Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between El Nido and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in El Nido: $739 a month against $2,853 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in El Nido
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El Nido Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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El Nido

🇵🇭 Philippines

$739

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,853

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in El Nido and in Melbourne

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

A single person spends $739 per month in El Nido vs $2,853 in Melbourne, rent included.

El Nido $739
Melbourne $2,853

A couple spends around $1,148 per month in El Nido vs $4,275 in Melbourne, rent included.

El Nido $1,148
Melbourne $4,275

A family of three spends $1,557 per month in El Nido vs $5,697 in Melbourne, rent included.

El Nido $1,557
Melbourne $5,697

El Nido is about 74% cheaper than Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

El Nido sits 45% below the global median, while Melbourne is 111% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.84 ₱305

$17.20 A$24.75

-71.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$28.13 ₱1,771

$83.1 A$120

-66.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.70 ₱233

$12.43 A$17.88

-70.23%

Cappuccino

$2.25 ₱142

$4.05 A$5.82

-44.44%

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

$1.17 ₱73.8

$3.12 A$4.50

-62.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.32 ₱20.45

$2.46 A$3.54

-86.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.30 ₱81.8

$9.52 A$13.71

-86.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 ₱125

$8.16 A$11.74

-75.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 ₱100

$1.56 A$2.25

1.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.00 ₱63.1

$2.90 A$4.18

-65.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 ₱81.4

$2.66 A$3.82

-51.50%

Eggs

$1.95 ₱123

$5.37 A$7.72

-63.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.33 ₱336

$10.67 A$15.36

-50.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.98 ₱250

$9.85 A$14.17

-59.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.98 ₱439

$15.36 A$22.11

-54.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.25 ₱142

$4.17 A$6.00

-46.04%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 ₱97.1

$3.15 A$4.53

-51.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.26 ₱142

$3.26 A$4.69

-30.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.16 ₱72.8

$4.76 A$6.85

-75.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.95 ₱123

$3.06 A$4.41

-36.27%

Onion (1kg)

$2.01 ₱127

$2.47 A$3.55

-18.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.92 ₱58.0

$2.45 A$3.52

-62.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.65

$1.63 A$2.34

-67.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.35 ₱211

$45.17 A$65.0

-92.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.24 ₱456

$12.68 A$18.25

-42.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 ₱62.9

$5.69 A$8.18

-82.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 ₱118

$5.23 A$7.53

-64.24%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 ₱15.07

$3.87 A$5.57

-93.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.28 ₱648

$142 A$204

-92.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.85 ₱53.8

$4.54 A$6.53

-81.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.20 ₱12.47

$1.42 A$2.04

-85.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.72 ₱108

$30.59 A$44.01

-94.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.31 ₱82.3

$1.47 A$2.11

-10.88%

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

$19.2K ₱1.2M

$28.9K A$41.5K

-33.54%

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

$21.6K ₱1.4M

$25.9K A$37.3K

-16.67%

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

$121 ₱7,638

$235 A$338

-48.40%

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

$14.38 ₱906

$27.45 A$39.51

-47.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.44 ₱1,539

$56.1 A$80.8

-56.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.90 ₱2,197

$50.1 A$72.1

-30.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.99 ₱251

$21.49 A$30.93

-81.43%

Cinema Ticket

$5.23 ₱329

$17.76 A$25.56

-70.55%

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

$124 ₱7,818

$2,385 A$3,432

-94.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,869 ₱432.4K

$29.7K A$42.7K

-76.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.86 ₱2,132

$79.2 A$114

-57.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$18.81 ₱1,185

$49.49 A$71.2

-61.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.9 ₱4,211

$118 A$170

-43.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$49.95 ₱3,145

$132 A$190

-62.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$269 ₱17.0K

$1,763 A$2,537

-84.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$177 ₱11.2K

$1,411 A$2,031

-87.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 ₱33.7K

$3,522 A$5,069

-84.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$358 ₱22.5K

$2,525 A$3,634

-85.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,607 ₱164.1K

$7,136 A$10.3K

-63.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$900 ₱56.7K

$6,355 A$9,144

-85.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$257 ₱16.2K

$4,258 A$6,128

-93.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.9

15.08%

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

Last update for El Nido: October 19, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

El Nido

$177 24%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.5% 696% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

El Nido

$174 23.6%

Melbourne

$388 13.6% 123% $214

Monthly Utilities & Internet

El Nido

$160 21.7%

Melbourne

$319 11.2% 99% $159

Eating Out

El Nido

$93 12.6%

Melbourne

$310 10.9% 232% $216

Clothing & Footwear

El Nido

$76 10.3%

Melbourne

$171 6% 124% $94

Sport & Entertainment

El Nido

$45 6.1%

Melbourne

$86 3% 88.8% $40

Getting Around

El Nido

$13 1.8%

Melbourne

$169 5.9% 1192% $156

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $269 in El Nido versus $1,763 in Melbourne. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 1559% higher in Melbourne, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $28.00 in El Nido versus $83.0 in Melbourne. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $174 vs $388 – making El Nido the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 El Nido

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

03:54 3:54 AM

06:54 6:54 AM

3 h ahead of El Nido

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

50,494

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

El Nido Melbourne 6,060 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

El Nido
Melbourne

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

El Nido vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $739 in El Nido, $2,853 in Melbourne – roughly 286% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,109 per month in El Nido and $4,280 in Melbourne. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in El Nido, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 1281% less in El Nido. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $124 per month in El Nido and $2,385 in Melbourne. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in El Nido, where all-in costs run around $739, than in Melbourne at $2,853. In El Nido it covers expenses comfortably, while in Melbourne it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward El Nido – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with El Nido. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Melbourne makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.