Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mahabad and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Mahabad: $522 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

26

Cost of Living Index in Mahabad
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Mahabad Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Mahabad

🇮🇷 Iran

$522

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $522 in Mahabad versus $918 in Cebu.

Mahabad $522
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $849 in Mahabad versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Mahabad $849
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,177 in Mahabad versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Mahabad $1,177
Cebu $1,900

Living in Mahabad costs roughly 43% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mahabad 61% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.97 $2.97

$3.09 ₱194

-3.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.06 $17.06

$24.22 ₱1,525

-29.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.06 $4.06

$3.92 ₱247

3.57%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.80 $0.80

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.08 $1.08

Cappuccino

$1.13 $1.13

$2.51 ₱158

-54.98%

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

$0.52 $0.52

$1.59 ₱100

-67.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.94 $0.94

$0.53 ₱33.43

77.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

Milk (1 liter)

$0.65 $0.65

$1.92 ₱121

-66.15%

White Bread (500g)

$0.51 $0.51

$1.36 ₱85.4

-62.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.07 $2.07

$1.01 ₱63.5

104.95%

Eggs

$1.18 $1.18

$2.03 ₱128

-41.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.30 $4.30

$9.86 ₱621

-56.39%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.21 $3.21

$4.39 ₱277

-26.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.58 $7.58

$7.60 ₱479

-0.26%

Apples (1kg)

$1.00 $1.00

$3.30 ₱208

-69.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 $1.55

$1.39 ₱87.8

11.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.86 $0.86

$2.33 ₱147

-63.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.61 $0.61

$1.50 ₱94.3

-59.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 $0.54

$2.36 ₱149

-77.12%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 $0.47

$1.90 ₱119

-75.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.53 $0.53

$1.19 ₱74.9

-55.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.26 $0.26

$0.63 ₱39.71

-58.73%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.92 $0.92

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 $0.52

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 $1.34

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.14 $2.14

$3.00 ₱189

-28.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.15 $0.15

$0.25 ₱15.86

-40.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$8.76 $8.76

$12.64 ₱796

-30.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.44 $0.44

$0.77 ₱48.62

-42.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 $0.29

$0.23 ₱14.53

26.09%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.87 $2.87

$4.46 ₱281

-35.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.10 $0.10

$1.31 ₱82.8

-92.37%

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

$47.7K $47.7K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

124.68%

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

$47.6K $47.6K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

148.85%

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

$12.32 $12.32

$120 ₱7,569

-89.75%

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

$1.58 $1.58

$14.00 ₱882

-88.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$3.76 $3.76

$27.54 ₱1,734

-86.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$18.63 $18.63

$32.33 ₱2,035

-42.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.75 $11.75

$6.65 ₱419

76.69%

Cinema Ticket

$1.97 $1.97

$5.65 ₱356

-65.13%

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

$106 $106

$275 ₱17.3K

-61.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,234 $2,234

$7,918 ₱498.5K

-71.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.20 $23.20

$49.33 ₱3,106

-52.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.48 $28.48

$25.24 ₱1,589

12.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.3 $96.3

$77.0 ₱4,846

25.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$71.4 $71.4

$57.2 ₱3,601

24.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$264 $264

$500 ₱31.5K

-47.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$211 $211

$309 ₱19.4K

-31.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$728 $728

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-32.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$408 $408

$615 ₱38.7K

-33.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,131 $1,131

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-60.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$530 $530

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-72.33%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$253 $253

$346 ₱21.8K

-26.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

24.3

7.2

237.50%

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

Last update for Mahabad: 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

Mahabad

$211 40.5%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 46.2% $98

Groceries & Markets

Mahabad

$105 20.1%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 96.2% $101

Clothing & Footwear

Mahabad

$99 18.9%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 4.9% $4.8

Eating Out

Mahabad

$55 10.6%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 59.5% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Mahabad

$23 4.3%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 93.2% $21

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mahabad

$18 3.4%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 816% $144

Getting Around

Mahabad

$11 2.2%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 38.2% $4.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $264 in Mahabad and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 37% 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: $17.00 in Mahabad vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $105 vs $206 per month, with Mahabad cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Mahabad

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

01:09 1:09 AM

05:39 5:39 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Mahabad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

208,541

964,169

💱 Currency

USD USD

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

PHP to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mahabad Cebu 8,280 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Mahabad
Cebu

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Mahabad vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mahabad is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 76% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 37% lower in Cebu. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $264 in Mahabad versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $522 per month in Mahabad versus $918 in Cebu – a 76% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Mahabad runs roughly 44% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

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

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

Safety-wise, Mahabad 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 Mahabad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 76% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.