Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Kawasaki and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,481 in Kawasaki, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

72

Cost of Living Index in Kawasaki
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Kawasaki Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Kawasaki

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,481

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,481 in Kawasaki versus $918 in Cebu.

Kawasaki $1,481
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,245 in Kawasaki versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Kawasaki $2,245
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,009 in Kawasaki versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Kawasaki $3,009
Cebu $1,900

Living in Kawasaki is roughly 61% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Kawasaki is 10% above, Cebu is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.72 ¥1,220

$3.09 ₱194

149.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.50 ¥5,924

$24.22 ₱1,525

54.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.02 ¥793

$3.92 ₱247

28.06%

Cappuccino

$2.69 ¥426

$2.51 ₱158

7.17%

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

$1.59 ¥251

$1.59 ₱100

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.87 ¥137

$0.53 ₱33.43

64.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.22 ¥509

$1.78 ₱112

80.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.06 ¥484

$2.17 ₱137

41.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.52 ¥241

$1.92 ₱121

-20.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 ¥244

$1.36 ₱85.4

13.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.23 ¥669

$1.01 ₱63.5

318.81%

Eggs

$2.11 ¥333

$2.03 ₱128

3.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.09 ¥1,751

$9.86 ₱621

12.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.63 ¥1,047

$4.39 ₱277

51.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.37 ¥2,587

$7.60 ₱479

115.39%

Apples (1kg)

$6.27 ¥991

$3.30 ₱208

90.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.71 ¥428

$1.39 ₱87.8

94.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.95 ¥783

$2.33 ₱147

112.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.33 ¥842

$1.50 ₱94.3

255.33%

Potato (1kg)

$3.27 ¥517

$2.36 ₱149

38.56%

Onion (1kg)

$3.06 ¥483

$1.90 ₱119

61.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 ¥179

$1.19 ₱74.9

-4.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 ¥130

$0.63 ₱39.71

30.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.83 ¥605

$3.00 ₱189

27.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.39 ¥1,483

$6.03 ₱379

55.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.39 ¥377

$1.23 ₱77.7

94.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 ¥429

$1.75 ₱110

54.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.90 ¥300

$0.25 ₱15.86

660.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$51.1 ¥8,072

$12.64 ₱796

304.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.07 ¥485

$0.77 ₱48.62

298.70%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.06 ¥484

$0.23 ₱14.53

1230.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.85 ¥2,978

$4.46 ₱281

322.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ¥167

$1.31 ₱82.8

-19.08%

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

$22.0K ¥3.5M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

3.51%

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

$15.4K ¥2.4M

$19.1K ₱1.2M

-19.61%

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

$124 ¥19.6K

$120 ₱7,569

3.11%

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

$23.61 ¥3,729

$14.00 ₱882

68.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.45 ¥4,810

$27.54 ₱1,734

10.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.2 ¥8,560

$32.33 ₱2,035

67.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.22 ¥982

$6.65 ₱419

-6.47%

Cinema Ticket

$12.18 ¥1,925

$5.65 ₱356

115.58%

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

$568 ¥89.8K

$275 ₱17.3K

106.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.5K ¥2.3M

$7,918 ₱498.5K

82.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.1 ¥7,914

$49.33 ₱3,106

1.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.45 ¥5,285

$25.24 ₱1,589

32.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$64.4 ¥10.2K

$77.0 ₱4,846

-16.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$70.9 ¥11.2K

$57.2 ₱3,601

23.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$754 ¥119.2K

$500 ₱31.5K

51.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$576 ¥90.9K

$309 ₱19.4K

86.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,281 ¥202.4K

$1,078 ₱67.9K

18.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 ¥161.2K

$615 ₱38.7K

65.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,698 ¥742.2K

$2,886 ₱181.7K

62.77%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,131 ¥494.7K

$1,917 ₱120.7K

63.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,542 ¥401.6K

$346 ₱21.8K

634.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.02

7.2

-71.94%

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

Last update for Kawasaki: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Kawasaki

$576 38.9%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 46.4% $267

Groceries & Markets

Kawasaki

$332 22.4%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 38% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Kawasaki

$178 12%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 9.1% $16

Eating Out

Kawasaki

$141 9.5%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 37.5% $53

Clothing & Footwear

Kawasaki

$98 6.7%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 4.6% $4.5

Sport & Entertainment

Kawasaki

$79 5.3%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 44.5% $35

Getting Around

Kawasaki

$77 5.2%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 79.8% $61

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $754 in Kawasaki and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kawasaki pays 635% 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: $37.00 in Kawasaki vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $332 vs $206 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Kawasaki

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

10:24 10:24 AM

09:24 9:24 AM

1 h behind Kawasaki

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,538,262

964,169

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

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Between locations

Kawasaki Cebu 3,230 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Kawasaki
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

Kawasaki vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 61% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 635% higher in Kawasaki, 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: $754 in Kawasaki versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,481 per month in Kawasaki versus $918 in Cebu – a 61% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 304% less than in Kawasaki. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,481 in Kawasaki, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Kawasaki. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Kawasaki 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 61% less than in Kawasaki. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.