Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Welkom and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $918 a month against $1,057 in Welkom, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

51

Cost of Living Index in Welkom
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Welkom Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Welkom

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,057

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,057 in Welkom versus $918 in Cebu.

Welkom $1,057
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,595 in Welkom versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Welkom $1,595
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,132 in Welkom versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Welkom $2,132
Cebu $1,900

Living in Welkom is roughly 15% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Welkom 22% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.03 R 149

$3.09 ₱194

192.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.75 R 342

$24.22 ₱1,525

-14.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.50 R 90.6

$3.92 ₱247

40.31%

Cappuccino

$2.30 R 37.92

$2.51 ₱158

-8.37%

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

$0.50 R 8.20

$1.59 ₱100

-68.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.63 R 10.32

$0.53 ₱33.43

18.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.19 R 19.67

$1.78 ₱112

-33.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 R 25.05

$2.17 ₱137

-29.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.05 R 17.35

$1.92 ₱121

-45.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.06 R 17.42

$1.36 ₱85.4

-22.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.42 R 23.35

$1.01 ₱63.5

40.59%

Eggs

$1.80 R 29.60

$2.03 ₱128

-11.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.71 R 111

$9.86 ₱621

-31.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.52 R 74.4

$4.39 ₱277

2.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.82 R 79.5

$7.60 ₱479

-36.58%

Apples (1kg)

$1.52 R 25.12

$3.30 ₱208

-53.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 R 27.69

$1.39 ₱87.8

20.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.72 R 28.42

$2.33 ₱147

-26.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.20 R 19.72

$1.50 ₱94.3

-20.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.13 R 18.54

$2.36 ₱149

-52.12%

Onion (1kg)

$1.22 R 20.09

$1.90 ₱119

-35.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 R 15.69

$1.19 ₱74.9

-20.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 R 22.12

$0.63 ₱39.71

112.70%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.48 R 40.92

$3.00 ₱189

-17.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$2.44 R 40.23

$6.03 ₱379

-59.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.53 R 25.18

$1.23 ₱77.7

24.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 R 30.12

$1.75 ₱110

4.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.44 R 23.72

$0.25 ₱15.86

476.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.64 ₱796

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.31 R 5.11

$0.77 ₱48.62

-59.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.81 R 13.35

$0.23 ₱14.53

252.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.49 R 239

$4.46 ₱281

224.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.52 R 25.04

$1.31 ₱82.8

16.03%

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

$35.3K R 581.8K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

66.22%

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

$34.5K R 568.2K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

80.11%

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

$151 R 2,491

$120 ₱7,569

25.77%

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

$37.35 R 615

$14.00 ₱882

166.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.39 R 600

$27.54 ₱1,734

32.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.34 R 533

$32.33 ₱2,035

0.03%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.53 R 157

$6.65 ₱419

43.31%

Cinema Ticket

$7.32 R 121

$5.65 ₱356

29.56%

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

$265 R 4,368

$275 ₱17.3K

-3.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,448 R 89.8K

$7,918 ₱498.5K

-31.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.2 R 893

$49.33 ₱3,106

9.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.69 R 522

$25.24 ₱1,589

25.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.2 R 1,519

$77.0 ₱4,846

19.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$82.6 R 1,361

$57.2 ₱3,601

44.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$394 R 6,490

$500 ₱31.5K

-21.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$364 R 5,997

$309 ₱19.4K

17.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$729 R 12.0K

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-32.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$736 R 12.1K

$615 ₱38.7K

19.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$950 R 15.6K

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-67.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$754 R 12.4K

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-60.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$346 ₱21.8K

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.34

7.2

57.50%

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

Last update for Welkom: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Welkom

$364 34.4%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 15.2% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Welkom

$225 21.3%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 28.1% $63

Groceries & Markets

Welkom

$164 15.5%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 25.8% $42

Eating Out

Welkom

$130 12.3%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 32% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Welkom

$117 11.1%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 19.9% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Welkom

$47 4.5%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 7.2% $3.4

Getting Around

Welkom

$10 * 1%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 53.9% $5.5

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 $394 in Welkom and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $21.00 in Welkom vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $164 vs $206 per month, with Welkom cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Welkom

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

12:15 12:15 PM

18:15 6:15 PM

6 h ahead of Welkom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

64,130

964,169

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 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 ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Welkom Cebu 11,240 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Welkom
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

Welkom vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and utilities. The 15% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $1,585 in Welkom and $1,377 in Cebu 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: $394 in Welkom versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Welkom pay roughly 26% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,057 per month in Welkom versus $918 in Cebu – a 15% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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

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

Safety-wise, Welkom 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 15% less than in Welkom. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.