Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Surigao

For one person, living is cheaper in Surigao: $736 a month against $3,152 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $29,000 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 Surigao
Learn more

Surigao Living Index

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Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,152

/mo nomad

Surigao

🇵🇭 Philippines

$736

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Surigao

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

A single person spends $3,152 per month in Sydney vs $736 in Surigao, rent included.

Sydney $3,152
Surigao $736

A couple spends around $4,710 per month in Sydney vs $1,124 in Surigao, rent included.

Sydney $4,710
Surigao $1,124

A family of three spends $6,268 per month in Sydney vs $1,512 in Surigao, rent included.

Sydney $6,268
Surigao $1,512

Sydney costs about 328% more than Surigao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.57 A$25.29

$3.98 ₱251

341.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$91.5 A$132

$17.81 ₱1,122

413.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.96 A$17.21

$2.87 ₱181

316.72%

Cappuccino

$4.07 A$5.85

$1.99 ₱125

104.52%

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

$2.85 A$4.10

$0.73 ₱45.85

290.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 A$3.24

$0.32 ₱19.84

603.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.60 A$10.94

$1.26 ₱79.4

503.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.43 A$10.69

$2.13 ₱134

248.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 A$2.38

$1.62 ₱102

2.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 A$4.00

$0.98 ₱61.6

183.67%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 A$3.49

$0.99 ₱62.0

144.44%

Eggs

$5.64 A$8.12

$1.94 ₱122

190.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.71 A$16.85

$5.75 ₱362

103.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.66 A$13.89

$4.14 ₱261

133.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.75 A$24.10

$6.88 ₱433

143.46%

Apples (1kg)

$4.07 A$5.85

$2.07 ₱131

96.62%

Banana (1kg)

$3.25 A$4.68

$1.58 ₱99.2

105.70%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.44 A$4.96

$2.56 ₱161

34.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.28 A$6.16

$1.17 ₱73.6

265.81%

Potato (1kg)

$3.28 A$4.72

$1.95 ₱123

68.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 A$3.30

$1.76 ₱111

30.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 A$3.31

$0.82 ₱51.5

180.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 A$1.74

$0.60 ₱37.75

101.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$43.71 A$62.9

$2.97 ₱187

1371.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.88 A$19.97

$6.78 ₱427

104.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 A$5.62

$1.05 ₱66.3

271.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 A$5.63

$1.72 ₱108

127.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.04 A$4.38

$0.26 ₱16.48

1069.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$150 A$216

$11.30 ₱712

1229.47%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.38 A$4.86

$0.66 ₱41.51

412.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.56 A$2.24

$0.23 ₱14.66

578.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.01 A$57.6

$1.87 ₱118

2039.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 A$2.01

$1.32 ₱83.0

6.06%

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

$29.1K A$41.9K

$18.7K ₱1.2M

55.71%

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

$30.1K A$43.4K

$18.0K ₱1.1M

67.58%

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

$223 A$320

$124 ₱7,799

79.70%

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

$27.16 A$39.08

$15.97 ₱1,006

70.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.8 A$80.3

$34.80 ₱2,191

60.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$74.6 A$107

$35.92 ₱2,262

107.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.99 A$34.52

$5.18 ₱326

363.13%

Cinema Ticket

$17.56 A$25.27

$4.96 ₱313

254.03%

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

$2,196 A$3,160

$144 ₱9,095

1420.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$28.2K A$40.6K

$6,892 ₱433.9K

309.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 A$113

$36.99 ₱2,329

112.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$68.4 A$98.5

$20.93 ₱1,318

226.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$160

$69.6 ₱4,384

59.73%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 A$193

$49.50 ₱3,116

171.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,500 A$3,598

$243 ₱15.3K

930.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,709 A$2,460

$168 ₱10.6K

915.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,946 A$7,117

$461 ₱29.0K

972.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,022 A$4,349

$363 ₱22.9K

732.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.2K A$18.9K

$2,434 ₱153.3K

440.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,370 A$12.0K

$1,108 ₱69.8K

655.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,113 A$5,919

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.84

6.79

-13.99%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 11, 2026

Last update for Surigao: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.7K 54.2%

Surigao

$168 22.9% 90.2% $1.5K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$379 12%

Surigao

$174 23.7% 54% $204

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$306 9.7%

Surigao

$175 23.7% 42.8% $131

Eating Out

Sydney

$299 9.5%

Surigao

$79 10.7% 73.5% $219

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$177 5.6%

Surigao

$80 10.8% 54.9% $97

Getting Around

Sydney

$174 5.5%

Surigao

$14 1.9% 91.8% $159

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$110 3.5%

Surigao

$46 6.2% 58.2% $64

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,500 in Sydney versus $243 in Surigao. 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 $18.00 in Surigao. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $379 vs $174 – making Surigao the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇵🇭 Surigao

🕒 Local time

06:05 6:05 AM

03:05 3:05 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

171,107

💱 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 19, 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 19, 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 Surigao 5,560 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Surigao

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 Surigao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Sydney is pricier by about 328%, 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 $1,104 in Surigao. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $91.0 in Sydney and $18.00 in Surigao. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,152 in Sydney and $736 in Surigao. That's a gap of about 328%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Surigao, where all-in costs run around $736, than in Sydney at $3,152. In Surigao it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Surigao – 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 Surigao. 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.