Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dhaka and Tarlac City

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhaka: $406 a month against $531 in Tarlac City, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

20

Cost of Living Index in Dhaka
Learn more

Dhaka Living Index
26

Cost of Living Index in Tarlac City
Learn more

Tarlac City Living Index

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Dhaka

🇧🇩 Bangladesh

$406

/mo nomad

Tarlac City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$531

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dhaka and in Tarlac 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 Tarlac City actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $406 in Dhaka versus $531 in Tarlac City.

Dhaka $406
Tarlac City $531

Estimated couple costs with rent: $687 in Dhaka versus $815 in Tarlac City.

Dhaka $687
Tarlac City $815

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $969 in Dhaka versus $1,098 in Tarlac City.

Dhaka $969
Tarlac City $1,098

Living in Dhaka costs roughly 24% less than in Tarlac City, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities sit below the global median: Dhaka 70% lower, Tarlac City 61% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.28 ৳282

$2.04 ₱129

11.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$12.33 ৳1,523

$8.02 ₱505

53.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.95 ৳488

$2.84 ₱179

39.08%

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

$1.84 ₱116

23.91%

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

$0.33 ৳40.88

$0.46 ₱28.88

-28.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.16 ৳19.86

$0.30 ₱19.04

-46.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.02 ₱64.2

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ₱102

Milk (1 liter)

$0.85 ৳104

$1.70 ₱107

-50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.60 ৳74.5

$1.15 ₱72.5

-47.83%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.69 ৳85.4

$1.01 ₱63.8

-31.68%

Eggs

$1.23 ৳152

$1.95 ₱123

-36.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.80 ৳1,087

$5.15 ₱325

70.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ৳412

$2.66 ₱168

25.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.63 ৳819

$6.37 ₱401

4.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.85 ৳352

$1.61 ₱101

77.02%

Banana (1kg)

$0.90 ৳111

$1.58 ₱99.6

-43.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.34 ৳289

$1.95 ₱123

20.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.63 ৳78.4

$1.06 ₱67.1

-40.57%

Potato (1kg)

$0.24 ৳29.59

$1.74 ₱110

-86.21%

Onion (1kg)

$0.46 ৳57.3

$1.20 ₱75.6

-61.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 ৳42.79

$0.62 ₱39.30

-43.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 ৳34.24

$0.49 ₱30.88

-42.86%

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

$2.99 ₱188

9.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.80 ₱239

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 ₱56.4

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.54 ₱96.9

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 ৳52.3

$0.23 ₱14.42

82.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.43 ৳2,772

$8.22 ₱517

172.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 ৳147

$0.76 ₱47.98

56.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.39 ৳48.71

$0.25 ₱15.82

56.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.28 ৳406

$1.32 ₱83.2

148.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ৳136

$1.19 ₱75.2

-7.56%

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

$29.4K ৳3.6M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

38.70%

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

$32.2K ৳4.0M

$19.5K ₱1.2M

65.02%

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

$38.28 ৳4,729

$89.9 ₱5,661

-57.42%

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

$4.09 ৳506

$5.72 ₱360

-28.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.02 ৳1,114

$23.40 ₱1,473

-61.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.66 ৳1,688

$39.83 ₱2,508

-65.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.21 ৳1,261

$16.18 ₱1,019

-36.90%

Cinema Ticket

$4.11 ৳508

$5.12 ₱322

-19.73%

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

$90.7 ৳11.2K

$132 ₱8,311

-31.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,591 ৳320.2K

$10.6K ₱669.2K

-75.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$17.06 ৳2,108

$28.81 ₱1,814

-40.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$21.38 ৳2,641

$19.45 ₱1,224

9.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.4 ৳6,355

$62.3 ₱3,924

-17.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$36.78 ৳4,545

$49.52 ₱3,118

-25.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$133 ৳16.4K

$87.6 ₱5,512

51.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$65.1 ৳8,041

$70.7 ₱4,451

-7.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$377 ৳46.6K

$258 ₱16.3K

46.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ৳23.8K

$165 ₱10.4K

16.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,621 ৳200.3K

$375 ₱23.6K

332.22%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$760 ৳93.9K

$292 ₱18.4K

160.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$246 ৳30.4K

$210 ₱13.2K

17.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.48

6.75

55.26%

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

Last update for Dhaka: October 10, 2026

Last update for Tarlac City: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Dhaka

$124 30.5%

Tarlac City

$150 28.2% 21.4% $26

Accommodation & Living

Dhaka

$65 16%

Tarlac City

$71 13.3% 8.6% $5.6

Eating Out

Dhaka

$59 14.6%

Tarlac City

$58 11% 1.7% $1

Clothing & Footwear

Dhaka

$57 14.1%

Tarlac City

$72 13.6% 26.4% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dhaka

$51 12.7%

Tarlac City

$119 22.4% 132% $68

Getting Around

Dhaka

$27 6.7%

Tarlac City

$11 2.1% 59.1% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Dhaka

$22 5.4%

Tarlac City

$50 9.4% 129% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $133 in Dhaka and $87.6 in Tarlac City. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhaka pays 17% 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 $8.00 in Tarlac City. Groceries flip the comparison at $124 vs $150, with Dhaka cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇩 Dhaka

🇵🇭 Tarlac City

🕒 Local time

19:14 7:14 PM

21:14 9:14 PM

2 h ahead of Dhaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,741,000 Capital

385,398

💱 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 Tarlac City 3,290 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Dhaka
Tarlac 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 Tarlac City: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dhaka is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and leisure. The 31% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 17% 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 $87.6 in Tarlac 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 $531 in Tarlac City – a 31% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Dhaka runs roughly 173% less than in Tarlac 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.

Safety-wise, Dhaka and Tarlac City 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 31% less than in Tarlac City. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.