Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mersa Matruh and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Mersa Matruh: $457 a month against $915 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $5,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

22

Cost of Living Index in Mersa Matruh
Learn more

Mersa Matruh Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

Jump to prices

Mersa Matruh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$915

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $457 in Mersa Matruh versus $915 in Cebu.

Mersa Matruh $457
Cebu $915

Estimated couple costs with rent: $749 in Mersa Matruh versus $1,418 in Cebu.

Mersa Matruh $749
Cebu $1,418

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,040 in Mersa Matruh versus $1,921 in Cebu.

Mersa Matruh $1,040
Cebu $1,921

Living in Mersa Matruh costs roughly 50% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Mersa Matruh 66% lower, Cebu 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.20 E£234

$3.05 ₱194

37.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$19.05 E£1,062

$24.00 ₱1,525

-20.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.72 E£264

$3.99 ₱254

18.30%

Cappuccino

$1.27 E£70.6

$2.50 ₱159

-49.20%

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

$0.33 E£18.14

$1.54 ₱98.0

-78.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.11 E£6.01

$0.50 ₱31.66

-78.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.36 E£75.8

$1.78 ₱113

-23.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 E£156

$2.17 ₱138

28.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 E£48.65

$2.00 ₱127

-56.50%

White Bread (500g)

$0.66 E£37.07

$1.37 ₱87.0

-51.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.65 E£36.07

$1.03 ₱65.5

-36.89%

Eggs

$1.19 E£66.1

$2.03 ₱129

-41.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$3.80 E£212

$10.20 ₱648

-62.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.24 E£237

$4.45 ₱283

-4.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.23 E£515

$7.67 ₱487

20.34%

Apples (1kg)

$1.54 E£86.1

$3.31 ₱210

-53.47%

Banana (1kg)

$0.75 E£41.82

$1.46 ₱92.7

-48.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.55 E£30.85

$2.32 ₱147

-76.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.35 E£19.76

$1.49 ₱94.9

-76.51%

Potato (1kg)

$0.26 E£14.59

$2.34 ₱149

-88.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.30 E£16.70

$1.94 ₱123

-84.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.27 E£15.19

$1.16 ₱73.7

-76.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.22 E£11.99

$0.68 ₱43.30

-67.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.85 E£103

$2.99 ₱190

-38.13%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 E£316

$6.24 ₱397

-9.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 E£69.6

$1.23 ₱78.0

1.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 E£127

$1.73 ₱110

31.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.21 E£11.72

$0.23 ₱14.49

-8.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.34 ₱784

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.56 E£31.13

$0.79 ₱50.4

-29.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.17 E£9.23

$0.22 ₱13.99

-22.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.20 E£67.1

$4.54 ₱288

-73.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£24.06

$1.32 ₱83.7

-67.42%

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

$32.5K E£1.8M

$21.0K ₱1.3M

54.63%

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

$27.1K E£1.5M

$19.4K ₱1.2M

39.53%

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

$14.05 E£784

$119 ₱7,534

-88.15%

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

$6.68 E£373

$14.22 ₱904

-53.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$13.50 E£753

$27.47 ₱1,746

-50.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$15.88 E£885

$32.31 ₱2,053

-50.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.50 ₱413

Cinema Ticket

$2.91 E£162

$5.40 ₱343

-46.11%

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

$85.0 E£4,740

$276 ₱17.5K

-69.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,090 E£116.6K

$7,866 ₱499.9K

-73.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.72 E£1,881

$49.37 ₱3,137

-31.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.91 E£2,560

$24.58 ₱1,562

86.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 E£7,112

$76.6 ₱4,870

66.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.4 E£3,202

$58.9 ₱3,741

-2.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$128 E£7,152

$503 ₱32.0K

-74.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$76.7 E£4,278

$305 ₱19.4K

-74.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$256 E£14.3K

$1,075 ₱68.3K

-76.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$144 E£8,048

$632 ₱40.2K

-77.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$772 E£43.0K

$2,870 ₱182.4K

-73.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$354 E£19.7K

$1,877 ₱119.3K

-81.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$94.2 E£5,253

$336 ₱21.3K

-71.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

21.33

7.2

196.25%

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

Last update for Mersa Matruh: October 19, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Mersa Matruh

$126 27.6%

Cebu

$210 22.9% 65.8% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Mersa Matruh

$119 26%

Cebu

$94 10.3% 20.8% $25

Eating Out

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.9%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 13.8% $11

Accommodation & Living

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.8%

Cebu

$305 33.3% 297% $228

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mersa Matruh

$34 7.5%

Cebu

$160 17.5% 368% $126

Sport & Entertainment

Mersa Matruh

$22 4.7%

Cebu

$43 4.7% 98.7% $21

Getting Around

Mersa Matruh

$2.2 * 0.5%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 579% $13

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 $128 in Mersa Matruh and $503 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays about 3.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $19 in Mersa Matruh vs $24 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $126 vs $210 per month, with Mersa Matruh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Mersa Matruh

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

09:43 9:43 AM

14:43 2:43 PM

5 h ahead of Mersa Matruh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

140,000

964,169

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.6 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 55.77 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.57 EGP (100 EGP = 1.6 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 63.55 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.3 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Mersa Matruh Cebu 10,040 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Mersa Matruh
Cebu

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

Mersa Matruh vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mersa Matruh is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, utilities, and leisure. The 100% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 72% lower in Mersa Matruh. 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: $128 in Mersa Matruh versus $503 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Cebu. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $457 per month in Mersa Matruh versus $915 in Cebu – a 100% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $457 in Mersa Matruh versus $915 in Cebu, a $800 budget is realistic in Mersa Matruh but tight or insufficient in Cebu. The gap between the two cities makes Mersa Matruh 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.

It comes down to priorities – Mersa Matruh wins on affordability, Cebu on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.