Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Dasmarinas

For one person, living is cheaper in Dasmarinas: $496 a month against $3,245 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $33,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
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Sydney Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Dasmarinas
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Dasmarinas Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,245

/mo nomad

Dasmarinas

🇵🇭 Philippines

$496

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Dasmarinas

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 Dasmarinas actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,245 in Sydney versus $496 in Dasmarinas.

Sydney $3,245
Dasmarinas $496

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,803 in Sydney versus $738 in Dasmarinas.

Sydney $4,803
Dasmarinas $738

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,362 in Sydney versus $980 in Dasmarinas.

Sydney $6,362
Dasmarinas $980

Living in Sydney is roughly 555% more expensive than in Dasmarinas, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sydney is 139% above, Dasmarinas is 63% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$4.08 ₱257

326.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.3 A$130

$16.95 ₱1,067

432.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 A$17.15

$2.71 ₱171

339.85%

Cappuccino

$4.03 A$5.80

$1.75 ₱110

130.29%

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

$2.88 A$4.15

$0.57 ₱35.76

405.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.20

$0.31 ₱19.30

619.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.36

$0.96 ₱60.1

721.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$1.58 ₱99.4

329.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.45

$1.39 ₱87.5

23.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.10 ₱69.5

167.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.61

$0.66 ₱41.36

280.30%

Eggs

$5.55 A$7.99

$1.79 ₱113

210.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 A$16.94

$4.94 ₱311

138.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 A$13.35

$3.49 ₱219

165.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.70 A$24.03

$4.72 ₱297

253.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$2.26 ₱143

73.45%

Banana (1kg)

$3.16 A$4.55

$1.61 ₱102

96.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 A$5.00

$2.38 ₱150

46.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.38 A$6.31

$1.07 ₱67.3

309.35%

Potato (1kg)

$3.33 A$4.79

$1.75 ₱110

90.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.46

$1.72 ₱108

39.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 A$3.32

$0.61 ₱38.39

278.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.52 ₱32.54

121.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.34 A$63.8

$2.88 ₱181

1439.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.71 A$19.72

$8.59 ₱541

59.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.00 A$5.75

$0.93 ₱58.5

330.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 A$5.80

$1.99 ₱125

102.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 A$4.63

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 A$222

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$0.78 ₱48.96

357.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.27

$0.25 ₱15.76

532.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.44 A$56.8

$1.85 ₱117

2031.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.11 ₱70.1

33.33%

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

$29.6K A$42.5K

$21.4K ₱1.3M

38.16%

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

$27.7K A$39.8K

$18.9K ₱1.2M

46.30%

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

$241 A$347

$48.45 ₱3,050

398.20%

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

$27.57 A$39.67

$17.55 ₱1,105

57.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.3 A$81.0

$23.72 ₱1,494

137.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.1 A$112

$33.43 ₱2,105

133.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.26 A$33.47

Cinema Ticket

$17.55 A$25.26

$5.30 ₱334

231.13%

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

$2,185 A$3,144

$134 ₱8,415

1534.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.8K A$40.0K

$10.7K ₱674.0K

159.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$28.53 ₱1,796

180.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 A$102

$19.55 ₱1,231

261.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$72.5 ₱4,561

52.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 A$186

$56.4 ₱3,552

129.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,477 A$3,564

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,777 A$2,557

$46.95 ₱2,956

3684.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,885 A$7,030

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,093 A$4,451

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,375 A$12.1K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,074 A$5,862

$353 ₱22.2K

1054.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

6.4

-7.50%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 20, 2026

Last update for Dasmarinas: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.8%

Dasmarinas

$47 9.5% 97.4% $1.7K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$378 11.7%

Dasmarinas

$160 32.3% 57.7% $218

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$325 10%

Dasmarinas

$90 18.1% 72.4% $236

Eating Out

Sydney

$297 9.2%

Dasmarinas

$73 14.8% 75.3% $224

Getting Around

Sydney

$178 5.5%

Dasmarinas

$2 * 0.4% 98.9% $176

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Dasmarinas

$80 16.1% 54.7% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$113 3.5%

Dasmarinas

$44 8.9% 61.1% $69

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Sydney pays 1055% 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: $90.0 in Sydney vs $17.00 in Dasmarinas for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $378 vs $160 per month, with Dasmarinas cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇵🇭 Dasmarinas

🕒 Local time

11:08 11:08 AM

08:08 8:08 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

659,019

💱 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 21, 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 21, 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 Dasmarinas 6,240 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Dasmarinas

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 Dasmarinas: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney and Dasmarinas differ by about 555% in total monthly costs ($3,245 vs $496 including rent). Dasmarinas is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1055% higher in Sydney, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $2,185 in Sydney versus $134 in Dasmarinas. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dasmarinas – a meal for two runs $17.00 versus $90.0 in Sydney. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $496 in Dasmarinas versus $3,245 in Sydney, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Dasmarinas but tight or insufficient in Sydney. The gap between the two cities makes Dasmarinas 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, Sydney and Dasmarinas 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 Dasmarinas gentler on the wallet – expenses run 555% less than in Sydney. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.