Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ubon Ratchathani and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Ubon Ratchathani: $781 a month against $915 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cebu outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

37

Cost of Living Index in Ubon Ratchathani
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Ubon Ratchathani Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

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Ubon Ratchathani

🇹🇭 Thailand

$781

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$915

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $781 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $915 in Cebu.

Ubon Ratchathani $781
Cebu $915

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,444 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $1,418 in Cebu.

Ubon Ratchathani $1,444
Cebu $1,418

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,106 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $1,921 in Cebu.

Ubon Ratchathani $2,106
Cebu $1,921

Living in Ubon Ratchathani costs roughly 15% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Ubon Ratchathani 42% lower, Cebu 33% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.66 ฿156

$3.05 ₱192

52.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.60 ฿689

$24.00 ₱1,511

-14.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.41 ฿248

$3.99 ₱251

85.71%

Cappuccino

$1.81 ฿60.3

$2.50 ₱157

-27.60%

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

$1.30 ฿43.60

$1.54 ₱97.1

-15.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.54 ฿17.99

$0.50 ₱31.37

8.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.40 ฿80.2

$1.78 ₱112

34.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.62 ฿121

$2.17 ₱136

66.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.81 ฿60.6

$2.00 ₱126

-9.50%

White Bread (500g)

$1.46 ฿48.84

$1.37 ₱86.2

6.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.38 ฿46.15

$1.03 ₱64.9

33.98%

Eggs

$2.05 ฿68.6

$2.03 ₱128

0.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.08 ฿571

$10.20 ₱642

67.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.35 ฿78.6

$4.45 ₱280

-47.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 ฿368

$7.67 ₱483

43.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 ฿99.9

$3.31 ₱208

-9.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.01 ฿33.59

$1.46 ₱91.8

-30.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.13 ฿71.2

$2.32 ₱146

-8.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 ฿68.9

$1.49 ₱94.0

38.26%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 ฿47.54

$2.34 ₱147

-39.32%

Onion (1kg)

$1.06 ฿35.58

$1.94 ₱122

-45.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 ฿37.44

$1.16 ₱73.0

-3.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ฿16.51

$0.68 ₱42.89

-27.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.25 ฿142

$2.99 ₱188

42.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.55 ฿453

$6.24 ₱393

117.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 ฿55.4

$1.23 ₱77.3

34.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.85 ฿95.1

$1.73 ₱109

64.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 ฿28.51

$0.23 ₱14.36

269.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.34 ₱777

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.21 ฿40.40

$0.79 ₱49.96

53.16%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.04 ฿34.82

$0.22 ₱13.86

372.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.56 ฿219

$4.54 ₱286

44.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.22 ฿40.86

$1.32 ₱82.9

-7.58%

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

$28.1K ฿939.2K

$21.0K ₱1.3M

33.79%

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

$31.4K ฿1.1M

$19.4K ₱1.2M

61.98%

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

$81.4 ฿2,719

$119 ₱7,464

-31.38%

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

$12.16 ฿407

$14.22 ₱896

-14.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$14.40 ฿481

$27.47 ₱1,730

-47.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.95 ฿1,603

$32.31 ₱2,034

48.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.14 ฿439

$6.50 ₱409

102.15%

Cinema Ticket

$6.70 ฿224

$5.40 ₱340

24.07%

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

$497 ฿16.6K

$276 ₱17.4K

79.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.4K ฿413.4K

$7,866 ₱495.3K

57.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.4 ฿1,885

$49.37 ₱3,108

14.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.54 ฿954

$24.58 ₱1,548

16.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$85.2 ฿2,847

$76.6 ₱4,825

11.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.8 ฿2,534

$58.9 ₱3,706

28.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$235 ฿7,843

$503 ₱31.7K

-53.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$143 ฿4,785

$305 ₱19.2K

-52.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,049 ฿35.1K

$1,075 ₱67.7K

-2.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 ฿24.2K

$632 ₱39.8K

14.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,096 ฿70.0K

$2,870 ₱180.7K

-26.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,243 ฿41.5K

$1,877 ₱118.2K

-33.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$353 ฿11.8K

$336 ₱21.1K

5.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.57

7.2

-22.64%

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

Last update for Ubon Ratchathani: October 19, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ubon Ratchathani

$240 30.8%

Cebu

$210 22.9% 12.7% $31

Accommodation & Living

Ubon Ratchathani

$143 18.3%

Cebu

$305 33.3% 113% $161

Clothing & Footwear

Ubon Ratchathani

$111 14.2%

Cebu

$94 10.3% 14.8% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8%

Cebu

$160 17.5% 48.5% $52

Eating Out

Ubon Ratchathani

$108 13.8%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 18.6% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Ubon Ratchathani

$61 7.9%

Cebu

$43 4.7% 29.8% $18

Getting Around

Ubon Ratchathani

$9.8 * 1.3%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 54.1% $5.3

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 $235 in Ubon Ratchathani and $503 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ubon Ratchathani pays 5% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $21.00 in Ubon Ratchathani vs $24.00 in Cebu. Groceries flip the comparison at $240 vs $210, with Cebu cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇹🇭 Ubon Ratchathani

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

03:36 3:36 AM

04:36 4:36 AM

1 h ahead of Ubon Ratchathani

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,977

964,169

💱 Currency

Thai Baht THB ฿

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to THB – Thai Baht Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇹🇭 Thai Baht (฿)

Thai Baht exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 33.42 THB (100 THB = 2.99 USD). 1 EUR = 37.57 THB (100 THB = 2.66 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 THB in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ubon Ratchathani Cebu 2,140 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Ubon Ratchathani
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

Ubon Ratchathani vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ubon Ratchathani is cheaper overall, especially in utilities and transport. The 17% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 5% higher in Ubon Ratchathani, 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: $235 in Ubon Ratchathani versus $503 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Cebu pay roughly 15% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $781 per month in Ubon Ratchathani versus $915 in Cebu – a 17% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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

For families, Ubon Ratchathani 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, Ubon Ratchathani 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 Ubon Ratchathani gentler on the wallet – expenses run 17% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.