Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mestre and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,794 in Mestre, rent and utilities included – about $10,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

87

Cost of Living Index in Mestre
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Mestre Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Mestre

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,794

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,794 in Mestre versus $918 in Cebu.

Mestre $1,794
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,822 in Mestre versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Mestre $2,822
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,851 in Mestre versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Mestre $3,851
Cebu $1,900

Living in Mestre is roughly 95% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mestre is 33% above, Cebu is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.40 €11.92

$3.09 ₱195

333.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.4 €79.5

$24.22 ₱1,525

269.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.08 €10.74

$3.92 ₱247

208.16%

Cappuccino

$2.13 €1.89

$2.51 ₱158

-15.14%

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

$2.85 €2.54

$1.59 ₱100

79.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$0.53 ₱33.45

179.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.71 €5.97

$1.78 ₱112

276.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.26 €4.68

$2.17 ₱137

142.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 €1.47

$1.92 ₱121

-14.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.36 ₱85.5

81.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.05 €2.72

$1.01 ₱63.6

201.98%

Eggs

$3.78 €3.36

$2.03 ₱128

86.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.04 €15.16

$9.86 ₱621

72.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.85 €11.43

$4.39 ₱277

192.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.43 €19.06

$7.60 ₱479

181.97%

Apples (1kg)

$3.02 €2.69

$3.30 ₱208

-8.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.99 €1.77

$1.39 ₱87.8

43.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.54 €3.15

$2.33 ₱147

51.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.13 €2.78

$1.50 ₱94.3

108.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.36 ₱149

-14.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.25 €2.01

$1.90 ₱119

18.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.66 €1.47

$1.19 ₱74.9

39.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 €0.51

$0.63 ₱39.73

-7.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.67 €5.93

$3.00 ₱189

122.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.59 €5.87

$6.03 ₱380

9.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.23 ₱77.7

24.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.75 ₱110

2.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.71 €1.52

$0.25 ₱15.87

584.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.26 €36.69

$12.64 ₱796

226.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 €4.18

$0.77 ₱48.64

510.39%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.23 ₱14.54

504.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.34 €27.87

$4.46 ₱281

602.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.31 ₱82.8

58.78%

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

$36.7K €32.6K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

72.58%

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

$35.7K €31.7K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

86.43%

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

$208 €185

$120 ₱7,573

73.37%

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

$8.63 €7.67

$14.00 ₱882

-38.36%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.10 €26.77

$27.54 ₱1,735

9.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.40 €42.16

$32.33 ₱2,036

46.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.69 €17.52

$6.65 ₱419

196.09%

Cinema Ticket

$11.11 €9.88

$5.65 ₱356

96.64%

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

$681 €605

$275 ₱17.3K

147.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.1K

$7,918 ₱498.8K

43.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.8 €69.2

$49.33 ₱3,107

57.77%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$33.27 €29.59

$25.24 ₱1,590

31.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.7

$77.0 ₱4,848

35.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$167 €148

$57.2 ₱3,603

191.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$826 €735

$500 ₱31.5K

65.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$661 €588

$309 ₱19.5K

114.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,452 €1,291

$1,078 ₱67.9K

34.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,189 €1,057

$615 ₱38.8K

93.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,889 €1,680

$2,886 ₱181.8K

-34.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,579 €1,404

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-17.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,955 €1,739

$346 ₱21.8K

465.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.34

7.2

-53.61%

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

Last update for Mestre: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Mestre

$661 36.9%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 53.3% $352

Groceries & Markets

Mestre

$354 19.7%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 41.8% $148

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mestre

$247 13.8%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 34.6% $85

Eating Out

Mestre

$230 12.8%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 61.7% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Mestre

$172 9.6%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 45.4% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Mestre

$70 3.9%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 37.3% $26

Getting Around

Mestre

$60 3.3%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 74% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $826 in Mestre and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mestre pays 465% 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: $89.0 in Mestre vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $354 vs $206 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Mestre

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

11:56 11:56 AM

17:56 5:56 PM

6 h ahead of Mestre

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

87,377

964,169

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 62.99 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.82 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Mestre Cebu 10,820 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Mestre
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

Mestre vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 95% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 465% higher in Mestre, 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: $826 in Mestre versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,794 per month in Mestre versus $918 in Cebu – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 226% less than in Mestre. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,794 in Mestre, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Mestre. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Cebu is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Mestre, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Mestre and Cebu 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Mestre. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.