Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Islamabad and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Islamabad: $608 a month against $943 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

29

Cost of Living Index in Islamabad
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Islamabad Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Islamabad

🇵🇰 Pakistan

$608

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$943

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $608 in Islamabad versus $943 in Cebu.

Islamabad $608
Cebu $943

Estimated couple costs with rent: $950 in Islamabad versus $1,437 in Cebu.

Islamabad $950
Cebu $1,437

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,292 in Islamabad versus $1,930 in Cebu.

Islamabad $1,292
Cebu $1,930

Living in Islamabad costs roughly 36% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Islamabad 55% lower, Cebu 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.57 PKR 986

$3.88 ₱244

-7.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.14 PKR 6,678

$23.22 ₱1,462

3.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.37 PKR 1,484

$3.90 ₱246

37.69%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.73 PKR 1,031

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.04 PKR 1,948

Cappuccino

$2.67 PKR 739

$2.56 ₱161

4.30%

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

$0.35 PKR 95.7

$1.60 ₱101

-78.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 PKR 66.6

$0.51 ₱32.02

-52.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.76 ₱111

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 ₱136

Milk (1 liter)

$0.99 PKR 273

$1.99 ₱125

-50.25%

White Bread (500g)

$0.74 PKR 203

$1.37 ₱86.3

-45.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.29 PKR 358

$0.95 ₱59.8

35.79%

Eggs

$1.32 PKR 366

$2.02 ₱127

-34.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.97 PKR 1,653

$9.63 ₱606

-38.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.03 PKR 838

$4.35 ₱274

-30.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$5.52 PKR 1,528

$7.70 ₱485

-28.31%

Apples (1kg)

$1.35 PKR 374

$3.30 ₱207

-59.09%

Banana (1kg)

$0.86 PKR 239

$1.27 ₱79.7

-32.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.04 PKR 287

$2.34 ₱147

-55.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.55 PKR 151

$1.51 ₱95.3

-63.58%

Potato (1kg)

$0.30 PKR 83.3

$2.23 ₱141

-86.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.40 PKR 110

$1.93 ₱122

-79.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.28 PKR 77.1

$1.18 ₱74.4

-76.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.43 PKR 118

$0.65 ₱40.92

-33.85%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$2.00 PKR 552

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 PKR 347

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.64 PKR 729

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 PKR 652

$2.89 ₱182

-18.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱400

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱80.0

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₱103

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.17 PKR 46.19

$0.23 ₱14.42

-26.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.61 PKR 5,977

$12.24 ₱770

76.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.28 PKR 355

$0.82 ₱51.5

56.10%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.70 PKR 194

$0.20 ₱12.56

250.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.65 PKR 456

$4.32 ₱272

-61.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 PKR 369

$1.38 ₱86.7

-3.62%

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

$54.3K PKR 15.0M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

156.01%

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

$23.1K PKR 6.4M

$19.3K ₱1.2M

20.00%

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

$103 PKR 28.4K

$124 ₱7,814

-17.15%

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

$6.17 PKR 1,707

$15.93 ₱1,003

-61.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.36 PKR 4,802

$28.07 ₱1,767

-38.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.65 PKR 9,308

$33.41 ₱2,103

0.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.62 PKR 2,384

$6.40 ₱403

34.69%

Cinema Ticket

$4.97 PKR 1,376

$5.85 ₱368

-15.04%

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

$326 PKR 90.2K

$271 ₱17.0K

20.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.4K PKR 6.2M

$8,060 ₱507.3K

178.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.82 PKR 7,142

$48.31 ₱3,041

-46.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.52 PKR 9,548

$24.56 ₱1,546

40.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.6 PKR 26.4K

$77.1 ₱4,855

23.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.07 PKR 11.4K

$56.5 ₱3,557

-27.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$248 PKR 68.5K

$495 ₱31.2K

-49.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$139 PKR 38.5K

$322 ₱20.2K

-56.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$549 PKR 151.7K

$990 ₱62.3K

-44.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$280 PKR 77.5K

$628 ₱39.5K

-55.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,655 PKR 457.9K

$4,459 ₱280.6K

-62.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$825 PKR 228.1K

$3,030 ₱190.7K

-72.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$384 PKR 106.1K

$343 ₱21.6K

11.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

13.08

7.2

81.67%

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

Last update for Islamabad: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cebu: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Islamabad

$139 22.9%

Cebu

$322 34.1% 131% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Islamabad

$126 20.8%

Cebu

$168 17.8% 33% $42

Groceries & Markets

Islamabad

$104 17.1%

Cebu

$206 21.8% 97.6% $102

Clothing & Footwear

Islamabad

$89 14.6%

Cebu

$93 9.9% 4.8% $4.3

Eating Out

Islamabad

$79 13%

Cebu

$95 10.1% 20.2% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Islamabad

$44 7.2%

Cebu

$45 4.8% 3.5% $1.5

Getting Around

Islamabad

$27 4.5%

Cebu

$15 1.6% 44.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $248 in Islamabad and $495 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Islamabad pays 12% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $24 in Islamabad vs $23 in Cebu. Groceries flip the comparison at $104 vs $206, with Islamabad cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇵🇰 Islamabad

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

05:48 5:48 AM

08:48 8:48 AM

3 h ahead of Islamabad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,009,832 Capital

964,169

💱 Currency

Pakistani Rupee PKR ₨

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD

1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to PKR – Pakistani Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇰 Pakistani Rupee (₨)

Pakistani Rupee exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 277 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.62 USD). 1 EUR = 311 PKR (1,000 PKR = 3.22 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 62.95 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.66 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to PKR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Islamabad Cebu 5,780 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Islamabad
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

Islamabad vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Islamabad is about 36% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, utilities, and eating out. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 12% higher in Islamabad, 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: $248 in Islamabad versus $495 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $608 per month in Islamabad versus $943 in Cebu – Islamabad is about 36% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 43% less than in Islamabad. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

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, Islamabad and Cebu are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.