Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Mandaue

For one person, living is cheaper in Mandaue: $825 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Mandaue
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Mandaue Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Mandaue

🇵🇭 Philippines

$825

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Mandaue

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $825 in Mandaue.

Melbourne $2,821
Mandaue $825

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,203 in Mandaue.

Melbourne $4,235
Mandaue $1,203

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,581 in Mandaue.

Melbourne $5,650
Mandaue $1,581

Living in Melbourne is roughly 242% more expensive than in Mandaue, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Mandaue is 39% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$2.96 ₱187

488.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$23.45 ₱1,476

260.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$3.99 ₱251

212.28%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.58 ₱162

59.30%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$1.54 ₱97.0

98.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.49 ₱31.05

414.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$1.72 ₱108

469.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.28 ₱144

275.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.95 ₱123

-24.10%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.09 ₱68.7

169.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.93 ₱58.7

186.02%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.97 ₱124

181.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$9.91 ₱624

6.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$4.36 ₱275

121.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$7.63 ₱481

99.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.47 ₱219

14.99%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.43 ₱90.0

111.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.28 ₱144

35.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.47 ₱92.5

227.89%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$2.34 ₱147

29.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.97 ₱124

23.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.19 ₱74.9

106.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.67 ₱42.41

143.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$2.37 ₱149

1759.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$6.29 ₱396

101.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.23 ₱77.4

350.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.72 ₱108

204.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.24 ₱14.97

1458.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$9.67 ₱609

1322.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.74 ₱46.69

509.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.21 ₱13.19

547.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$1.88 ₱119

1519.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.32 ₱83.3

11.36%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

36.65%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

38.43%

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

$234 A$336

$98.3 ₱6,187

137.79%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$14.07 ₱886

98.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$27.93 ₱1,758

99.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$33.01 ₱2,078

49.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$5.27 ₱332

307.59%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.69 ₱358

165.20%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$130 ₱8,204

1719.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$7,979 ₱502.4K

278.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$32.91 ₱2,072

143.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$19.62 ₱1,235

158.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$76.1 ₱4,790

58.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$57.7 ₱3,632

126.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$429 ₱27.0K

309.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$251 ₱15.8K

453.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$747 ₱47.1K

367.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$353 ₱22.2K

606.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,174 ₱136.9K

218.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$902 ₱56.8K

614.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$234 ₱14.8K

1769.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

7.2

-18.06%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Mandaue: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Mandaue

$251 30.5% 81.9% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Mandaue

$205 24.8% 46.7% $179

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Mandaue

$140 17% 55.8% $177

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Mandaue

$88 10.7% 72% $227

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Mandaue

$84 10.2% 51.2% $88

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Mandaue

$12 1.5% 92.4% $151

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Mandaue

$44 5.4% 44.2% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $429 in Mandaue. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 1769% 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: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $23.00 in Mandaue for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $205 per month, with Mandaue cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇵🇭 Mandaue

🕒 Local time

06:49 6:49 AM

03:49 3:49 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

364,116

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.79 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Mandaue 5,780 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Mandaue

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

Melbourne vs Mandaue: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mandaue wins on cost – living expenses run 242% lower than in Melbourne. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Mandaue the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 1769% higher in Melbourne, 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: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $429 in Mandaue. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Mandaue – a meal for two runs $23.00 versus $85.0 in Melbourne. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,821 per month in Melbourne versus $825 in Mandaue – a 242% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $825 in Mandaue versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mandaue but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Mandaue the clear choice for anyone on this 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, Melbourne and Mandaue 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 Mandaue gentler on the wallet – expenses run 242% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.