Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lucena and Almaty

For one person, living is cheaper in Lucena: $646 a month against $1,372 in Almaty, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Lucena
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Lucena Living Index
67

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index

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Lucena

🇵🇭 Philippines

$646

/mo nomad

Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,372

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lucena and in Almaty

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

A single person spends $646 per month in Lucena vs $1,372 in Almaty, rent included.

Lucena $646
Almaty $1,372

A couple spends around $1,041 per month in Lucena vs $2,142 in Almaty, rent included.

Lucena $1,041
Almaty $2,142

A family of three spends $1,436 per month in Lucena vs $2,913 in Almaty, rent included.

Lucena $1,436
Almaty $2,913

Lucena is about 53% cheaper than Almaty, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Lucena sits 52% below the global median, while Almaty is 2% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.50 ₱94.5

$13.16 ₸5,949

-88.60%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.91 ₱1,191

$44.86 ₸20.3K

-57.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$1.72 ₱108

$8.90 ₸4,022

-80.67%

Cappuccino

$1.32 ₱83.2

$3.25 ₸1,469

-59.38%

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

$0.33 ₱20.89

$1.41 ₸639

-76.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ₱18.27

$0.88 ₸399

-67.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.38 ₱86.7

$3.35 ₸1,513

-58.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.28 ₱80.9

$4.04 ₸1,827

-68.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ₱105

$1.69 ₸762

-1.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 ₱73.5

$0.86 ₸390

36.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.92 ₱57.7

$2.03 ₸917

-54.68%

Eggs

$1.75 ₱111

$2.43 ₸1,100

-27.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.82 ₱430

$12.46 ₸5,632

-45.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.21 ₱265

$6.71 ₸3,033

-37.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.13 ₱449

$10.85 ₸4,905

-34.29%

Apples (1kg)

$4.04 ₱254

$1.80 ₸813

124.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.37 ₱86.1

$2.25 ₸1,018

-39.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.58 ₱225

$2.91 ₸1,314

23.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱73.6

$2.75 ₸1,243

-57.45%

Potato (1kg)

$2.27 ₱143

$0.75 ₸337

202.67%

Onion (1kg)

$3.30 ₱208

$0.55 ₸248

500.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.42 ₱89.6

$1.62 ₸732

-12.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.91 ₱57.1

$1.05 ₸474

-13.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.74 ₱173

$2.58 ₸1,167

6.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.74 ₱488

$11.15 ₸5,042

-30.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 ₱84.6

$1.21 ₸547

10.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 ₱111

$2.44 ₸1,104

-27.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 ₱14.97

$0.26 ₸117

-7.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.08 ₱761

$22.03 ₸9,957

-45.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₱51.0

$1.35 ₸611

-40.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.20

$0.64 ₸288

-67.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.54 ₱160

$11.16 ₸5,044

-77.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.23 ₱77.6

$0.72 ₸324

70.83%

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

$21.3K ₱1.3M

$22.5K ₸10.2M

-5.41%

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

$18.8K ₱1.2M

$30.3K ₸13.7M

-38.02%

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

$47.89 ₱3,017

$91.8 ₸41.5K

-47.84%

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

$6.37 ₱401

$10.66 ₸4,820

-40.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.06 ₱697

$17.86 ₸8,072

-38.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.15 ₱2,151

$70.3 ₸31.8K

-51.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.02 ₱253

$27.60 ₸12.5K

-85.43%

Cinema Ticket

$7.38 ₱465

$6.78 ₸3,064

8.85%

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

$71.9 ₱4,531

$449 ₸202.9K

-83.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,515 ₱158.4K

$12.1K ₸5.5M

-79.23%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.78 ₱2,254

$89.9 ₸40.7K

-60.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.69 ₱1,429

$47.02 ₸21.3K

-51.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 ₱5,023

$142 ₸64.1K

-43.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.4 ₱4,686

$133 ₸60.0K

-43.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$262 ₱16.5K

$805 ₸363.7K

-67.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$170 ₱10.7K

$500 ₸225.9K

-66.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$516 ₱32.5K

$1,429 ₸645.9K

-63.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$357 ₱22.5K

$904 ₸408.8K

-60.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,274 ₱143.2K

$2,503 ₸1.1M

-9.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$921 ₱58.0K

$1,559 ₸704.7K

-40.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$320 ₱20.2K

$870 ₸393.3K

-63.19%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

-66.10%

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

Last update for Lucena: October 12, 2026

Last update for Almaty: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Lucena

$206 31.9%

Almaty

$250 18.3% 21.5% $44

Accommodation & Living

Lucena

$170 26.3%

Almaty

$500 36.4% 195% $330

Clothing & Footwear

Lucena

$96 14.8%

Almaty

$185 13.5% 93.6% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lucena

$65 10.1%

Almaty

$120 8.8% 84.2% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Lucena

$49 7.6%

Almaty

$84 6.1% 71.5% $35

Eating Out

Lucena

$45 7%

Almaty

$205 14.9% 356% $160

Getting Around

Lucena

$15 2.3%

Almaty

$28 2% 85.4% $13

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $262 in Lucena versus $805 in Almaty. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 172% higher in Almaty, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Lucena versus $45.00 in Almaty. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $206 vs $250 – making Lucena the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Lucena

🇰🇿 Almaty

🕒 Local time

04:47 4:47 AM

02:47 2:47 AM

2 h behind Lucena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

278,924

1,475,400

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.82 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lucena Almaty 5,350 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Lucena
Almaty

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

Lucena vs Almaty: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Almaty is pricier by about 113%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $968 per month in Lucena and $2,058 in Almaty. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Lucena, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $19.00 in Lucena and $45.00 in Almaty. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $646 in Lucena and $1,372 in Almaty. That's a gap of about 113%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Lucena, where all-in costs run around $646, than in Almaty at $1,372. In Lucena it covers expenses comfortably, while in Almaty it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Lucena – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Lucena. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Almaty makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.