Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tehran and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Tehran: $625 a month against $934 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Tehran
Learn more

Tehran Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

Jump to prices

Tehran

🇮🇷 Iran

$625

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tehran and in Cebu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $625 in Tehran versus $934 in Cebu.

Tehran $625
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,071 in Tehran versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Tehran $1,071
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,516 in Tehran versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Tehran $1,516
Cebu $1,896

Living in Tehran costs roughly 33% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tehran 53% lower, Cebu 30% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.66 $3.66

$3.03 ₱191

20.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.96 $17.96

$23.48 ₱1,476

-23.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.96 $3.96

$4.09 ₱257

-3.18%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.69 $0.69

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.46 $1.46

Cappuccino

$1.39 $1.39

$2.52 ₱158

-44.84%

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

$0.49 $0.49

$1.54 ₱97.2

-68.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 $1.65

$0.49 ₱31.06

236.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱113

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

Milk (1 liter)

$0.70 $0.70

$1.95 ₱122

-64.10%

White Bread (500g)

$0.62 $0.62

$1.43 ₱89.9

-56.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.48 $3.48

$1.02 ₱64.0

241.18%

Eggs

$1.23 $1.23

$2.06 ₱129

-40.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.29 $4.29

$9.81 ₱617

-56.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.45 $3.45

$4.61 ₱290

-25.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.40 $10.40

$7.70 ₱484

35.06%

Apples (1kg)

$1.40 $1.40

$3.31 ₱208

-57.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 $1.87

$1.45 ₱91.2

28.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.20 $1.20

$2.36 ₱148

-49.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.67 $0.67

$1.54 ₱96.6

-56.49%

Potato (1kg)

$0.54 $0.54

$2.36 ₱148

-77.12%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 $0.47

$1.99 ₱125

-76.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.58 $0.58

$1.15 ₱72.3

-49.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.28 $0.28

$0.67 ₱42.26

-58.21%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.77 $0.77

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.51 $0.51

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 $2.10

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.56 $2.56

$3.00 ₱189

-14.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱399

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱82.1

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱109

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.11 $0.11

$0.25 ₱15.82

-56.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.46 $5.46

$12.65 ₱796

-56.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.52 $0.52

$0.74 ₱46.44

-29.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 $0.29

$0.21 ₱13.15

38.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.02 $3.02

$4.33 ₱272

-30.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.10 $0.10

$1.33 ₱83.7

-92.48%

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

$50.0K $50.0K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

129.90%

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

$44.5K $44.5K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

129.54%

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

$12.91 $12.91

$121 ₱7,583

-89.29%

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

$1.64 $1.64

$14.45 ₱909

-88.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$3.79 $3.79

$28.29 ₱1,779

-86.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.40 $24.40

$32.68 ₱2,055

-25.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.24 $13.24

$6.39 ₱402

107.20%

Cinema Ticket

$1.96 $1.96

$5.46 ₱343

-64.10%

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

$106 $106

$273 ₱17.2K

-61.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,548 $2,548

$8,156 ₱512.9K

-68.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.42 $26.42

$49.57 ₱3,117

-46.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.23 $37.23

$24.87 ₱1,564

49.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$117 $117

$76.6 ₱4,817

52.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.0 $75.0

$59.3 ₱3,727

26.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$420 $420

$506 ₱31.8K

-16.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$267 $267

$309 ₱19.5K

-13.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$941 $941

$1,052 ₱66.1K

-10.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$637 $637

$619 ₱38.9K

2.96%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,238 $1,238

$2,915 ₱183.4K

-57.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$708 $708

$1,867 ₱117.4K

-62.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$211 $211

$341 ₱21.5K

-38.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

24.79

7.2

244.31%

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

Last update for Tehran: October 4, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tehran

$267 42.4%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 15.8% $42

Groceries & Markets

Tehran

$128 20.3%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 64.5% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Tehran

$115 18.2%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 17.6% $20

Eating Out

Tehran

$66 10.5%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 33% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Tehran

$28 4.5%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 53.9% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tehran

$18 2.9%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 791% $145

Getting Around

Tehran

$7.9 1.3%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 95.9% $7.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $420 in Tehran and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 62% 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: $18.00 in Tehran vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $128 vs $210 per month, with Tehran cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Tehran

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

04:33 4:33 AM

09:03 9:03 AM

4 h 30 min ahead of Tehran

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,000,000 Capital

964,169

💱 Currency

USD USD

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.892 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.54 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

PHP to USD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Tehran Cebu 7,770 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Tehran
Cebu

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Tehran vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tehran is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 49% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Cebu. 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: $420 in Tehran versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $625 per month in Tehran versus $934 in Cebu – a 49% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Tehran runs roughly 132% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $1,000 a month, though Tehran gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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

Safety-wise, Tehran and Cebu 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 Tehran gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.