Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tbilisi and Santa Cruz, Laguna

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz, Laguna: $616 a month against $1,269 in Tbilisi, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

61

Cost of Living Index in Tbilisi
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Tbilisi Living Index
30

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz, Laguna
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Santa Cruz, Laguna Living Index

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Tbilisi

🇬🇪 Georgia

$1,269

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz, Laguna

🇵🇭 Philippines

$616

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tbilisi and in Santa Cruz, Laguna

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,269 in Tbilisi versus $616 in Santa Cruz, Laguna.

Tbilisi $1,269
Santa Cruz, Laguna $616

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,016 in Tbilisi versus $911 in Santa Cruz, Laguna.

Tbilisi $2,016
Santa Cruz, Laguna $911

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,763 in Tbilisi versus $1,206 in Santa Cruz, Laguna.

Tbilisi $2,763
Santa Cruz, Laguna $1,206

Living in Tbilisi is roughly 106% more expensive than in Santa Cruz, Laguna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tbilisi 7% lower, Santa Cruz, Laguna 55% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.63 ₾30.07

$1.55 ₱98.8

650.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.83 ₾97.8

$7.73 ₱494

389.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.66 ₾24.98

$2.79 ₱178

246.24%

Cappuccino

$3.57 ₾9.24

$1.76 ₱113

102.84%

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

$1.08 ₾2.78

$0.37 ₱23.90

191.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.56 ₾1.45

$0.24 ₱15.42

133.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₾6.78

$1.01 ₱64.7

159.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 ₾7.85

$0.90 ₱57.2

237.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.17 ₾5.60

$1.54 ₱98.4

40.91%

White Bread (500g)

$0.80 ₾2.06

$1.15 ₱73.3

-30.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.74 ₾4.51

$0.91 ₱57.9

91.21%

Eggs

$2.83 ₾7.31

$1.52 ₱97.0

86.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.31 ₾24.07

$4.82 ₱308

93.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.52 ₾16.85

$3.29 ₱210

98.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.95 ₾33.50

$7.20 ₱460

79.86%

Apples (1kg)

$1.68 ₾4.34

$1.37 ₱87.7

22.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 ₾4.79

$0.49 ₱31.52

277.55%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.97 ₾5.10

$1.43 ₱91.7

37.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.42 ₾6.25

$1.06 ₱67.7

128.30%

Potato (1kg)

$0.82 ₾2.11

$1.67 ₱107

-50.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 ₾1.91

$1.68 ₱107

-55.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.34 ₾3.47

$0.61 ₱39.25

119.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ₾2.00

$0.52 ₱33.12

48.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.57 ₾9.24

$2.93 ₱187

21.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 ₾19.83

$8.49 ₱543

-9.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 ₾4.39

$0.96 ₱61.4

77.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 ₾6.21

$2.06 ₱131

16.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.40 ₾1.05

$0.21 ₱13.11

90.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$15.23 ₾39.38

$11.50 ₱735

32.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.14 ₾2.95

$0.76 ₱48.74

50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ₾2.02

$0.22 ₱14.00

254.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.83 ₾30.58

$1.93 ₱124

512.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 ₾3.75

$1.20 ₱76.5

20.83%

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

$24.6K ₾63.6K

$20.7K ₱1.3M

18.72%

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

$22.3K ₾57.8K

$18.9K ₱1.2M

18.00%

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

$88.8 ₾230

$82.8 ₱5,290

7.26%

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

$13.12 ₾33.93

$17.51 ₱1,118

-25.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.67 ₾50.9

$22.58 ₱1,443

-12.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$64.1 ₾166

$27.30 ₱1,744

134.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$19.04 ₾49.24

$4.47 ₱285

325.95%

Cinema Ticket

$7.12 ₾18.42

$5.03 ₱321

41.55%

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

$375 ₾971

$128 ₱8,194

192.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.5K ₾27.1K

$10.6K ₱677.6K

-1.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 ₾268

$28.32 ₱1,809

265.96%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.26 ₾102

$19.21 ₱1,227

104.37%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 ₾303

$69.6 ₱4,447

68.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$122 ₾315

$53.7 ₱3,431

126.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 ₾1,798

$219 ₱14.0K

217.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$451 ₾1,167

$160 ₱10.2K

181.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 ₾3,504

$480 ₱30.7K

182.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$906 ₾2,343

$298 ₱19.1K

203.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,295 ₾5,934

$2,453 ₱156.7K

-6.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,345 ₾3,478

$1,079 ₱68.9K

24.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$664 ₾1,718

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.62

6.75

86.96%

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

Last update for Tbilisi: October 27, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz, Laguna: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tbilisi

$451 35.6%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$160 26% 64.5% $291

Groceries & Markets

Tbilisi

$234 18.4%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$153 24.8% 34.7% $81

Eating Out

Tbilisi

$191 15%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$51 8.3% 73.1% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Tbilisi

$172 13.5%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$77 12.5% 55.3% $95

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tbilisi

$122 9.6%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$123 20% 1.1% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Tbilisi

$78 6.2%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$37 6.1% 52.3% $41

Getting Around

Tbilisi

$22 1.7%

Santa Cruz, Laguna

$14 2.3% 35.3% $7.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Tbilisi and $219 in Santa Cruz, Laguna. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $38 in Tbilisi vs $8 in Santa Cruz, Laguna for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $153 per month, with Santa Cruz, Laguna cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇪 Tbilisi

🇵🇭 Santa Cruz, Laguna

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

03:05 3:05 AM

4 h ahead of Tbilisi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,241,700 Capital

123,574

💱 Currency

Georgian Lari GEL ₾

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 GEL = 0.387 USD

1 GEL = 0.347 EUR

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to GEL – Georgian Lari Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇪 Georgian Lari (₾)

Georgian Lari exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 2.59 GEL (1 GEL = 0.387 USD). 1 EUR = 2.88 GEL (1 GEL = 0.347 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to GEL in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Tbilisi Santa Cruz, Laguna 7,850 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Tbilisi
Santa Cruz, Laguna

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

Tbilisi vs Santa Cruz, Laguna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tbilisi and Santa Cruz, Laguna differ by about 106% in total monthly costs ($1,269 vs $616 including rent). Santa Cruz, Laguna is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,904 in Tbilisi and $923 in Santa Cruz, Laguna to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $695 in Tbilisi versus $219 in Santa Cruz, Laguna. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $375 in Tbilisi versus $128 in Santa Cruz, Laguna. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Tbilisi. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $616 in Santa Cruz, Laguna versus $1,269 in Tbilisi, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Santa Cruz, Laguna but tight or insufficient in Tbilisi. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Cruz, Laguna 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.

Expats usually find Santa Cruz, Laguna gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Tbilisi. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.