Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St Albans and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $2,887 in St Albans, rent and utilities included – about $23,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

141

Cost of Living Index in St Albans
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St Albans Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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St Albans

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,887

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,887 in St Albans versus $934 in Cebu.

St Albans $2,887
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,035 in St Albans versus $1,415 in Cebu.

St Albans $4,035
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,184 in St Albans versus $1,896 in Cebu.

St Albans $5,184
Cebu $1,896

Living in St Albans is roughly 209% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: St Albans is 115% above, Cebu is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.51 £16.26

$3.03 ₱190

609.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.8 £66.3

$23.48 ₱1,473

273.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.21 £6.96

$4.09 ₱256

125.18%

Cappuccino

$4.47 £3.38

$2.52 ₱158

77.38%

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

$2.68 £2.02

$1.54 ₱96.9

74.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.43

$0.49 ₱30.98

285.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.59 £4.98

$1.79 ₱112

268.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.53 £4.94

$2.26 ₱142

188.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.95 ₱122

-18.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 £1.18

$1.43 ₱89.7

9.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 £1.88

$1.02 ₱63.8

144.12%

Eggs

$4.27 £3.23

$2.06 ₱129

107.28%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.94 £7.51

$9.81 ₱615

1.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.58 £7.24

$4.61 ₱289

107.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.50 £10.20

$7.70 ₱483

75.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.31 ₱207

-8.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.35 £1.02

$1.45 ₱90.9

-6.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.17 £1.64

$2.36 ₱148

-8.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 £2.43

$1.54 ₱96.4

109.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.65 £1.25

$2.36 ₱148

-30.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.40 £1.06

$1.99 ₱125

-29.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.15 ₱72.1

12.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.02 £1.53

$0.67 ₱42.15

201.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.20 £16.77

$3.00 ₱188

640.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.61 £8.02

$6.35 ₱398

67.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 £2.09

$1.31 ₱81.9

110.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 £2.41

$1.73 ₱108

84.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.86 £2.16

$0.25 ₱15.78

1044.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$81.7 £61.7

$12.65 ₱793

545.85%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.06 £3.07

$0.74 ₱46.32

448.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.53 £1.91

$0.21 ₱13.11

1104.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$49.24 £37.21

$4.33 ₱271

1037.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 £1.48

$1.33 ₱83.5

47.37%

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

$37.9K £28.7K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

74.20%

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

$41.2K £31.2K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

112.58%

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

$334 £252

$121 ₱7,563

177.00%

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

$18.18 £13.74

$14.45 ₱907

25.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.98 £32.48

$28.29 ₱1,774

51.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 £40.29

$32.68 ₱2,050

63.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.13 £9.92

$6.39 ₱401

105.48%

Cinema Ticket

$19.92 £15.05

$5.46 ₱342

264.84%

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

$2,568 £1,941

$273 ₱17.1K

839.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K £8,025

$8,156 ₱511.5K

30.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 £59.3

$49.57 ₱3,109

58.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.29 £34.98

$24.87 ₱1,560

86.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.2 £68.1

$76.6 ₱4,804

17.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$123 £93.3

$59.3 ₱3,717

108.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,913 £1,446

$506 ₱31.7K

278.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,532 £1,158

$309 ₱19.4K

395.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,902 £2,193

$1,052 ₱66.0K

175.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,333 £1,763

$619 ₱38.8K

276.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,189 £6,944

$2,915 ₱182.9K

215.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,816 £5,151

$1,867 ₱117.1K

265.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,959 £2,236

$341 ₱21.4K

767.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.4

7.2

-25.00%

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

Last update for St Albans: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St Albans

$1.5K 52.8%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 79.8% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St Albans

$395 13.6%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 58.7% $232

Eating Out

St Albans

$318 10.9%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 72.2% $229

Groceries & Markets

St Albans

$303 10.5%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 30.6% $93

Clothing & Footwear

St Albans

$152 5.2%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 37.8% $58

Getting Around

St Albans

$110 3.8%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 85.9% $94

Sport & Entertainment

St Albans

$93 3.2%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 53.2% $50

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,913 in St Albans and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St Albans pays 767% 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: $88.0 in St Albans vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $303 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 St Albans

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

02:54 2:54 AM

09:54 9:54 AM

7 h ahead of St Albans

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

57,795

964,169

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 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 GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St Albans Cebu 11,310 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

St Albans
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

St Albans vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 209% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 767% higher in St Albans, 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: $1,913 in St Albans versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,887 per month in St Albans versus $934 in Cebu – a 209% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 546% less than in St Albans. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $2,887 in St Albans, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in St Albans. 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 St Albans, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, St Albans 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 209% less than in St Albans. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.