Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Melbourne and San Pablo

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pablo: $634 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $26,200 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
31

Cost of Living Index in San Pablo
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San Pablo Living Index

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Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

San Pablo

🇵🇭 Philippines

$634

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Melbourne and in San Pablo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,821 in Melbourne versus $634 in San Pablo.

Melbourne $2,821
San Pablo $634

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,235 in Melbourne versus $917 in San Pablo.

Melbourne $4,235
San Pablo $917

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,650 in Melbourne versus $1,200 in San Pablo.

Melbourne $5,650
San Pablo $1,200

Living in Melbourne is roughly 345% more expensive than in San Pablo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Melbourne is 109% above, San Pablo is 53% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.43 A$25.08

$3.90 ₱245

346.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.6 A$122

$16.47 ₱1,037

413.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.46 A$17.92

$2.81 ₱177

343.42%

Cappuccino

$4.11 A$5.91

$1.83 ₱115

124.59%

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

$3.06 A$4.40

$0.38 ₱24.14

705.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 A$3.62

$0.18 ₱11.26

1300.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.80 A$14.10

$1.03 ₱64.7

851.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.57 A$12.33

$1.63 ₱103

425.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.14

$1.67 ₱105

-11.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.10 ₱69.2

167.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.66 A$3.82

$0.94 ₱59.1

182.98%

Eggs

$5.54 A$7.97

$2.08 ₱131

166.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.51 A$15.13

$5.14 ₱324

104.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 A$13.89

$3.41 ₱215

182.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.22 A$21.91

$7.73 ₱487

96.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.99 A$5.75

$2.32 ₱146

71.98%

Banana (1kg)

$3.02 A$4.34

$1.41 ₱88.8

114.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.10 A$4.46

$1.61 ₱101

92.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.82 A$6.93

$1.04 ₱65.3

363.46%

Potato (1kg)

$3.03 A$4.36

$1.61 ₱101

88.20%

Onion (1kg)

$2.44 A$3.52

$1.78 ₱112

37.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.46 A$3.54

$0.61 ₱38.28

303.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 A$2.34

$0.52 ₱32.95

213.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.07 A$63.4

$2.84 ₱179

1451.76%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.70 A$18.28

$6.49 ₱409

95.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$5.54 A$7.97

$0.95 ₱60.0

483.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.23 A$7.52

$2.02 ₱127

158.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.74 A$5.38

$0.23 ₱14.37

1526.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$138 A$198

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.51 A$6.50

$0.81 ₱51.0

456.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.36 A$1.96

$0.25 ₱15.79

444.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 A$43.81

$1.87 ₱118

1528.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 A$2.12

$1.15 ₱72.5

27.83%

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

$29.0K A$41.7K

$21.6K ₱1.4M

34.14%

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

$26.5K A$38.1K

$19.3K ₱1.2M

37.28%

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

$234 A$336

$143 ₱9,016

63.18%

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

$27.93 A$40.19

$11.84 ₱746

135.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 A$80.2

$23.37 ₱1,471

138.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.40 A$71.1

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.48 A$30.91

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 A$21.72

$5.13 ₱323

194.15%

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

$2,371 A$3,412

$132 ₱8,290

1700.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.2K A$43.5K

$10.9K ₱683.6K

178.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$29.42 ₱1,852

171.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.7 A$73.0

$19.58 ₱1,232

158.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 A$174

$71.5 ₱4,502

68.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$130 A$188

$55.6 ₱3,500

134.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,759 A$2,531

$142 ₱8,963

1135.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,390 A$2,000

$125 ₱7,875

1011.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,494 A$5,027

$206 ₱13.0K

1598.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,493 A$3,588

$188 ₱11.8K

1226.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,926 A$9,967

$956 ₱60.2K

624.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,445 A$9,274

$811 ₱51.1K

694.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

$292 ₱18.4K

1403.41%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

6.75

-12.59%

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

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Last update for San Pablo: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3%

San Pablo

$125 19.7% 91% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Melbourne

$384 13.6%

San Pablo

$166 26.2% 56.8% $218

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Melbourne

$317 11.3%

San Pablo

$178 28.1% 43.8% $139

Eating Out

Melbourne

$315 11.2%

San Pablo

$72 11.4% 77% $242

Clothing & Footwear

Melbourne

$172 6.1%

San Pablo

$79 12.5% 53.9% $93

Getting Around

Melbourne

$164 5.8%

San Pablo

$3 * 0.5% 98.2% $161

Sport & Entertainment

Melbourne

$80 2.8%

San Pablo

$10 * 1.6% 87.1% $69

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 $142 in San Pablo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 1403% 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 $16.00 in San Pablo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $384 vs $166 per month, with San Pablo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🇵🇭 San Pablo

🕒 Local time

16:56 4:56 PM

13:56 1:56 PM

3 h behind Melbourne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,031,195

266,068

💱 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 San Pablo 6,270 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Melbourne
San Pablo

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 San Pablo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Melbourne and San Pablo differ by about 345% in total monthly costs ($2,821 vs $634 including rent). San Pablo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1403% 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 $142 in San Pablo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 131% 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 $634 in San Pablo – a 345% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $634 in San Pablo versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $2,000 budget is realistic in San Pablo but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes San Pablo 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 San Pablo 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 San Pablo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 345% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.