Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Surat Thani and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Surat Thani: $775 a month against $915 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cebu outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

38

Cost of Living Index in Surat Thani
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Surat Thani Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Surat Thani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$775

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$915

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $775 in Surat Thani versus $915 in Cebu.

Surat Thani $775
Cebu $915

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,414 in Surat Thani versus $1,418 in Cebu.

Surat Thani $1,414
Cebu $1,418

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,053 in Surat Thani versus $1,921 in Cebu.

Surat Thani $2,053
Cebu $1,921

Living in Surat Thani costs roughly 15% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Surat Thani 43% lower, Cebu 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.89 ฿63.0

$3.05 ₱192

-38.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.87 ฿597

$24.00 ₱1,511

-25.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.51 ฿151

$3.99 ₱251

13.03%

Cappuccino

$1.50 ฿50.2

$2.50 ₱157

-40.00%

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

$0.50 ฿16.68

$1.54 ₱97.1

-67.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ฿9.66

$0.50 ₱31.37

-42.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.56 ฿85.4

$1.78 ₱112

43.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.69 ฿123

$2.17 ₱136

70.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 ฿55.4

$2.00 ₱126

-17.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.19 ฿39.89

$1.37 ₱86.2

-13.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.17 ฿39.13

$1.03 ₱64.9

13.59%

Eggs

$1.87 ฿62.4

$2.03 ₱128

-7.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.18 ฿641

$10.20 ₱642

88.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.33 ฿111

$4.45 ₱280

-25.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.44 ฿249

$7.67 ₱483

-3.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.91 ฿97.2

$3.31 ₱208

-12.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 ฿56.3

$1.46 ₱91.8

15.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 ฿58.7

$2.32 ₱146

-24.14%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.05 ฿68.4

$1.49 ₱94.0

37.58%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 ฿43.57

$2.34 ₱147

-44.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 ฿45.90

$1.94 ₱122

-29.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 ฿37.24

$1.16 ₱73.0

-4.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.41 ฿13.66

$0.68 ₱42.89

-39.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.07 ฿103

$2.99 ₱188

2.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.86 ฿630

$6.24 ₱393

202.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 ฿51.6

$1.23 ₱77.3

25.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 ฿60.7

$1.73 ₱109

5.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.02 ฿34.00

$0.23 ₱14.36

343.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.95 ฿700

$12.34 ₱777

69.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.18 ฿39.50

$0.79 ₱49.96

49.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.63 ฿21.05

$0.22 ₱13.86

186.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.49 ฿117

$4.54 ₱286

-23.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.16 ฿38.93

$1.32 ₱82.9

-12.12%

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

$26.6K ฿890.1K

$21.0K ₱1.3M

26.79%

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

$27.3K ฿911.7K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

40.59%

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

$72.9 ฿2,437

$119 ₱7,464

-38.49%

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

$11.12 ฿372

$14.22 ₱896

-21.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.32 ฿579

$27.47 ₱1,730

-36.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.24 ฿1,612

$32.31 ₱2,034

49.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.52 ฿385

$6.50 ₱409

77.23%

Cinema Ticket

$4.53 ฿151

$5.40 ₱340

-16.11%

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

$549 ฿18.3K

$276 ₱17.4K

98.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.6K ฿386.5K

$7,866 ₱495.3K

47.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.9 ฿2,070

$49.37 ₱3,108

25.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$29.16 ฿974

$24.58 ₱1,548

18.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$97.3 ฿3,252

$76.6 ₱4,825

26.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.5 ฿2,892

$58.9 ₱3,706

47.03%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$237 ฿7,910

$503 ₱31.7K

-52.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$149 ฿4,985

$305 ₱19.2K

-51.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,150 ฿38.4K

$1,075 ₱67.7K

6.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$709 ฿23.7K

$632 ₱39.8K

12.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,226 ฿74.4K

$2,870 ₱180.7K

-22.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,404 ฿46.9K

$1,877 ₱118.2K

-25.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$336 ₱21.1K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.2

-22.64%

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

Last update for Surat Thani: October 19, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Surat Thani

$244 31.5%

Cebu

$210 22.9% 14.2% $35

Accommodation & Living

Surat Thani

$149 19.3%

Cebu

$305 33.3% 104% $155

Clothing & Footwear

Surat Thani

$124 16%

Cebu

$94 10.3% 23.8% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Surat Thani

$101 13.1%

Cebu

$160 17.5% 58.1% $59

Eating Out

Surat Thani

$70 9%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 25.5% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Surat Thani

$57 7.4%

Cebu

$43 4.7% 24.8% $14

Getting Around

Surat Thani

$29 3.8%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 48.4% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $237 in Surat Thani and $503 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $18.00 in Surat Thani vs $24.00 in Cebu. Groceries flip the comparison at $244 vs $210, with Cebu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Surat Thani

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

22:58 10:58 PM

23:58 11:58 PM

1 h ahead of Surat Thani

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

132,040

964,169

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to THB in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Surat Thani Cebu 2,700 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Surat Thani
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

Surat Thani vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Surat Thani is cheaper overall, especially in eating out and utilities. The 18% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,163 in Surat Thani and $1,372 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: $237 in Surat Thani versus $503 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $775 per month in Surat Thani versus $915 in Cebu – a 18% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Surat Thani runs roughly 70% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Surat Thani gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Surat Thani is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Cebu, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Surat Thani 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 Surat Thani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 18% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.