Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hillcrest and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,084 in Hillcrest, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Hillcrest
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Hillcrest Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Hillcrest

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,084

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hillcrest 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 Hillcrest and in Cebu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,084 in Hillcrest versus $918 in Cebu.

Hillcrest $1,084
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,681 in Hillcrest versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Hillcrest $1,681
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,279 in Hillcrest versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Hillcrest $2,279
Cebu $1,900

Living in Hillcrest is roughly 18% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Hillcrest 20% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.59 R 125

$3.09 ₱194

145.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$38.42 R 633

$24.22 ₱1,525

58.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.87 R 96.8

$3.92 ₱247

49.74%

Cappuccino

$2.74 R 45.17

$2.51 ₱158

9.16%

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

$1.08 R 17.77

$1.59 ₱100

-32.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 R 13.64

$0.53 ₱33.43

56.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.38 R 39.22

$1.78 ₱112

33.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 R 41.26

$2.17 ₱137

15.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.23 R 20.34

$1.92 ₱121

-35.94%

White Bread (500g)

$0.91 R 15.06

$1.36 ₱85.4

-33.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.36

$1.01 ₱63.5

46.53%

Eggs

$2.42 R 39.88

$2.03 ₱128

19.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.19 R 135

$9.86 ₱621

-16.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.14 R 84.8

$4.39 ₱277

17.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.05 R 116

$7.60 ₱479

-7.24%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 R 21.23

$3.30 ₱208

-60.91%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 R 30.55

$1.39 ₱87.8

33.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.90 R 31.34

$2.33 ₱147

-18.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.46

$1.50 ₱94.3

11.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.48 R 24.43

$2.36 ₱149

-37.29%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 R 23.79

$1.90 ₱119

-24.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 R 19.73

$1.19 ₱74.9

0.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 19.01

$0.63 ₱39.71

82.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.54 R 58.4

$3.00 ₱189

18.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.92 R 81.1

$6.03 ₱379

-18.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 R 22.83

$1.23 ₱77.7

13.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 R 30.21

$1.75 ₱110

4.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 R 24.09

$0.25 ₱15.86

484.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.40 R 6.66

$0.77 ₱48.62

-48.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.71 R 11.69

$0.23 ₱14.53

208.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.55 R 124

$4.46 ₱281

69.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 R 25.06

$1.31 ₱82.8

16.03%

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

$35.3K R 580.9K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

65.99%

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

$30.8K R 506.8K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

60.68%

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

$143 R 2,362

$120 ₱7,569

19.25%

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

$35.68 R 588

$14.00 ₱882

154.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.15 R 645

$27.54 ₱1,734

42.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.67 R 522

$32.33 ₱2,035

-2.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.82 R 178

$6.65 ₱419

62.71%

Cinema Ticket

$7.05 R 116

$5.65 ₱356

24.78%

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

$308 R 5,078

$275 ₱17.3K

11.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,586 R 125.0K

$7,918 ₱498.5K

-4.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$53.9 R 888

$49.33 ₱3,106

9.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.76 R 490

$25.24 ₱1,589

17.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.3 R 1,620

$77.0 ₱4,846

27.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.9 R 1,382

$57.2 ₱3,601

46.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$397 R 6,544

$500 ₱31.5K

-20.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$366 R 6,029

$309 ₱19.4K

18.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$730 R 12.0K

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-32.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$734 R 12.1K

$615 ₱38.7K

19.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$882 R 14.5K

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-69.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$659 R 10.9K

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-65.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.78

7.2

63.61%

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

Last update for Hillcrest: October 10, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hillcrest

$366 33.8%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 15.6% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hillcrest

$218 20.1%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 25.9% $56

Groceries & Markets

Hillcrest

$188 17.4%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 9.3% $17

Eating Out

Hillcrest

$136 12.5%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 35% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Hillcrest

$120 11%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 21.5% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Hillcrest

$46 4.2%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 4.7% $2.2

Getting Around

Hillcrest

$9.8 * 0.9%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 58.9% $5.8

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $397 in Hillcrest and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $38.00 in Hillcrest vs $24.00 in Cebu. Groceries flip the comparison at $188 vs $206, with Hillcrest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Hillcrest

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

16:41 4:41 PM

6 h ahead of Hillcrest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 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 ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hillcrest Cebu 10,870 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Hillcrest
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

Hillcrest vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 18% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,625 in Hillcrest and $1,377 in Cebu 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: $397 in Hillcrest versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Hillcrest pay roughly 9% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,084 per month in Hillcrest versus $918 in Cebu – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Cebu gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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

Safety-wise, Hillcrest 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Hillcrest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.