Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Middlesex and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $2,391 in Middlesex, rent and utilities included – about $17,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Middlesex
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Middlesex Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Middlesex

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,391

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,391 in Middlesex versus $918 in Cebu.

Middlesex $2,391
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,444 in Middlesex versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Middlesex $3,444
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,498 in Middlesex versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Middlesex $4,498
Cebu $1,900

Living in Middlesex is roughly 160% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Middlesex is 77% above, Cebu is 32% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.93 £14.96

$3.09 ₱194

544.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.1 £52.6

$24.22 ₱1,525

189.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.17 £7.63

$3.92 ₱247

159.44%

Cappuccino

$3.43 £2.57

$2.51 ₱158

36.65%

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

$2.29 £1.71

$1.59 ₱100

44.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 £1.53

$0.53 ₱33.43

284.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.70 £3.52

$1.78 ₱112

164.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 £3.13

$2.17 ₱137

92.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.92 ₱121

-33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.42 £1.06

$1.36 ₱85.4

4.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.72 £2.79

$1.01 ₱63.5

268.32%

Eggs

$3.55 £2.66

$2.03 ₱128

74.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.61 £5.71

$9.86 ₱621

-22.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.22 £5.42

$4.39 ₱277

64.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.92 £10.44

$7.60 ₱479

83.16%

Apples (1kg)

$3.27 £2.46

$3.30 ₱208

-0.91%

Banana (1kg)

$0.98 £0.74

$1.39 ₱87.8

-29.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.98 £0.74

$2.33 ₱147

-57.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.70 £2.77

$1.50 ₱94.3

146.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.71 £1.28

$2.36 ₱149

-27.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.90 ₱119

-8.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.99 £0.74

$1.19 ₱74.9

-16.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.94 £1.45

$0.63 ₱39.71

207.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.26 £16.70

$3.00 ₱189

642.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.35 £7.01

$6.03 ₱379

55.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.81 £3.61

$1.23 ₱77.7

291.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.70 £2.78

$1.75 ₱110

111.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.51 £2.63

$0.25 ₱15.86

1304.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.9 £73.4

$12.64 ₱796

674.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.26 £3.20

$0.77 ₱48.62

453.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 £1.51

$0.23 ₱14.53

778.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.38 £25.04

$4.46 ₱281

648.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 £1.51

$1.31 ₱82.8

54.20%

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

$38.2K £28.7K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

80.00%

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

$39.4K £29.6K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

105.93%

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

$354 £266

$120 ₱7,569

194.72%

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

$25.42 £19.07

$14.00 ₱882

81.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.33 £30.26

$27.54 ₱1,734

46.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.97 £33.73

$32.33 ₱2,035

39.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$17.43 £13.08

$5.65 ₱356

208.50%

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

$792 £594

$275 ₱17.3K

187.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K £16.7K

$7,918 ₱498.5K

181.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 £81.8

$49.33 ₱3,106

121.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.8 £41.14

$25.24 ₱1,589

117.27%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 £85.3

$77.0 ₱4,846

47.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 £85.4

$57.2 ₱3,601

99.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,213 £910

$500 ₱31.5K

142.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,021 £766

$309 ₱19.4K

230.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,103 £1,578

$1,078 ₱67.9K

95.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,678 £1,259

$615 ₱38.7K

172.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,963 £3,723

$2,886 ₱181.7K

71.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,899 £2,925

$1,917 ₱120.7K

103.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.53

7.2

-23.19%

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

Last update for Middlesex: 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

Middlesex

$1K 42.7%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 69.7% $712

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Middlesex

$420 17.6%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 61.5% $258

Groceries & Markets

Middlesex

$287 12%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 28.4% $82

Eating Out

Middlesex

$280 11.7%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 68.5% $192

Clothing & Footwear

Middlesex

$176 7.4%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 46.7% $82

Getting Around

Middlesex

$126 5.3%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 87.7% $111

Sport & Entertainment

Middlesex

$80 3.3%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 45.4% $36

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,213 in Middlesex and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $70.0 in Middlesex vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $287 vs $206 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Middlesex

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

22:57 10:57 PM

7 h ahead of Middlesex

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,162

964,169

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Middlesex Cebu 11,310 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Middlesex
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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

Middlesex vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 160% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,586 in Middlesex and $1,377 in Cebu 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: $1,213 in Middlesex versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,391 per month in Middlesex versus $918 in Cebu – a 160% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 674% less than in Middlesex. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $2,391 in Middlesex, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Middlesex. 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 Middlesex, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Middlesex 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 160% less than in Middlesex. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.