Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Iligan City

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $739 in Iligan City, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
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Dhaka Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Iligan City
Learn more

Iligan City Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Iligan City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$739

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $739 in Iligan City.

Dhaka $406
Iligan City $739

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,126 in Iligan City.

Dhaka $687
Iligan City $1,126

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,514 in Iligan City.

Dhaka $969
Iligan City $1,514

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 45% less than in Iligan City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Iligan City 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$3.99 ₱251

-42.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$17.85 ₱1,124

-30.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$2.74 ₱172

44.16%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.48 ৳554

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 ৳510

Cappuccino

$2.28 ৳281

$2.26 ₱142

0.88%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.67 ₱42.01

-50.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.34 ₱21.15

-52.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.13 ₱71.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 ₱120

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$2.05 ₱129

-58.54%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.16 ₱72.8

-48.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$0.90 ₱56.7

-23.33%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.93 ₱121

-36.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$5.66 ₱357

55.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.21 ₱265

-20.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$7.26 ₱457

-8.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$2.42 ₱153

17.77%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.54 ₱97.2

-41.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$2.34 ₱147

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.17 ₱73.7

-46.15%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$2.01 ₱126

-88.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.92 ₱121

-76.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$0.92 ₱57.8

-61.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.57 ₱35.82

-50.88%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$12.11 ৳1,496

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.31 ৳656

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 ৳794

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.28 ৳405

$2.97 ₱187

10.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.55 ₱476

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 ₱60.5

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.01 ₱126

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.26 ₱16.49

61.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$12.63 ₱795

77.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.85 ₱53.5

40.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.21 ₱13.33

85.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$2.01 ₱127

63.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$1.17 ₱73.6

-5.98%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

39.06%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$16.8K ₱1.1M

91.41%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$129 ₱8,095

-70.23%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$15.31 ₱964

-73.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$24.12 ₱1,519

-62.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$31.95 ₱2,011

-57.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$4.61 ₱290

121.48%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$5.14 ₱324

-20.04%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$131 ₱8,241

-30.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$8,881 ₱559.2K

-70.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$33.30 ₱2,097

-48.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$18.10 ₱1,139

18.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$70.2 ₱4,422

-26.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$48.70 ₱3,066

-24.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$111 ₱6,985

19.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$172 ₱10.8K

-62.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$515 ₱32.4K

-26.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$357 ₱22.5K

-46.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$2,600 ₱163.7K

-37.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$875 ₱55.1K

-13.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$198 ₱12.5K

24.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

6.79

54.34%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Iligan City: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Iligan City

$184 24.9% 48.8% $60

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Iligan City

$172 23.2% 164% $107

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Iligan City

$81 10.9% 35.8% $21

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Iligan City

$77 10.4% 34.5% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Iligan City

$168 22.7% 227% $117

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Iligan City

$16 2.1% 42.9% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Iligan City

$42 5.7% 92.9% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $111 in Iligan City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhaka pays 24% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $18.00 in Iligan City for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $184 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇵🇭 Iligan City

🕒 Local time

09:50 9:50 AM

11:50 11:50 AM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

342,618

💱 Currency

Bangladeshi Taka BDT ৳

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD

1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇩 Bangladeshi Taka (৳)

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 124 BDT (1,000 BDT = 8.09 USD). 1 EUR = 139 BDT (1,000 BDT = 7.2 EUR).

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).

USD to BDT in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dhaka Iligan City 3,990 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Iligan City

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

Dhaka vs Iligan City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 82% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 24% higher in Dhaka, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $133 in Dhaka versus $111 in Iligan City. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $406 per month in Dhaka versus $739 in Iligan City – a 82% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 78% less than in Iligan 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 82% less than in Iligan City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.