Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Utrecht and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $2,868 in Utrecht, rent and utilities included – about $23,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

142

Cost of Living Index in Utrecht
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Utrecht Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Utrecht

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,868

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,868 in Utrecht versus $934 in Cebu.

Utrecht $2,868
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,190 in Utrecht versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Utrecht $4,190
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,512 in Utrecht versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Utrecht $5,512
Cebu $1,896

Living in Utrecht is roughly 207% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Utrecht is 114% above, Cebu is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.56 €20.13

$3.03 ₱190

644.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$84.7 €75.5

$23.48 ₱1,473

260.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.39 €11.95

$4.09 ₱256

227.38%

Cappuccino

$4.82 €4.30

$2.52 ₱158

91.27%

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

$3.88 €3.46

$1.54 ₱96.9

151.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.34 €2.98

$0.49 ₱30.98

581.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 €5.92

$1.79 ₱112

270.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.18 €6.41

$2.26 ₱142

217.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.95 ₱122

-20.51%

White Bread (500g)

$2.86 €2.55

$1.43 ₱89.7

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.56 €2.28

$1.02 ₱63.8

150.98%

Eggs

$4.68 €4.18

$2.06 ₱129

127.18%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.43 €11.98

$9.81 ₱615

36.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.83 €12.34

$4.61 ₱289

200.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.66 €16.65

$7.70 ₱483

142.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$3.31 ₱207

-18.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.49 €2.22

$1.45 ₱90.9

71.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.36 ₱148

-11.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.85 €3.43

$1.54 ₱96.4

150.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.71 €1.53

$2.36 ₱148

-27.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.92 €1.72

$1.99 ₱125

-3.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.15 ₱72.1

37.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.67 ₱42.15

107.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.50 €12.94

$3.00 ₱188

383.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.53 €5.83

$6.35 ₱398

2.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 €1.20

$1.31 ₱81.9

2.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 €2.42

$1.73 ₱108

57.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.52 €3.14

$0.25 ₱15.78

1308.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$132 €118

$12.65 ₱793

945.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.70 €3.30

$0.74 ₱46.32

400.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.68 €2.39

$0.21 ₱13.11

1176.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$45.85 €40.92

$4.33 ₱271

958.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.51 €2.24

$1.33 ₱83.5

88.72%

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

$41.6K €37.1K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

90.92%

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

$38.6K €34.4K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

98.92%

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

$247 €221

$121 ₱7,563

105.05%

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

$21.83 €19.48

$14.45 ₱907

51.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.76 €42.62

$28.29 ₱1,774

68.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.52 €39.73

$32.68 ₱2,050

36.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.62 €28.21

$6.39 ₱401

394.84%

Cinema Ticket

$15.72 €14.03

$5.46 ₱342

187.91%

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

$3,083 €2,751

$273 ₱17.1K

1027.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,065 €7,197

$8,156 ₱511.5K

-1.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.5 €86.1

$49.57 ₱3,109

94.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$52.6 €46.96

$24.87 ₱1,560

111.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.3

$76.6 ₱4,804

39.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 €113

$59.3 ₱3,717

113.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,897 €1,693

$506 ₱31.7K

275.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,508 €1,346

$309 ₱19.4K

387.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,238 €2,890

$1,052 ₱66.0K

207.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,261 €2,018

$619 ₱38.8K

265.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,916 €6,172

$2,915 ₱182.9K

137.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,857 €4,335

$1,867 ₱117.1K

160.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,294 €3,832

$341 ₱21.4K

1158.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.23

7.2

-55.14%

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

Last update for Utrecht: 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

Utrecht

$1.5K 51.2%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 79.5% $1.2K

Eating Out

Utrecht

$355 12.1%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 75.1% $266

Groceries & Markets

Utrecht

$352 12%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 40.2% $141

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Utrecht

$317 10.8%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 48.5% $154

Clothing & Footwear

Utrecht

$172 5.9%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 45% $78

Getting Around

Utrecht

$163 5.6%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 90.6% $148

Sport & Entertainment

Utrecht

$76 2.6%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 42.6% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,897 in Utrecht and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Utrecht pays 1159% 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: $85.0 in Utrecht vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $352 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Utrecht

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

05:07 5:07 AM

11:07 11:07 AM

6 h ahead of Utrecht

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

367,947

964,169

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Utrecht Cebu 10,970 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Utrecht
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

Utrecht vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and clothing. The 207% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 1159% higher in Utrecht, 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: $1,897 in Utrecht versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,868 per month in Utrecht versus $934 in Cebu – a 207% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Cebu runs roughly 945% less than in Utrecht. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $934 in Cebu versus $2,868 in Utrecht, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Utrecht. 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 Utrecht, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Utrecht 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 207% less than in Utrecht. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.