Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ha Long and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Ha Long: $759 a month against $934 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

37

Cost of Living Index in Ha Long
Learn more

Ha Long Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

Jump to prices

Ha Long

🇻🇳 Vietnam

$759

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ha Long and in Cebu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $759 in Ha Long versus $934 in Cebu.

Ha Long $759
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,223 in Ha Long versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Ha Long $1,223
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,686 in Ha Long versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Ha Long $1,686
Cebu $1,896

Living in Ha Long costs roughly 19% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ha Long 43% lower, Cebu 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.83 ₫47.5K

$3.03 ₱190

-39.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.93 ₫490.8K

$23.48 ₱1,473

-19.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.36 ₫113.1K

$4.09 ₱256

6.60%

Cappuccino

$1.81 ₫46.9K

$2.52 ₱158

-28.17%

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

$0.57 ₫14.7K

$1.54 ₱96.9

-62.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ₫7,775

$0.49 ₱30.98

-38.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.79 ₫20.6K

$1.79 ₱112

-55.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₫33.9K

$2.26 ₱142

-42.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 ₫43.6K

$1.95 ₱122

-13.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 ₫26.9K

$1.43 ₱89.7

-27.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.11 ₫28.7K

$1.02 ₱63.8

8.82%

Eggs

$1.66 ₫43.2K

$2.06 ₱129

-19.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.56 ₫273.7K

$9.81 ₱615

7.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.12 ₫106.9K

$4.61 ₱289

-10.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.74 ₫226.8K

$7.70 ₱483

13.51%

Apples (1kg)

$2.74 ₫71.2K

$3.31 ₱207

-17.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.15 ₫29.8K

$1.45 ₱90.9

-20.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.13 ₫29.4K

$2.36 ₱148

-52.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.26 ₫32.6K

$1.54 ₱96.4

-18.18%

Potato (1kg)

$1.06 ₫27.5K

$2.36 ₱148

-55.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.14 ₫29.6K

$1.99 ₱125

-42.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.64 ₫16.5K

$1.15 ₱72.1

-44.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₫13.0K

$0.67 ₱42.15

-25.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.52 ₫39.4K

$3.00 ₱188

-49.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.62 ₫301.3K

$6.35 ₱398

82.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₫23.8K

$1.31 ₱81.9

-29.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 ₫42.0K

$1.73 ₱108

-6.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.31 ₫8,162

$0.25 ₱15.78

24.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.09 ₫157.9K

$12.65 ₱793

-51.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 ₫17.7K

$0.74 ₱46.32

-8.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.58 ₫15.0K

$0.21 ₱13.11

176.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.14 ₫55.4K

$4.33 ₱271

-50.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.89 ₫23.1K

$1.33 ₱83.5

-33.08%

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

$34.5K ₫894.6M

$21.8K ₱1.4M

58.48%

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

$31.8K ₫825.9M

$19.4K ₱1.2M

64.17%

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

$77.6 ₫2.0M

$121 ₱7,563

-35.68%

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

$5.83 ₫151.2K

$14.45 ₱907

-59.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$7.24 ₫187.8K

$28.29 ₱1,774

-74.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$19.71 ₫511.1K

$32.68 ₱2,050

-39.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.29 ₫215.1K

$6.39 ₱401

29.73%

Cinema Ticket

$2.91 ₫75.4K

$5.46 ₱342

-46.70%

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

$165 ₫4.3M

$273 ₱17.1K

-39.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K ₫366.6M

$8,156 ₱511.5K

73.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.9 ₫1.3M

$49.57 ₱3,109

4.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.66 ₫587.7K

$24.87 ₱1,560

-8.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.0 ₫2.0M

$76.6 ₱4,804

-0.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.4 ₫1.9M

$59.3 ₱3,717

20.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$421 ₫10.9M

$506 ₱31.7K

-16.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$278 ₫7.2M

$309 ₱19.4K

-10.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$774 ₫20.1M

$1,052 ₱66.0K

-26.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$674 ₫17.5M

$619 ₱38.8K

8.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,212 ₫83.3M

$2,915 ₱182.9K

10.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,170 ₫30.3M

$1,867 ₱117.1K

-37.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$228 ₫5.9M

$341 ₱21.4K

-33.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.46

7.2

17.50%

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

Last update for Ha Long: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ha Long

$278 36.7%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 11.4% $32

Groceries & Markets

Ha Long

$193 25.5%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 8.8% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Ha Long

$100 13.2%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 5.2% $5.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ha Long

$91 12%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 80.2% $73

Eating Out

Ha Long

$59 7.9%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 48.6% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Ha Long

$26 3.4%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 70.8% $18

Getting Around

Ha Long

$11 1.4%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 41.3% $4.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $421 in Ha Long and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 50% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $19.00 in Ha Long vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $210 per month, with Ha Long cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇳 Ha Long

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

08:37 8:37 AM

09:37 9:37 AM

1 h ahead of Ha Long

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

270,054

964,169

💱 Currency

Vietnamese Dong VND ₫

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100,000 VND = 3.86 USD

100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to VND – Vietnamese Dong Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇳 Vietnamese Dong (₫)

Vietnamese Dong exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 25,934 VND (100,000 VND = 3.86 USD). 1 EUR = 29,064 VND (100,000 VND = 3.44 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.29 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to VND in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ha Long Cebu 2,150 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ha Long
Cebu

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

Ha Long vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ha Long is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 23% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 50% lower in Cebu. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $421 in Ha Long versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $759 per month in Ha Long versus $934 in Cebu – a 23% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ha Long runs roughly 108% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Ha Long gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Ha Long is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cebu, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Ha Long and Cebu 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 Ha Long gentler on the wallet – expenses run 23% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.