Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Koh Samui and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,183 in Koh Samui, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

57

Cost of Living Index in Koh Samui
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Koh Samui Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Koh Samui

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,183

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,183 in Koh Samui versus $934 in Cebu.

Koh Samui $1,183
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,939 in Koh Samui versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Koh Samui $1,939
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,694 in Koh Samui versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Koh Samui $2,694
Cebu $1,896

Living in Koh Samui is roughly 27% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Koh Samui 12% lower, Cebu 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.36 ฿146

$3.03 ₱190

43.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$32.80 ฿1,098

$23.48 ₱1,473

39.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.50 ฿285

$4.09 ₱256

107.82%

Cappuccino

$2.73 ฿91.3

$2.52 ₱158

8.33%

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

$0.94 ฿31.60

$1.54 ₱96.9

-38.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.50 ฿16.59

$0.49 ₱30.98

2.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.54 ฿84.9

$1.79 ₱112

41.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.73 ฿125

$2.26 ₱142

65.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 ฿58.2

$1.95 ₱122

-10.77%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.79

$1.43 ₱89.7

2.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.56 ฿52.2

$1.02 ₱63.8

52.94%

Eggs

$2.10 ฿70.3

$2.06 ₱129

1.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.60 ฿656

$9.81 ₱615

99.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.27 ฿110

$4.61 ₱289

-29.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.94 ฿366

$7.70 ₱483

42.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 ฿99.0

$3.31 ₱207

-10.57%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 ฿56.5

$1.45 ₱90.9

16.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.22 ฿74.2

$2.36 ₱148

-5.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 ฿70.3

$1.54 ₱96.4

36.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.46 ฿48.79

$2.36 ₱148

-38.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.33 ฿44.53

$1.99 ₱125

-33.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ฿37.27

$1.15 ₱72.1

-3.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 ฿16.97

$0.67 ₱42.15

-23.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.23 ฿142

$3.00 ₱188

41.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.25 ฿611

$6.35 ₱398

187.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 ฿58.3

$1.31 ₱81.9

32.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.87 ฿95.9

$1.73 ₱108

65.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.46 ฿82.5

$0.25 ₱15.78

884.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$45.15 ฿1,512

$12.65 ₱793

256.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 ฿103

$0.74 ₱46.32

316.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.06 ฿35.62

$0.21 ₱13.11

404.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.89 ฿130

$4.33 ₱271

-10.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 ฿50.3

$1.33 ₱83.5

12.78%

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

$28.2K ฿944.4K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

29.60%

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

$27.7K ฿925.9K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

42.57%

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

$102 ฿3,405

$121 ₱7,563

-15.66%

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

$11.78 ฿394

$14.45 ₱907

-18.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.76 ฿595

$28.29 ₱1,774

-37.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.1 ฿1,812

$32.68 ₱2,050

65.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.53 ฿386

$6.39 ₱401

80.44%

Cinema Ticket

$7.73 ฿259

$5.46 ₱342

41.58%

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

$615 ฿20.6K

$273 ₱17.1K

125.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K ฿415.9K

$8,156 ₱511.5K

52.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.9 ฿2,073

$49.57 ₱3,109

24.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.96 ฿969

$24.87 ₱1,560

16.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.6 ฿3,167

$76.6 ₱4,804

23.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.2 ฿2,951

$59.3 ₱3,717

48.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$619 ฿20.7K

$506 ₱31.7K

22.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 ฿13.0K

$309 ₱19.4K

25.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,761 ฿59.0K

$1,052 ₱66.0K

67.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,025 ฿34.3K

$619 ₱38.8K

65.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,971 ฿99.5K

$2,915 ₱182.9K

1.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,176 ฿72.8K

$1,867 ₱117.1K

16.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$397 ฿13.3K

$341 ₱21.4K

16.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.2

-22.64%

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

Last update for Koh Samui: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Koh Samui

$389 33.5%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 20.4% $79

Groceries & Markets

Koh Samui

$267 23%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 21.3% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Koh Samui

$131 11.3%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 24.4% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Koh Samui

$123 10.6%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 23.1% $28

Eating Out

Koh Samui

$119 10.2%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 25.7% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Koh Samui

$70 6%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 37.3% $26

Getting Around

Koh Samui

$63 5.5%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 75.6% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $619 in Koh Samui and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Koh Samui pays 16% 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: $33.00 in Koh Samui vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $267 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Koh Samui

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

14:01 2:01 PM

15:01 3:01 PM

1 h ahead of Koh Samui

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,110

964,169

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 33.48 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.55 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Koh Samui Cebu 2,620 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Koh Samui
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

Koh Samui vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 27% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 16% higher in Koh Samui, 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: $619 in Koh Samui versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,183 per month in Koh Samui versus $934 in Cebu – a 27% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 257% less than in Koh Samui. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $1,183 in Koh Samui, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Koh Samui. 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 Koh Samui, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Koh Samui 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 27% less than in Koh Samui. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.