Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Davao and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Davao: $794 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Davao
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Davao Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Davao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$794

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Davao and in Melbourne

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $794 in Davao versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

Davao $794
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,225 in Davao versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

Davao $1,225
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,656 in Davao versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

Davao $1,656
Melbourne $5,650

Living in Davao costs roughly 72% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Davao is 41% below, Melbourne is 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.81 ₱303

$17.43 A$25.08

-72.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$26.69 ₱1,681

$84.6 A$122

-68.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.94 ₱248

$12.46 A$17.92

-68.38%

Cappuccino

$2.71 ₱170

$4.11 A$5.91

-34.06%

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

$1.04 ₱65.3

$3.06 A$4.40

-66.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.97

$2.52 A$3.62

-73.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.61 ₱102

$9.80 A$14.10

-83.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.34 ₱147

$8.57 A$12.33

-72.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 ₱126

$1.48 A$2.14

35.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.13 ₱71.0

$2.94 A$4.23

-61.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.93 ₱58.4

$2.66 A$3.82

-65.04%

Eggs

$1.88 ₱119

$5.54 A$7.97

-66.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.52 ₱411

$10.51 A$15.13

-37.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.85 ₱306

$9.65 A$13.89

-49.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.18 ₱578

$15.22 A$21.91

-39.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.70 ₱170

$3.99 A$5.75

-32.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.10 ₱69.3

$3.02 A$4.34

-63.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$3.10 A$4.46

-23.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 ₱72.6

$4.82 A$6.93

-76.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 ₱127

$3.03 A$4.36

-33.33%

Onion (1kg)

$3.53 ₱222

$2.44 A$3.52

44.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 ₱76.1

$2.46 A$3.54

-50.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.68 ₱42.61

$1.63 A$2.34

-58.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.42 ₱152

$44.07 A$63.4

-94.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.77 ₱489

$12.70 A$18.28

-38.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 ₱78.2

$5.54 A$7.97

-77.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 ₱106

$5.23 A$7.52

-67.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.35 ₱21.73

$3.74 A$5.38

-90.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.58 ₱855

$138 A$198

-90.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₱51.2

$4.51 A$6.50

-82.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.23 ₱14.41

$1.36 A$1.96

-83.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.95 ₱123

$30.45 A$43.81

-93.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.28 ₱80.5

$1.47 A$2.12

-12.93%

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

$21.1K ₱1.3M

$29.0K A$41.7K

-27.34%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$26.5K A$38.1K

-28.58%

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

$106 ₱6,688

$234 A$336

-54.54%

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

$19.39 ₱1,221

$27.93 A$40.19

-30.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.90 ₱2,009

$55.7 A$80.2

-42.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.90 ₱2,135

$49.40 A$71.1

-31.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.61 ₱228

$21.48 A$30.91

-83.19%

Cinema Ticket

$4.70 ₱296

$15.09 A$21.72

-68.85%

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

$107 ₱6,766

$2,371 A$3,412

-95.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,555 ₱475.7K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-74.98%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.2 ₱3,852

$80.0 A$115

-23.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.84 ₱1,942

$50.7 A$73.0

-39.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.5 ₱4,502

$121 A$174

-40.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$62.5 ₱3,935

$130 A$188

-52.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$280 ₱17.6K

$1,759 A$2,531

-84.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$172 ₱10.8K

$1,390 A$2,000

-87.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$629 ₱39.6K

$3,494 A$5,027

-81.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$320 ₱20.1K

$2,493 A$3,588

-87.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,640 ₱103.2K

$6,926 A$9,967

-76.33%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,429 ₱90.0K

$6,445 A$9,274

-77.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$214 ₱13.5K

$4,383 A$6,307

-95.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

5.9

40.85%

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

Last update for Davao: October 13, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Davao

$200 25.2%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 91.6% $184

Accommodation & Living

Davao

$172 21.6%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 709% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Davao

$158 19.8%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 102% $160

Eating Out

Davao

$102 12.9%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 207% $212

Clothing & Footwear

Davao

$102 12.8%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 68.9% $70

Sport & Entertainment

Davao

$43 5.5%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 83.8% $36

Getting Around

Davao

$17 2.1%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 868% $147

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $280 in Davao and $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 1949% 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: $27.00 in Davao vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $200 vs $384 per month, with Davao cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Davao

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

02:52 2:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

3 h ahead of Davao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,632,991

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Davao Melbourne 5,380 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Davao
Melbourne

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

Davao vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Davao is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 255% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 1949% lower in Melbourne. 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: $280 in Davao versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Davao – a meal for two runs $27.00 versus $85.0 in Melbourne. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $794 per month in Davao versus $2,821 in Melbourne – a 255% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $794 in Davao versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Davao but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Davao the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Davao is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Melbourne, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Davao and Melbourne 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 Davao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 255% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.