Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Pasay

For one person, living is cheaper in Pasay: $907 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $23,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
Learn more

Melbourne Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Pasay
Learn more

Pasay Living Index

Jump to prices

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Pasay

🇵🇭 Philippines

$907

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Pasay

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 Pasay actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $907 in Pasay.

Melbourne $2,821
Pasay $907

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,237 in Pasay.

Melbourne $4,235
Pasay $1,237

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,567 in Pasay.

Melbourne $5,650
Pasay $1,567

Living in Melbourne is roughly 211% more expensive than in Pasay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Pasay is 33% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$4.40 ₱277

296.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$18.94 ₱1,193

346.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$2.84 ₱179

338.73%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.26 ₱142

81.86%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.59 ₱37.36

418.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.30 ₱19.20

740.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$1.16 ₱73.2

744.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$1.58 ₱99.3

442.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.71 ₱108

-13.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.13 ₱71.4

160.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.97 ₱61.4

174.23%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.96 ₱123

182.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$5.15 ₱324

104.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$4.13 ₱260

133.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$7.18 ₱452

111.98%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$2.24 ₱141

78.12%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.53 ₱96.4

97.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$2.31 ₱146

34.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.16 ₱73.2

315.52%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$2.37 ₱149

27.85%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$3.34 ₱211

-26.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.25 ₱78.7

96.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.87 ₱55.0

87.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$2.88 ₱181

1430.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$7.68 ₱483

65.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.98 ₱61.7

465.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.77 ₱111

195.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.17 ₱10.43

2100.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.77 ₱48.72

485.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.21 ₱13.20

547.62%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$1.87 ₱118

1528.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.24 ₱78.1

18.55%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.5K ₱1.4M

34.78%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$19.2K ₱1.2M

37.59%

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

$234 A$336

$139 ₱8,741

68.31%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$14.54 ₱916

92.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$24.75 ₱1,558

125.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$47.70 ₱3,003

3.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.26 ₱331

186.88%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$71.9 ₱4,524

3199.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$2,541 ₱160.0K

1088.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$35.39 ₱2,228

125.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$19.32 ₱1,217

162.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$71.6 ₱4,505

68.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$63.6 ₱4,004

105.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$429 ₱27.0K

309.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$312 ₱19.7K

344.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$827 ₱52.1K

322.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$364 ₱22.9K

584.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$1,891 ₱119.0K

266.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$575 ₱36.2K

1021.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$510 ₱32.1K

759.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

-15.71%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for Pasay: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Pasay

$313 34.5% 77.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Pasay

$186 20.6% 51.5% $198

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Pasay

$178 19.7% 43.9% $139

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Pasay

$83 9.2% 73.5% $231

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Pasay

$85 9.4% 50.3% $86

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Pasay

$2.5 * 0.3% 98.5% $161

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Pasay

$58 6.4% 26.9% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

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

Melbourne pays 759% 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 $19.00 in Pasay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $186 per month, with Pasay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇵🇭 Pasay

🕒 Local time

05:51 5:51 AM

02:51 2:51 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

416,522

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Melbourne Pasay 6,340 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Pasay

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 Pasay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Pasay differ by about 211% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $907 including rent). Pasay is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 759% 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 Pasay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 106% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,821 per month in Melbourne versus $907 in Pasay – a 211% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $907 in Pasay versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Pasay but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Pasay 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 Pasay 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 Pasay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 211% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.