Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tagbilaran City and Phuket

For one person, living is cheaper in Tagbilaran City: $620 a month against $1,208 in Phuket, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Tagbilaran City
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Tagbilaran City Living Index
59

Cost of Living Index in Phuket
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Phuket Living Index

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Tagbilaran City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$620

/mo nomad

Phuket

🇹🇭 Thailand

$1,208

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tagbilaran City and in Phuket

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $620 in Tagbilaran City versus $1,208 in Phuket.

Tagbilaran City $620
Phuket $1,208

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,005 in Tagbilaran City versus $2,027 in Phuket.

Tagbilaran City $1,005
Phuket $2,027

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,390 in Tagbilaran City versus $2,845 in Phuket.

Tagbilaran City $1,390
Phuket $2,845

Living in Tagbilaran City costs roughly 49% less than in Phuket, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tagbilaran City 54% lower, Phuket 11% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.93 ₱185

$4.40 ฿147

-33.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.16 ₱1,081

$32.26 ฿1,078

-46.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.91 ₱183

$8.76 ฿293

-66.78%

Cappuccino

$2.48 ₱156

$2.83 ฿94.5

-12.37%

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

$0.99 ₱62.6

$0.90 ฿30.14

10.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.42 ₱26.32

$0.47 ฿15.56

-10.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.77 ₱48.77

$2.55 ฿85.2

-69.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 ₱142

$3.83 ฿128

-41.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 ₱94.0

$1.73 ฿57.7

-13.87%

White Bread (500g)

$1.01 ₱63.8

$1.47 ฿49.11

-31.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 ₱61.9

$1.51 ฿50.6

-35.10%

Eggs

$1.72 ₱108

$2.17 ฿72.7

-20.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.68 ₱610

$19.70 ฿658

-50.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.56 ₱287

$3.34 ฿112

36.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱485

$11.16 ฿373

-31.00%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 ₱183

$2.85 ฿95.1

1.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.31 ₱82.3

$1.70 ฿56.9

-22.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱149

$2.19 ฿73.3

7.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 ₱95.8

$2.05 ฿68.4

-25.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.32 ₱146

$1.45 ฿48.57

60.00%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 ₱120

$1.38 ฿46.16

37.68%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 ₱43.81

$1.07 ฿35.69

-34.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 ₱31.38

$0.51 ฿16.91

-1.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.37 ₱149

$4.26 ฿142

-44.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.33 ₱399

$18.58 ฿621

-65.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 ₱58.1

$1.78 ฿59.7

-48.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 ₱65.7

$2.85 ฿95.2

-63.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 ₱29.42

$2.26 ฿75.6

-79.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.10 ฿738

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.79 ₱49.99

$3.01 ฿101

-73.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.87

$1.06 ฿35.34

-79.25%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.38 ₱276

$3.86 ฿129

13.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.03 ₱65.1

$1.45 ฿48.45

-28.97%

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

$21.5K ₱1.4M

$26.3K ฿879.9K

-18.33%

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

$19.2K ₱1.2M

$26.9K ฿900.4K

-28.92%

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

$78.0 ₱4,911

$96.4 ฿3,221

-19.07%

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

$14.28 ₱899

$11.04 ฿369

29.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.32 ₱1,594

$17.14 ฿573

47.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$10.92 ₱687

$52.2 ฿1,744

-79.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.22 ₱203

$11.16 ฿373

-71.15%

Cinema Ticket

$3.60 ₱227

$7.81 ฿261

-53.91%

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

$280 ₱17.6K

$556 ฿18.6K

-49.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,908 ₱497.9K

$11.6K ฿387.0K

-31.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$36.94 ₱2,326

$64.2 ฿2,146

-42.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$17.89 ₱1,126

$28.69 ฿959

-37.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$65.0 ₱4,094

$95.4 ฿3,187

-31.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.2 ₱3,665

$88.0 ฿2,940

-33.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$190 ₱12.0K

$737 ฿24.6K

-74.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$135 ₱8,524

$462 ฿15.5K

-70.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ₱30.3K

$2,095 ฿70.0K

-77.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$350 ₱22.0K

$1,201 ฿40.1K

-70.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$805 ₱50.7K

$3,488 ฿116.6K

-76.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$476 ₱30.0K

$2,523 ฿84.3K

-81.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$171 ₱10.8K

$501 ฿16.7K

-65.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

5.57

29.26%

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

Last update for Tagbilaran City: October 19, 2026

Last update for Phuket: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tagbilaran City

$189 30.5%

Phuket

$269 22.2% 42% $80

Accommodation & Living

Tagbilaran City

$135 21.8%

Phuket

$462 38.3% 242% $327

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tagbilaran City

$118 19%

Phuket

$125 10.3% 5.9% $7

Clothing & Footwear

Tagbilaran City

$80 12.9%

Phuket

$124 10.3% 55.1% $44

Eating Out

Tagbilaran City

$76 12.3%

Phuket

$121 10% 59.7% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Tagbilaran City

$18 2.9%

Phuket

$68 5.6% 274% $50

Getting Around

Tagbilaran City

$3.8 * 0.6%

Phuket

$39 3.3% 949% $36

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $190 in Tagbilaran City and $737 in Phuket. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Phuket pays 192% 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: $17.00 in Tagbilaran City vs $32.00 in Phuket for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $189 vs $269 per month, with Tagbilaran City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Tagbilaran City

🇹🇭 Phuket

🕒 Local time

16:02 4:02 PM

15:02 3:02 PM

1 h behind Tagbilaran City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

86,411

79,308

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

THB, USD, EUR to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 EUR).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tagbilaran City Phuket 2,810 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Tagbilaran City
Phuket

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

Tagbilaran City vs Phuket: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tagbilaran City is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 95% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 192% lower in Phuket. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $190 in Tagbilaran City versus $737 in Phuket. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $280 in Tagbilaran City versus $556 in Phuket. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Tagbilaran City – a meal for two runs $17.00 versus $32.00 in Phuket. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $620 in Tagbilaran City versus $1,208 in Phuket, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Tagbilaran City but tight or insufficient in Phuket. The gap between the two cities makes Tagbilaran City the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Tagbilaran City and Phuket 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 Tagbilaran City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in Phuket. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.