Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Alabang

For one person, living is cheaper in Alabang: $740 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $28,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

155

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Alabang
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Alabang Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Alabang

🇵🇭 Philippines

$740

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Alabang

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $740 in Alabang, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Alabang $740

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,123 in Alabang, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Alabang $1,123

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,506 in Alabang, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Alabang $1,506

Sydney costs about 326% more than Alabang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 133% above the global median, while Alabang is 45% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$4.02 ₱253

337.06%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$19.41 ₱1,222

371.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$2.85 ₱179

319.65%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.41 ₱152

68.88%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.74 ₱46.70

285.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.31 ₱19.42

625.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$0.99 ₱62.3

667.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$1.95 ₱123

281.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.63 ₱102

1.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$1.16 ₱73.1

139.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$0.90 ₱56.6

168.89%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.76 ₱111

220.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$5.21 ₱328

124.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$3.51 ₱221

175.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$6.90 ₱435

142.75%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.22 ₱140

83.33%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.38 ₱86.6

135.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.30 ₱145

49.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.03 ₱65.2

315.53%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.68 ₱106

95.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.71 ₱108

34.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$0.67 ₱42.07

243.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.50 ₱31.47

142.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$2.82 ₱177

1450.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$7.36 ₱463

88.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$0.98 ₱62.0

297.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$1.75 ₱110

123.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.27 ₱17.25

1025.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$12.43 ₱783

1108.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$0.84 ₱52.9

302.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.21 ₱13.18

642.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$1.89 ₱119

2016.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.20 ₱75.5

16.67%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$21.6K ₱1.4M

35.02%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$18.8K ₱1.2M

60.63%

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

$223 A$320

$143 ₱8,974

56.17%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$14.41 ₱907

88.48%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$23.56 ₱1,484

136.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$34.52 ₱2,174

116.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$4.53 ₱285

429.58%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$5.33 ₱336

229.46%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$74.1 ₱4,664

2864.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$2,528 ₱159.1K

1015.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$28.82 ₱1,815

172.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$19.68 ₱1,239

247.76%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$72.1 ₱4,536

54.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$56.4 ₱3,548

138.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$222 ₱14.0K

1024.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$170 ₱10.7K

906.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$513 ₱32.3K

863.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$356 ₱22.4K

747.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,233 ₱140.6K

489.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$903 ₱56.9K

826.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

6.75

-13.48%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Alabang: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Alabang

$170 23% 90.1% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Alabang

$166 22.5% 56% $212

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Alabang

$181 24.4% 40.9% $125

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Alabang

$83 11.2% 72.3% $216

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Alabang

$80 10.8% 54.9% $97

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Alabang

$15 2.1% 91.1% $158

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Alabang

$45 6.1% 58.8% $65

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $222 in Alabang. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney versus $19.00 in Alabang. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $166 – making Alabang the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇵🇭 Alabang

🕒 Local time

14:22 2:22 PM

11:22 11:22 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

71,075

💱 Currency

Australian Dollar AUD $

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 AUD = 0.695 USD

1 AUD = 0.618 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to AUD – Australian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇺 Australian Dollar ($)

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 1.44 AUD (1 AUD = 0.695 USD). 1 EUR = 1.62 AUD (1 AUD = 0.618 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to AUD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Sydney Alabang 6,250 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Alabang

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

Sydney vs Alabang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 326%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,728 per month in Sydney and $1,109 in Alabang. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Alabang, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 127% more in Sydney, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney and $19.00 in Alabang. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Alabang, where all-in costs run around $740, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Alabang it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Alabang – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Alabang. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Sydney makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.