Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Puerto Princesa

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $705 in Puerto Princesa, rent and utilities included – about $3,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

Dhaka
🇧🇩 Bangladesh
$406
/mo nomad
Puerto Princesa
🇵🇭 Philippines
$705
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Puerto Princesa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $705 in Puerto Princesa.

  • Dhaka $406
  • Puerto Princesa $705

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $1,050 in Puerto Princesa.

  • Dhaka $687
  • Puerto Princesa $1,050

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,396 in Puerto Princesa.

  • Dhaka $969
  • Puerto Princesa $1,396

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 42% less than in Puerto Princesa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Puerto Princesa 48% lower.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$2.28 ৳282
$4.28 ₱269
-46.73%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$12.33 ৳1,523
$16.84 ₱1,061
-26.78%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$3.95 ৳488
$4.59 ₱289
-13.94%
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
$2.34 ₱147
-2.56%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.33 ৳40.88
$0.88 ₱55.2
-62.50%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$0.16 ৳19.86
$0.52 ₱32.91
-69.23%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
-
$1.26 ₱79.5
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$2.37 ₱149
-
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$0.85 ৳104
$1.75 ₱110
-51.43%
White Bread (500g)
$0.60 ৳74.5
$1.02 ₱64.4
-41.18%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$0.69 ৳85.4
$0.82 ₱51.9
-15.85%
Eggs
$1.23 ৳152
$1.75 ₱110
-29.71%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$8.80 ৳1,087
$5.52 ₱347
59.42%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$3.33 ৳412
$5.43 ₱342
-38.67%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$6.63 ৳819
$6.59 ₱415
0.61%
Apples (1kg)
$2.85 ৳352
$2.37 ₱149
20.25%
Banana (1kg)
$0.90 ৳111
$0.85 ₱53.3
5.88%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.34 ৳289
$2.40 ₱151
-2.50%
Tomato (1kg)
$0.63 ৳78.4
$1.14 ₱71.6
-44.74%
Potato (1kg)
$0.24 ৳29.59
$1.53 ₱96.4
-84.31%
Onion (1kg)
$0.46 ৳57.3
$1.35 ₱84.8
-65.93%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.35 ৳42.79
$0.94 ₱59.4
-62.77%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.28 ৳34.24
$0.70 ₱43.92
-60.00%
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
$2.86 ₱180
14.69%
Wine (Bottle)
-
$7.28 ₱458
-
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
-
$1.06 ₱66.6
-
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
-
$1.35 ₱84.8
-
🚌 Getting Around
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.42 ৳52.3
$0.25 ₱15.71
68.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$22.43 ৳2,772
$11.06 ₱697
102.80%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.19 ৳147
$0.74 ₱46.36
60.81%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$0.39 ৳48.71
$0.21 ₱13.17
85.71%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$3.28 ৳406
$1.95 ₱123
68.21%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.10 ৳136
$1.01 ₱63.7
8.91%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$29.4K ৳3.6M
$17.1K ₱1.1M
72.19%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.2K ৳4.0M
$19.1K ₱1.2M
68.43%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$38.28 ৳4,729
$62.2 ₱3,915
-38.45%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$4.09 ৳506
$10.94 ₱689
-62.61%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$9.02 ৳1,114
$24.60 ₱1,549
-63.33%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$13.66 ৳1,688
$32.60 ₱2,052
-58.10%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$10.21 ৳1,261
$4.75 ₱299
114.95%
Cinema Ticket
$4.11 ৳508
$5.05 ₱318
-18.61%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$90.7 ৳11.2K
$133 ₱8,357
-31.64%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$2,591 ৳320.2K
$8,060 ₱507.5K
-67.85%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$17.06 ৳2,108
$33.45 ₱2,106
-49.00%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$21.38 ৳2,641
$19.50 ₱1,228
9.64%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$51.4 ৳6,355
$71.1 ₱4,478
-27.69%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$36.78 ৳4,545
$56.2 ₱3,541
-34.60%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$133 ৳16.4K
$283 ₱17.8K
-52.99%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$65.1 ৳8,041
$201 ₱12.7K
-67.64%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$377 ৳46.6K
$519 ₱32.7K
-27.32%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$192 ৳23.8K
$313 ₱19.7K
-38.52%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$1,621 ৳200.3K
$2,404 ₱151.4K
-32.57%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$760 ৳93.9K
$1,008 ₱63.4K
-24.58%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Dhaka
Puerto Princesa
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$246 ৳30.4K
$223 ₱14.1K
10.24%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
10.48
8.12
29.06%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Puerto Princesa: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Groceries & Markets
Dhaka
$124
Puerto Princesa
$176 42.1% $52
Accommodation & Living
Dhaka
$65
Puerto Princesa
$201 209% $136
Eating Out
Dhaka
$59
Puerto Princesa
$93 56% $33
Clothing & Footwear
Dhaka
$57
Puerto Princesa
$81 42.4% $24
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Dhaka
$51
Puerto Princesa
$98 90.2% $46
Getting Around
Dhaka
$27
Puerto Princesa
$14 49.3% $13
Sport & Entertainment
Dhaka
$22
Puerto Princesa
$43 95% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $283 in Puerto Princesa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhaka pays 10% 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 $17.00 in Puerto Princesa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $124 vs $176 per month, with Dhaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇧🇩 Dhaka
🇵🇭 Puerto Princesa
🕒 Local time
03:43 3:43 AM
05:43 5:43 AM
2 h ahead of Dhaka
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
21,741,000 Capital
307,079
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to BDT – Bangladeshi Taka Converter

Bangladeshi Taka exchange rates as of October 17, 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 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Dhaka Puerto Princesa 3,390 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Dhaka
  • Puerto Princesa

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 Puerto Princesa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Is Puerto Princesa cheaper than Dhaka?
Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 74% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.
Where can you earn more: Dhaka or Puerto Princesa?
Average pay runs 10% higher in Dhaka, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
What is the rent difference between Dhaka and Puerto Princesa?
Rent for a central apartment: $133 in Dhaka versus $283 in Puerto Princesa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What are total monthly expenses in Dhaka and in Puerto Princesa?
All in, you'll spend $406 per month in Dhaka versus $705 in Puerto Princesa – a 74% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
Which city has cheaper public transport?
A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 103% less than in Puerto Princesa. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Is $1,000 enough for either Dhaka or Puerto Princesa?
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.
Is Dhaka or Puerto Princesa more family-friendly?
For families, Dhaka is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Puerto Princesa, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.
Which city is safer, Dhaka or Puerto Princesa?
Safety-wise, Dhaka and Puerto Princesa are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is easier to live in as a foreigner?
Expats usually find Dhaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 74% less than in Puerto Princesa. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

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