Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quezon City and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in Quezon City: $855 a month against $2,852 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $24,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

42

Cost of Living Index in Quezon City
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Quezon City Living Index
137

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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Quezon City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$855

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,852

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Quezon City and in Melbourne

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Quezon City and in Melbourne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $855 in Quezon City versus $2,852 in Melbourne.

Quezon City $855
Melbourne $2,852

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,385 in Quezon City versus $4,297 in Melbourne.

Quezon City $1,385
Melbourne $4,297

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,916 in Quezon City versus $5,742 in Melbourne.

Quezon City $1,916
Melbourne $5,742

Living in Quezon City costs roughly 70% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Quezon City is 36% below, Melbourne is 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.45 ₱279

$17.75 A$25.40

-74.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.78 ₱1,178

$84.8 A$121

-77.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.86 ₱179

$12.16 A$17.40

-76.48%

Cappuccino

$2.77 ₱174

$3.93 A$5.62

-29.52%

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

$0.69 ₱43.17

$3.14 A$4.49

-78.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ₱18.35

$2.43 A$3.47

-88.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.47 ₱92.5

$9.90 A$14.17

-85.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 ₱171

$8.29 A$11.86

-67.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 ₱107

$1.55 A$2.21

10.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$3.01 A$4.31

-61.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.85 ₱53.0

$2.88 A$4.12

-70.49%

Eggs

$1.76 ₱110

$5.44 A$7.79

-67.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.83 ₱428

$10.59 A$15.16

-35.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.29 ₱269

$9.61 A$13.76

-55.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.29 ₱457

$14.99 A$21.46

-51.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.84 ₱241

$4.15 A$5.94

-7.47%

Banana (1kg)

$1.42 ₱88.9

$3.05 A$4.37

-53.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.57 ₱224

$3.30 A$4.72

8.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ₱71.3

$4.76 A$6.81

-76.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.40 ₱150

$3.04 A$4.34

-21.05%

Onion (1kg)

$3.45 ₱217

$2.55 A$3.65

35.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 ₱86.3

$2.48 A$3.55

-44.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 ₱61.0

$1.63 A$2.33

-40.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.84 ₱178

$44.07 A$63.1

-93.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.62 ₱478

$12.43 A$17.79

-38.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 ₱81.4

$5.33 A$7.63

-75.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 ₱110

$5.16 A$7.38

-65.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 ₱24.91

$3.84 A$5.50

-89.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.79 ₱1,179

$142 A$203

-86.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱47.86

$4.40 A$6.29

-82.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.15

$1.40 A$2.01

-85.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.47 ₱155

$29.83 A$42.69

-91.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.19 ₱74.4

$1.46 A$2.09

-18.49%

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

$21.0K ₱1.3M

$28.1K A$40.3K

-25.28%

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

$18.9K ₱1.2M

$25.9K A$37.1K

-27.14%

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

$165 ₱10.3K

$233 A$333

-29.28%

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

$14.28 ₱896

$27.28 A$39.04

-47.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.21 ₱1,518

$57.0 A$81.6

-57.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.71 ₱2,365

$52.7 A$75.4

-28.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.41 ₱214

$22.62 A$32.37

-84.92%

Cinema Ticket

$7.22 ₱453

$17.10 A$24.48

-57.78%

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

$73.1 ₱4,583

$2,373 A$3,397

-96.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,472 ₱155.1K

$30.5K A$43.6K

-91.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$35.88 ₱2,250

$78.2 A$112

-54.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.30 ₱1,398

$50.5 A$72.2

-55.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.5 ₱4,989

$121 A$172

-34.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.4 ₱4,729

$133 A$191

-43.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$314 ₱19.7K

$1,713 A$2,451

-81.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$190 ₱11.9K

$1,402 A$2,006

-86.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$746 ₱46.8K

$3,339 A$4,778

-77.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$520 ₱32.6K

$2,529 A$3,619

-79.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,326 ₱145.9K

$7,018 A$10.0K

-66.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,421 ₱89.1K

$6,767 A$9,685

-79.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$440 ₱27.6K

$4,228 A$6,051

-89.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.9

18.64%

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

Last update for Quezon City: October 6, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Quezon City

$207 23.9%

Melbourne

$385 13.5% 86.1% $178

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quezon City

$203 23.5%

Melbourne

$317 11.1% 56.1% $114

Accommodation & Living

Quezon City

$190 22%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 636% $1.2K

Clothing & Footwear

Quezon City

$96 11.1%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 79.4% $76

Eating Out

Quezon City

$94 10.9%

Melbourne

$314 11% 233% $220

Sport & Entertainment

Quezon City

$52 6%

Melbourne

$87 3.1% 66.6% $35

Getting Around

Quezon City

$22 2.6%

Melbourne

$168 5.9% 658% $146

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $314 in Quezon City and $1,713 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Melbourne pays 860% 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: $19.00 in Quezon City vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $385 per month, with Quezon City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Quezon City

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

18:13 6:13 PM

21:13 9:13 PM

3 h ahead of Quezon City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,936,116

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 AUD = 0.699 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.699 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Quezon City Melbourne 6,350 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Quezon City
Melbourne

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

Quezon City vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Quezon City and Melbourne differ by about 234% in total monthly costs ($855 vs $2,852 including rent). Quezon City is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 860% lower in Melbourne. 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: $314 in Quezon City versus $1,713 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $73.1 in Quezon City versus $2,373 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 86% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $855 in Quezon City versus $2,852 in Melbourne, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Quezon City but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes Quezon City 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, Quezon City and Melbourne 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 Quezon City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 234% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.