, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $17.00 in Cotabato City and $43.00 in Almaty. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $764 in Cotabato City and $1,363 in Almaty. That's a gap of about 78%.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Cotabato City, where all-in costs run around $764, than in Almaty at $1,363. In Cotabato City it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cotabato City – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

If budget matters most, go with Cotabato City. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Almaty makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.