Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotabato City and Dhaka

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $428 a month against $764 in Cotabato City, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Cotabato City
Learn more

Cotabato City Living Index
21

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index

Jump to prices

Cotabato City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$764

/mo nomad

Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$428

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $764 in Cotabato City versus $428 in Dhaka.

Cotabato City $764
Dhaka $428

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,169 in Cotabato City versus $724 in Dhaka.

Cotabato City $1,169
Dhaka $724

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,574 in Cotabato City versus $1,019 in Dhaka.

Cotabato City $1,574
Dhaka $1,019

Living in Cotabato City is roughly 78% more expensive than in Dhaka, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Cotabato City 44% lower, Dhaka 68% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.65 ₱293

$2.50 ৳309

86.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.57 ₱1,044

$13.26 ৳1,638

24.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.00 ₱252

$4.99 ৳616

-19.84%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.87 ৳602

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.14 ৳511

Cappuccino

$2.23 ₱141

$2.35 ৳291

-5.11%

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

$1.04 ₱65.4

$0.33 ৳41.07

215.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 ₱40.49

$0.16 ৳19.62

300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.17 ₱73.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 ₱120

Milk (1 liter)

$2.02 ₱127

$0.85 ৳105

137.65%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.0

$0.63 ৳77.9

71.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.78 ₱49.16

$0.67 ৳83.1

16.42%

Eggs

$1.89 ₱119

$1.19 ৳147

58.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.41 ₱404

$8.83 ৳1,092

-27.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.67 ₱294

$3.30 ৳408

41.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.06 ₱570

$6.41 ৳792

41.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.73 ₱172

$2.75 ৳340

-0.73%

Banana (1kg)

$1.11 ₱69.9

$0.94 ৳116

18.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.44 ₱154

$2.37 ৳293

2.95%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 ₱75.3

$0.64 ৳79.1

87.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 ₱122

$0.26 ৳32.25

646.15%

Onion (1kg)

$3.55 ₱224

$0.49 ৳60.6

624.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 ₱75.4

$0.30 ৳37.63

300.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.71 ₱44.58

$0.30 ৳37.49

136.67%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.24 ৳1,512

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.43 ৳671

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 ৳807

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.47 ₱156

$3.17 ৳392

-22.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.06 ₱507

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 ₱77.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱106

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.26 ₱16.40

$0.38 ৳47.44

-31.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.02 ₱694

$23.06 ৳2,849

-52.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.84 ₱52.8

$1.17 ৳145

-28.21%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.37

$0.38 ৳46.99

-39.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.94 ₱122

$3.28 ৳405

-40.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.18 ₱74.4

$1.11 ৳137

6.31%

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

$21.5K ₱1.4M

$29.1K ৳3.6M

-26.23%

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

$18.7K ₱1.2M

$32.9K ৳4.1M

-43.25%

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

$108 ₱6,788

$46.77 ৳5,779

130.51%

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

$19.38 ₱1,220

$4.51 ৳557

329.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.55 ₱1,986

$11.22 ৳1,387

181.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.71 ₱2,060

$16.43 ৳2,031

99.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.78 ₱301

$14.87 ৳1,838

-67.85%

Cinema Ticket

$4.64 ₱292

$4.20 ৳519

10.48%

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

$107 ₱6,709

$91.6 ৳11.3K

16.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,519 ₱473.4K

$2,596 ৳320.8K

189.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.49 ₱2,109

$16.63 ৳2,055

101.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.69 ₱1,240

$19.80 ৳2,447

-0.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.2 ₱4,483

$46.87 ৳5,791

51.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.8 ₱3,825

$37.00 ৳4,572

64.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$270 ₱17.0K

$148 ৳18.2K

83.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$174 ₱11.0K

$70.8 ৳8,743

145.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$524 ₱33.0K

$432 ৳53.4K

21.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₱22.5K

$213 ৳26.3K

67.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,445 ₱154.0K

$1,605 ৳198.4K

52.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$999 ₱62.9K

$751 ৳92.8K

33.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$245 ৳30.3K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

10.67

-22.12%

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

Last update for Cotabato City: October 19, 2026

Last update for Dhaka: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cotabato City

$199 26.1%

Dhaka

$123 28.8% 38.2% $76

Accommodation & Living

Cotabato City

$174 22.8%

Dhaka

$71 16.5% 59.3% $103

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotabato City

$159 20.8%

Dhaka

$63 14.6% 60.6% $96

Eating Out

Cotabato City

$92 12.1%

Dhaka

$65 15.2% 29.5% $27

Clothing & Footwear

Cotabato City

$83 10.9%

Dhaka

$54 12.6% 35% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Cotabato City

$42 5.5%

Dhaka

$25 5.8% 40.9% $17

Getting Around

Cotabato City

$14 1.8%

Dhaka

$28 6.5% 97.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $270 in Cotabato City and $148 in Dhaka. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $17.00 in Cotabato City vs $13.00 in Dhaka for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $123 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cotabato City

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🕒 Local time

01:13 1:13 AM

23:13 11:13 PM

2 h behind Cotabato City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

325,079

21,741,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BDT, 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).

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cotabato City Dhaka 4,050 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotabato City
Dhaka

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 Dhaka: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka wins on cost – living expenses run 78% lower than in Cotabato City. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Dhaka the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $1,146 in Cotabato City and $642 in Dhaka 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: $270 in Cotabato City versus $148 in Dhaka. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $764 per month in Cotabato City versus $428 in Dhaka – a 78% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 109% less than in Cotabato City. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Dhaka gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Cotabato City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.