Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Riyadh and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $1,768 in Riyadh, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

85

Cost of Living Index in Riyadh
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Riyadh Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Riyadh

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,768

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,768 in Riyadh versus $934 in Cebu.

Riyadh $1,768
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,557 in Riyadh versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Riyadh $2,557
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,345 in Riyadh versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Riyadh $3,345
Cebu $1,896

Living in Riyadh is roughly 89% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

The two cities straddle the global median: Riyadh is 32% above, Cebu is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.09 SAR 30.36

$3.03 ₱190

167.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 SAR 250

$23.48 ₱1,473

183.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.11 SAR 30.47

$4.09 ₱256

98.29%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 SAR 8.09

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 SAR 11.19

Cappuccino

$4.34 SAR 16.31

$2.52 ₱158

72.22%

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

$0.86 SAR 3.24

$1.54 ₱96.9

-44.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 SAR 1.12

$0.49 ₱30.98

-38.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

Milk (1 liter)

$1.77 SAR 6.63

$1.95 ₱122

-9.23%

White Bread (500g)

$1.32 SAR 4.97

$1.43 ₱89.7

-7.69%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.40 SAR 9.03

$1.02 ₱63.8

135.29%

Eggs

$3.06 SAR 11.48

$2.06 ₱129

48.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.63 SAR 39.91

$9.81 ₱615

8.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.60 SAR 36.05

$4.61 ₱289

108.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.98 SAR 56.3

$7.70 ₱483

94.55%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 SAR 10.51

$3.31 ₱207

-15.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.98 SAR 7.45

$1.45 ₱90.9

36.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.51 SAR 9.43

$2.36 ₱148

6.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.80 SAR 6.75

$1.54 ₱96.4

16.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 SAR 4.45

$2.36 ₱148

-50.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.34 SAR 5.01

$1.99 ₱125

-32.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.79 SAR 6.70

$1.15 ₱72.1

55.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 SAR 2.03

$0.67 ₱42.15

-19.40%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$8.11 SAR 30.44

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 SAR 6.68

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 SAR 9.04

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.53 SAR 28.26

$3.00 ₱188

151.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.05 SAR 3.96

$0.25 ₱15.78

320.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.18 SAR 140

$12.65 ₱793

193.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.29 SAR 12.35

$0.74 ₱46.32

344.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.91 SAR 7.19

$0.21 ₱13.11

809.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.43 SAR 50.5

$4.33 ₱271

210.16%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.65 SAR 2.42

$1.33 ₱83.5

-51.13%

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

$34.6K SAR 130.0K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

59.11%

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

$22.8K SAR 85.7K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

17.73%

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

$106 SAR 397

$121 ₱7,563

-12.37%

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

$29.10 SAR 109

$14.45 ₱907

101.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$72.7 SAR 273

$28.29 ₱1,774

157.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.4 SAR 343

$32.68 ₱2,050

179.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$56.4 SAR 212

$6.39 ₱401

782.16%

Cinema Ticket

$13.20 SAR 49.58

$5.46 ₱342

141.76%

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

$532 SAR 1,999

$273 ₱17.1K

94.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.2K SAR 38.4K

$8,156 ₱511.5K

25.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 SAR 215

$49.57 ₱3,109

15.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.4 SAR 204

$24.87 ₱1,560

118.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 SAR 393

$76.6 ₱4,804

36.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 SAR 397

$59.3 ₱3,717

78.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,211 SAR 4,547

$506 ₱31.7K

139.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$834 SAR 3,132

$309 ₱19.4K

169.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,223 SAR 8,346

$1,052 ₱66.0K

111.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,241 SAR 4,658

$619 ₱38.8K

100.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,011 SAR 11.3K

$2,915 ₱182.9K

3.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,937 SAR 7,274

$1,867 ₱117.1K

3.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,037 SAR 7,648

$341 ₱21.4K

497.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.54

7.2

-23.06%

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

Last update for Riyadh: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Riyadh

$834 47.7%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 62.9% $525

Groceries & Markets

Riyadh

$242 13.9%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 13.2% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Riyadh

$208 11.9%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 21.3% $44

Eating Out

Riyadh

$146 8.4%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 39.4% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Riyadh

$145 8.3%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 34.7% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Riyadh

$118 6.8%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 63% $74

Getting Around

Riyadh

$54 3.1%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 71.5% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,211 in Riyadh and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riyadh pays 497% 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: $66.0 in Riyadh vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $242 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇦 Riyadh

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

08:20 8:20 AM

13:20 1:20 PM

5 h ahead of Riyadh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

5,188,286 Capital

964,169

💱 Currency

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.237 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to SAR – Saudi Riyal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇦 Saudi Riyal (ر.س)

Saudi Riyal exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.75 SAR (1 SAR = 0.266 USD). 1 EUR = 4.21 SAR (1 SAR = 0.237 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to SAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Riyadh Cebu 8,250 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Riyadh
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

Riyadh vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 89% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 497% higher in Riyadh, 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: $1,211 in Riyadh versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,768 per month in Riyadh versus $934 in Cebu – a 89% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 194% less than in Riyadh. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $1,768 in Riyadh, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Riyadh. 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 Riyadh, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Riyadh 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 89% less than in Riyadh. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.