Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and Puerto Galera

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Galera: $831 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $23,900 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 Puerto Galera
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Puerto Galera Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Puerto Galera

🇵🇭 Philippines

$831

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in Puerto Galera

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $831 in Puerto Galera.

Melbourne $2,821
Puerto Galera $831

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $1,253 in Puerto Galera.

Melbourne $4,235
Puerto Galera $1,253

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,675 in Puerto Galera.

Melbourne $5,650
Puerto Galera $1,675

Living in Melbourne is roughly 240% more expensive than in Puerto Galera, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, Puerto Galera is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$4.30 ₱271

305.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$18.98 ₱1,195

345.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$2.76 ₱174

351.45%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$2.67 ₱168

53.93%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.73 ₱46.07

319.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.27 ₱16.92

833.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$1.46 ₱91.9

571.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$2.81 ₱177

204.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.74 ₱110

-14.94%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.14 ₱71.8

157.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.84 ₱53.0

216.67%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.76 ₱111

214.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$6.64 ₱418

58.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$4.12 ₱259

134.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$6.92 ₱435

119.94%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$3.97 ₱250

0.50%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.43 ₱89.7

111.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$3.43 ₱216

-9.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.13 ₱71.0

326.55%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$2.36 ₱148

28.39%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$3.38 ₱213

-27.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$1.37 ₱86.1

79.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.91 ₱57.0

79.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$2.74 ₱173

1508.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$7.51 ₱473

69.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$1.28 ₱80.7

332.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$1.77 ₱112

195.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.28 ₱17.65

1235.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

$9.50 ₱598

1347.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.76 ₱48.10

493.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.23 ₱14.50

491.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$2.49 ₱157

1122.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.18 ₱74.4

24.58%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.3K ₱1.3M

36.02%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$18.9K ₱1.2M

39.73%

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

$234 A$336

$166 ₱10.4K

41.13%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$14.43 ₱908

93.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$23.90 ₱1,505

133.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

$36.56 ₱2,302

35.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

$4.30 ₱271

399.53%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$7.22 ₱454

109.00%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$71.8 ₱4,521

3202.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$2,507 ₱157.8K

1104.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$36.23 ₱2,281

120.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$22.91 ₱1,443

121.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$77.8 ₱4,896

55.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$76.6 ₱4,819

70.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$271 ₱17.1K

548.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$172 ₱10.8K

706.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$526 ₱33.1K

564.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$356 ₱22.4K

600.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$2,278 ₱143.4K

204.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$901 ₱56.7K

615.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

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 Puerto Galera: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

Puerto Galera

$172 20.7% 87.6% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

Puerto Galera

$203 24.5% 47% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

Puerto Galera

$204 24.6% 35.7% $113

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

Puerto Galera

$92 11% 70.9% $223

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

Puerto Galera

$96 11.6% 44.1% $76

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

Puerto Galera

$13 1.5% 92.3% $151

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

Puerto Galera

$51 6.1% 35.9% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,759 in Melbourne and $271 in Puerto Galera. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $85.0 in Melbourne vs $19.00 in Puerto Galera for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $203 per month, with Puerto Galera cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇵🇭 Puerto Galera

🕒 Local time

14:42 2:42 PM

11:42 11:42 AM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

36,606

💱 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 18, 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Melbourne Puerto Galera 6,230 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
Puerto Galera

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 Puerto Galera: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and Puerto Galera differ by about 240% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $831 including rent). Puerto Galera is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,231 in Melbourne and $1,246 in Puerto Galera to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,759 in Melbourne versus $271 in Puerto Galera. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,371 in Melbourne versus $71.8 in Puerto Galera. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 89% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $831 in Puerto Galera versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Puerto Galera but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Puerto Galera 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 Puerto Galera 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 Puerto Galera gentler on the wallet – expenses run 240% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.