Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tsukuba and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,104 in Tsukuba, rent and utilities included – about $2,200 less a year. The total is higher in Tsukuba despite lower rent and utilities.

54

Cost of Living Index in Tsukuba
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Tsukuba Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Tsukuba

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,104

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Tsukuba 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 Tsukuba and in Cebu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,104 in Tsukuba versus $918 in Cebu.

Tsukuba $1,104
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,754 in Tsukuba versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Tsukuba $1,754
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,404 in Tsukuba versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Tsukuba $2,404
Cebu $1,900

Living in Tsukuba is roughly 20% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Tsukuba 18% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.48 ¥1,024

$3.09 ₱194

109.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.35 ¥5,269

$24.22 ₱1,525

37.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.01 ¥791

$3.92 ₱247

27.81%

Cappuccino

$2.74 ¥433

$2.51 ₱158

9.16%

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

$1.03 ¥162

$1.59 ₱100

-35.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥118

$0.53 ₱33.43

39.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.19 ¥347

$1.78 ₱112

23.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 ¥506

$2.17 ₱137

47.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 ¥229

$1.92 ₱121

-24.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 ¥264

$1.36 ₱85.4

22.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 ¥488

$1.01 ₱63.5

205.94%

Eggs

$2.09 ¥330

$2.03 ₱128

2.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.21 ¥1,614

$9.86 ₱621

3.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.03 ¥952

$4.39 ₱277

37.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.35 ¥2,267

$7.60 ₱479

88.82%

Apples (1kg)

$5.83 ¥921

$3.30 ₱208

76.67%

Banana (1kg)

$2.82 ¥445

$1.39 ₱87.8

102.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.80 ¥443

$2.33 ₱147

20.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.12 ¥650

$1.50 ₱94.3

174.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.63 ¥416

$2.36 ₱149

11.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.56 ¥405

$1.90 ₱119

34.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.85 ¥134

$1.19 ₱74.9

-28.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 ¥128

$0.63 ₱39.71

28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.76 ¥594

$3.00 ₱189

25.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.16 ¥973

$6.03 ₱379

2.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 ¥284

$1.23 ₱77.7

46.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.11 ¥333

$1.75 ₱110

20.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.45 ¥230

$0.25 ₱15.86

480.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$52.8 ¥8,337

$12.64 ₱796

317.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.18 ¥502

$0.77 ₱48.62

312.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.70 ¥426

$0.23 ₱14.53

1073.91%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.78 ¥3,282

$4.46 ₱281

365.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.05 ¥166

$1.31 ₱82.8

-19.85%

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

$21.6K ¥3.4M

$21.2K ₱1.3M

1.85%

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

$18.5K ¥2.9M

$19.1K ₱1.2M

-3.47%

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

$129 ¥20.4K

$120 ₱7,569

7.66%

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

$24.48 ¥3,868

$14.00 ₱882

74.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.65 ¥5,158

$27.54 ₱1,734

18.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.6 ¥8,472

$32.33 ₱2,035

65.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.65 ₱419

Cinema Ticket

$12.38 ¥1,955

$5.65 ₱356

119.12%

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

$94.2 ¥14.9K

$275 ₱17.3K

-65.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.8K ¥2.3M

$7,918 ₱498.5K

86.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$46.72 ¥7,382

$49.33 ₱3,106

-5.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.27 ¥5,888

$25.24 ₱1,589

47.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$38.06 ¥6,013

$77.0 ₱4,846

-50.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$41.11 ¥6,495

$57.2 ₱3,601

-28.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$466 ¥73.6K

$500 ₱31.5K

-6.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$281 ¥44.4K

$309 ₱19.4K

-9.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,081 ¥170.7K

$1,078 ₱67.9K

0.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$629 ¥99.4K

$615 ₱38.7K

2.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,648 ¥734.4K

$2,886 ₱181.7K

61.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,980 ¥312.8K

$1,917 ₱120.7K

3.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,449 ¥228.8K

$346 ₱21.8K

318.71%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

-72.22%

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

Last update for Tsukuba: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Tsukuba

$285 25.8%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 27.8% $79

Accommodation & Living

Tsukuba

$281 25.4%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 10% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tsukuba

$187 16.9%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 13.3% $25

Eating Out

Tsukuba

$124 11.3%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 29% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Tsukuba

$78 7.1%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 44.3% $35

Getting Around

Tsukuba

$75 6.8%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 79.3% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Tsukuba

$73 6.7%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 27.9% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $466 in Tsukuba and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tsukuba pays 319% 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: $33.00 in Tsukuba vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $206 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Tsukuba

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

01:41 1:41 AM

00:41 12:41 AM

1 h behind Tsukuba

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

230,398

964,169

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tsukuba Cebu 3,300 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Tsukuba
Cebu

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

Tsukuba vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and leisure. The 20% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 319% higher in Tsukuba, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $466 in Tsukuba versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,104 per month in Tsukuba versus $918 in Cebu – a 20% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 317% less than in Tsukuba. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $918 in Cebu versus $1,104 in Tsukuba, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Tsukuba. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Safety-wise, Tsukuba 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Tsukuba. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.