Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Panglao

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $817 in Panglao, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Panglao
Learn more

Panglao Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Panglao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$817

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Panglao

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $817 in Panglao.

Dhaka $406
Panglao $817

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,137 in Panglao.

Dhaka $687
Panglao $1,137

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,456 in Panglao.

Dhaka $969
Panglao $1,456

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 50% less than in Panglao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Panglao 39% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$3.08 ₱194

-25.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$23.75 ₱1,495

-48.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$3.94 ₱248

0.25%

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

$2.27 ₱143

0.44%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$1.60 ₱101

-79.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.53 ₱33.19

-69.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.55 ₱97.6

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 ₱119

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.59 ₱100

-46.54%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.13 ₱70.9

-46.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$0.94 ₱59.2

-26.60%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.79 ₱113

-31.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$8.58 ₱540

2.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$4.61 ₱290

-27.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$7.62 ₱480

-12.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$1.92 ₱121

48.44%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.39 ₱87.5

-35.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$1.87 ₱118

25.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.53 ₱96.1

-58.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$2.41 ₱152

-90.04%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.96 ₱123

-76.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$1.14 ₱71.8

-69.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.47 ₱29.49

-40.43%

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

$2.91 ₱183

12.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.70 ₱359

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.79 ₱49.65

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ₱97.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.23 ₱14.60

82.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$11.32 ₱713

98.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.73 ₱46.14

63.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.23 ₱14.53

69.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$1.94 ₱122

69.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$0.90 ₱57.0

22.22%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

38.78%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$19.2K ₱1.2M

67.41%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$58.9 ₱3,711

-35.05%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$6.75 ₱425

-39.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$24.52 ₱1,544

-63.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$20.96 ₱1,320

-34.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$4.71 ₱297

116.77%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$3.92 ₱247

4.85%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$135 ₱8,504

-32.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$7,988 ₱502.9K

-67.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$32.48 ₱2,045

-47.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$19.59 ₱1,233

9.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$66.4 ₱4,183

-22.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$47.63 ₱2,999

-22.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$280 ₱17.7K

-52.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$343 ₱21.6K

-81.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$567 ₱35.7K

-33.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$390 ₱24.6K

-50.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$947 ₱59.6K

71.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$1,014 ₱63.8K

-25.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

7.2

45.56%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Panglao: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Panglao

$183 22.3% 47.7% $59

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Panglao

$343 42% 427% $278

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Panglao

$84 10.3% 41.1% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Panglao

$75 9.2% 31.2% $18

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Panglao

$90 11% 75.5% $39

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Panglao

$14 1.7% 48.2% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Panglao

$29 3.5% 31.6% $6.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $280 in Panglao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $12.00 in Dhaka vs $24.00 in Panglao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $183 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇵🇭 Panglao

🕒 Local time

09:24 9:24 AM

11:24 11:24 AM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

39,839

💱 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 Panglao 3,870 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Panglao

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 Panglao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 101% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $609 in Dhaka and $1,226 in Panglao 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: $133 in Dhaka versus $280 in Panglao. 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 $817 in Panglao – a 101% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 98% less than in Panglao. 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 Panglao 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 101% less than in Panglao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.