Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney and Zamboanga

For one person, living is cheaper in Zamboanga: $748 a month against $3,245 in Sydney, rent and utilities included – about $30,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

156

Cost of Living Index in Sydney
Learn more

Sydney Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Zamboanga
Learn more

Zamboanga Living Index

Jump to prices

Sydney

🇦🇺 Australia

$3,245

/mo nomad

Zamboanga

🇵🇭 Philippines

$748

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sydney and in Zamboanga

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

A single person spends $3,245 per month in Sydney vs $748 in Zamboanga, rent included.

Sydney $3,245
Zamboanga $748

A couple spends around $4,803 per month in Sydney vs $1,123 in Zamboanga, rent included.

Sydney $4,803
Zamboanga $1,123

A family of three spends $6,362 per month in Sydney vs $1,497 in Zamboanga, rent included.

Sydney $6,362
Zamboanga $1,497

Sydney costs about 334% more than Zamboanga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Sydney sits 139% above the global median, while Zamboanga is 45% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.41 A$25.05

$1.33 ₱83.5

1209.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$90.3 A$130

$16.41 ₱1,033

450.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 A$17.15

$3.50 ₱220

240.57%

Cappuccino

$4.03 A$5.80

$2.09 ₱132

92.82%

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

$2.88 A$4.15

$0.86 ₱54.0

234.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 A$3.20

$0.40 ₱24.88

457.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.89 A$11.36

$1.44 ₱90.8

447.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.78 A$9.76

$2.05 ₱129

230.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 A$2.45

$1.75 ₱110

-2.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.94 A$4.23

$1.41 ₱89.0

108.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.51 A$3.61

$1.16 ₱73.0

116.38%

Eggs

$5.55 A$7.99

$1.46 ₱91.7

280.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.77 A$16.94

$10.01 ₱630

17.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 A$13.35

$4.05 ₱255

129.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.70 A$24.03

$3.33 ₱209

401.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.92 A$5.64

$3.17 ₱200

23.66%

Banana (1kg)

$3.16 A$4.55

$1.18 ₱74.1

167.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.48 A$5.00

$3.82 ₱241

-8.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.38 A$6.31

$1.16 ₱73.1

277.59%

Potato (1kg)

$3.33 A$4.79

$1.26 ₱79.6

164.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 A$3.46

$2.56 ₱161

-6.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 A$3.32

$0.86 ₱54.4

168.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 A$1.65

$0.51 ₱32.39

125.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$44.34 A$63.8

$2.74 ₱172

1518.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.71 A$19.72

$4.23 ₱266

224.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$4.00 A$5.75

$1.30 ₱82.1

207.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.03 A$5.80

$1.97 ₱124

104.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 A$4.63

$0.22 ₱13.88

1363.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$154 A$222

$11.19 ₱704

1277.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.57 A$5.14

$0.82 ₱51.9

335.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.58 A$2.27

$0.23 ₱14.50

586.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$39.44 A$56.8

$1.88 ₱118

1997.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 A$2.13

$1.02 ₱64.4

45.10%

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

$29.6K A$42.5K

$21.7K ₱1.4M

35.94%

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

$27.7K A$39.8K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

42.33%

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

$241 A$347

$124 ₱7,826

94.19%

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

$27.57 A$39.67

$15.48 ₱975

78.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.3 A$81.0

$47.25 ₱2,975

19.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.1 A$112

$35.74 ₱2,250

118.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.26 A$33.47

$4.67 ₱294

398.07%

Cinema Ticket

$17.55 A$25.26

$5.07 ₱319

246.15%

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

$2,185 A$3,144

$133 ₱8,372

1543.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$27.8K A$40.0K

$8,082 ₱508.9K

243.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$80.0 A$115

$32.93 ₱2,073

142.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.7 A$102

$19.29 ₱1,215

266.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 A$159

$70.8 ₱4,457

56.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$129 A$186

$55.7 ₱3,505

132.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,477 A$3,564

$266 ₱16.8K

829.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,777 A$2,557

$175 ₱11.0K

917.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,885 A$7,030

$332 ₱20.9K

1371.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,093 A$4,451

$360 ₱22.6K

759.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$13.4K A$19.3K

$2,366 ₱149.0K

466.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,375 A$12.1K

$998 ₱62.9K

738.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,074 A$5,862

$193 ₱12.2K

2007.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.92

6.79

-12.81%

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

Last update for Sydney: October 20, 2026

Last update for Zamboanga: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney

$1.8K 54.8%

Zamboanga

$175 23.3% 90.2% $1.6K

Groceries & Markets

Sydney

$378 11.7%

Zamboanga

$184 24.6% 51.4% $194

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney

$325 10%

Zamboanga

$187 25% 42.5% $138

Eating Out

Sydney

$297 9.2%

Zamboanga

$62 8.4% 78.9% $234

Getting Around

Sydney

$178 5.5%

Zamboanga

$14 1.9% 92.1% $164

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney

$176 5.4%

Zamboanga

$80 10.7% 54.3% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney

$113 3.5%

Zamboanga

$46 6.1% 59.5% $67

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,477 in Sydney versus $266 in Zamboanga. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 2007% higher in Sydney, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $90.0 in Sydney versus $16.00 in Zamboanga. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $378 vs $184 – making Zamboanga the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇦🇺 Sydney

🇵🇭 Zamboanga

🕒 Local time

08:52 8:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

3 h behind Sydney

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

4,840,600

💱 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 20, 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 20, 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Sydney Zamboanga 5,470 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney
Zamboanga

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 Zamboanga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,245 in Sydney, $748 in Zamboanga – roughly 334% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,867 per month in Sydney and $1,123 in Zamboanga. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Zamboanga, 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 $90.0 in Sydney and $16.00 in Zamboanga. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $3,245 in Sydney and $748 in Zamboanga. That's a gap of about 334%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Zamboanga, where all-in costs run around $748, than in Sydney at $3,245. In Zamboanga it covers expenses comfortably, while in Sydney it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Zamboanga – 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 Zamboanga. 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.