Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Fernando, La Union and Melbourne

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando, La Union: $719 a month against $2,821 in Melbourne, rent and utilities included – about $25,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando, La Union
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San Fernando, La Union Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Melbourne
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Melbourne Living Index

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San Fernando, La Union

🇵🇭 Philippines

$719

/mo nomad

Melbourne

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,821

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in San Fernando, La Union 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 San Fernando, La Union and in Melbourne actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $719 in San Fernando, La Union versus $2,821 in Melbourne.

San Fernando, La Union $719
Melbourne $2,821

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,102 in San Fernando, La Union versus $4,235 in Melbourne.

San Fernando, La Union $1,102
Melbourne $4,235

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,485 in San Fernando, La Union versus $5,650 in Melbourne.

San Fernando, La Union $1,485
Melbourne $5,650

Living in San Fernando, La Union costs roughly 75% less than in Melbourne, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: San Fernando, La Union is 47% below, Melbourne is 109% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.93 ₱248

$17.43 A$25.08

-77.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$14.86 ₱936

$84.6 A$122

-82.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.45 ₱154

$12.46 A$17.92

-80.34%

Cappuccino

$1.92 ₱121

$4.11 A$5.91

-53.28%

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

$0.63 ₱39.53

$3.06 A$4.40

-79.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.30 ₱18.67

$2.52 A$3.62

-88.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.15 ₱72.3

$9.80 A$14.10

-88.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 ₱112

$8.57 A$12.33

-79.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 ₱106

$1.48 A$2.14

13.51%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱67.7

$2.94 A$4.23

-63.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.03 ₱65.0

$2.66 A$3.82

-61.28%

Eggs

$1.93 ₱122

$5.54 A$7.97

-65.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.38 ₱402

$10.51 A$15.13

-39.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.77 ₱238

$9.65 A$13.89

-60.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.48 ₱471

$15.22 A$21.91

-50.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 ₱150

$3.99 A$5.75

-40.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 ₱101

$3.02 A$4.34

-47.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.71 ₱170

$3.10 A$4.46

-12.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.21 ₱76.1

$4.82 A$6.93

-74.90%

Potato (1kg)

$2.26 ₱142

$3.03 A$4.36

-25.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 ₱131

$2.44 A$3.52

-15.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 ₱62.8

$2.46 A$3.54

-59.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.58 ₱36.41

$1.63 A$2.34

-64.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.97 ₱187

$44.07 A$63.4

-93.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.16 ₱451

$12.70 A$18.28

-43.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 ₱70.0

$5.54 A$7.97

-79.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 ₱103

$5.23 A$7.52

-68.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.89

$3.74 A$5.38

-93.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.92 ₱687

$138 A$198

-92.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 ₱51.2

$4.51 A$6.50

-82.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.52

$1.36 A$1.96

-84.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.77 ₱111

$30.45 A$43.81

-94.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 ₱64.5

$1.47 A$2.12

-30.61%

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

$21.0K ₱1.3M

$29.0K A$41.7K

-27.59%

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

$18.3K ₱1.1M

$26.5K A$38.1K

-31.01%

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

$109 ₱6,863

$234 A$336

-53.36%

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

$16.96 ₱1,068

$27.93 A$40.19

-39.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.32 ₱1,720

$55.7 A$80.2

-50.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.83 ₱2,067

$49.40 A$71.1

-33.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$4.60 ₱290

$21.48 A$30.91

-78.58%

Cinema Ticket

$5.76 ₱363

$15.09 A$21.72

-61.83%

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

$114 ₱7,179

$2,371 A$3,412

-95.19%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,119 ₱574.1K

$30.2K A$43.5K

-69.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.24 ₱2,093

$80.0 A$115

-58.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.66 ₱1,112

$50.7 A$73.0

-65.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.9 ₱4,524

$121 A$174

-40.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.6 ₱3,503

$130 A$188

-57.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$262 ₱16.5K

$1,759 A$2,531

-85.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$169 ₱10.7K

$1,390 A$2,000

-87.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$521 ₱32.8K

$3,494 A$5,027

-85.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 ₱22.7K

$2,493 A$3,588

-85.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,558 ₱161.1K

$6,926 A$9,967

-63.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,037 ₱65.3K

$6,445 A$9,274

-83.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,383 A$6,307

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.79

5.9

15.08%

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

Last update for San Fernando, La Union: October 11, 2026

Last update for Melbourne: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

San Fernando, La Union

$183 25.5%

Melbourne

$384 13.6% 110% $201

Accommodation & Living

San Fernando, La Union

$169 23.6%

Melbourne

$1.4K 49.3% 720% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Fernando, La Union

$153 21.3%

Melbourne

$317 11.3% 107% $164

Clothing & Footwear

San Fernando, La Union

$80 11.2%

Melbourne

$172 6.1% 114% $91

Eating Out

San Fernando, La Union

$75 10.4%

Melbourne

$315 11.2% 321% $240

Sport & Entertainment

San Fernando, La Union

$44 6.2%

Melbourne

$80 2.8% 79.5% $35

Getting Around

San Fernando, La Union

$14 1.9%

Melbourne

$164 5.8% 1085% $150

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $262 in San Fernando, La Union and $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $15.00 in San Fernando, La Union vs $85.0 in Melbourne for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $183 vs $384 per month, with San Fernando, La Union cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 San Fernando, La Union

🇦🇺 Melbourne

🕒 Local time

11:21 11:21 AM

14:21 2:21 PM

3 h ahead of San Fernando, La Union

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,003

5,031,195

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 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 19, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Fernando, La Union Melbourne 6,580 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

San Fernando, La Union
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

San Fernando, La Union vs Melbourne: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Fernando, La Union and Melbourne differ by about 292% in total monthly costs ($719 vs $2,821 including rent). San Fernando, La Union is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,079 in San Fernando, La Union and $4,231 in Melbourne 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: $262 in San Fernando, La Union versus $1,759 in Melbourne. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $114 in San Fernando, La Union versus $2,371 in Melbourne. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 110% higher in Melbourne. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $719 in San Fernando, La Union versus $2,821 in Melbourne, a $1,500 budget is realistic in San Fernando, La Union but tight or insufficient in Melbourne. The gap between the two cities makes San Fernando, La Union 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, San Fernando, La Union 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 San Fernando, La Union gentler on the wallet – expenses run 292% less than in Melbourne. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.