Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Mambajao

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $508 in Mambajao, rent and utilities included – about $1,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Mambajao
Learn more

Mambajao Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Mambajao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$508

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Mambajao

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $508 in Mambajao.

Dhaka $406
Mambajao $508

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $817 in Mambajao.

Dhaka $687
Mambajao $817

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,126 in Mambajao.

Dhaka $969
Mambajao $1,126

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 20% less than in Mambajao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Mambajao 62% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$1.36 ₱85.9

67.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$15.83 ₱997

-22.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$3.40 ₱214

16.18%

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

$2.28 ₱144

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.38 ₱24.02

-13.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.27 ₱16.81

-40.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 ₱64.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 ₱70.6

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$0.90 ₱56.8

-5.56%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$0.63 ₱39.56

-4.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$0.66 ₱41.56

4.55%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.26 ₱79.5

-2.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$5.90 ₱372

49.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.29 ₱270

-22.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$5.50 ₱346

20.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$2.54 ₱160

12.20%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.63 ₱103

-44.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$2.24 ₱141

4.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.13 ₱71.3

-44.25%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$1.29 ₱81.3

-81.40%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$2.06 ₱130

-77.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$0.90 ₱56.8

-61.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.55 ₱34.37

-49.09%

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

$2.51 ₱158

30.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.42 ₱467

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ₱62.0

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.13 ₱70.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.20 ₱12.47

110.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$10.71 ₱675

109.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.69 ₱43.54

72.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.21 ₱12.97

85.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$1.70 ₱107

92.94%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$1.28 ₱80.3

-14.06%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$21.9K ₱1.4M

34.09%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$21.8K ₱1.4M

47.81%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$64.9 ₱4,083

-40.97%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$16.36 ₱1,030

-75.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$20.10 ₱1,266

-55.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$27.72 ₱1,745

-50.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$4.68 ₱295

118.16%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$4.95 ₱312

-16.97%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$127 ₱7,995

-28.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$8,993 ₱566.2K

-71.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$30.83 ₱1,941

-44.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$22.01 ₱1,386

-2.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$72.3 ₱4,553

-28.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$63.1 ₱3,975

-41.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$101 ₱6,360

31.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$56.3 ₱3,542

15.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$237 ₱14.9K

59.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$158 ₱9,973

21.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$2,172 ₱136.7K

-25.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$990 ₱62.3K

-23.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$153 ₱9,616

61.11%

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 Mambajao: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Mambajao

$156 30.7% 26.1% $32

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Mambajao

$56 11.1% 13.6% $8.8

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Mambajao

$59 11.5% 1.5% $0.9

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Mambajao

$85 16.7% 48.7% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Mambajao

$101 20% 97.1% $50

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Mambajao

$13 2.6% 51.5% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Mambajao

$38 7.4% 71.9% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $101 in Mambajao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhaka pays 61% 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 $16.00 in Mambajao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $156 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇵🇭 Mambajao

🕒 Local time

01:19 1:19 AM

03:19 3:19 AM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

41,094

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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 Mambajao 3,980 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Mambajao

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 Mambajao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 25% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 61% 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 $101 in Mambajao. 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 $508 in Mambajao – a 25% 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 Mambajao. 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.

Safety-wise, Dhaka and Mambajao 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 Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Mambajao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.