Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zawiya and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Zawiya: $441 a month against $918 in Cebu, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

21

Cost of Living Index in Zawiya
Learn more

Zawiya Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
Learn more

Cebu Living Index

Jump to prices

Zawiya

🇱🇾 Libya

$441

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$918

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $441 in Zawiya versus $918 in Cebu.

Zawiya $441
Cebu $918

Estimated couple costs with rent: $685 in Zawiya versus $1,409 in Cebu.

Zawiya $685
Cebu $1,409

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $929 in Zawiya versus $1,900 in Cebu.

Zawiya $929
Cebu $1,900

Living in Zawiya costs roughly 52% less than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Zawiya 67% lower, Cebu 32% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.39 LYD 15.32

$3.09 ₱194

-22.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.64 LYD 100

$24.22 ₱1,525

-35.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.68 LYD 17.16

$3.92 ₱247

-31.63%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.45 LYD 2.88

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.59 LYD 3.80

Cappuccino

$0.42 LYD 2.68

$2.51 ₱158

-83.27%

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

$0.41 LYD 2.63

$1.59 ₱100

-74.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 LYD 0.80

$0.53 ₱33.43

-77.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.78 ₱112

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 ₱137

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 LYD 5.90

$1.92 ₱121

-52.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.20 LYD 1.28

$1.36 ₱85.4

-85.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.98 LYD 6.26

$1.01 ₱63.5

-2.97%

Eggs

$1.35 LYD 8.65

$2.03 ₱128

-33.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.65 LYD 29.77

$9.86 ₱621

-52.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.58 LYD 22.97

$4.39 ₱277

-18.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.99 LYD 57.6

$7.60 ₱479

18.29%

Apples (1kg)

$1.94 LYD 12.46

$3.30 ₱208

-41.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.44 LYD 9.21

$1.39 ₱87.8

3.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.68 LYD 4.38

$2.33 ₱147

-70.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.50 LYD 3.18

$1.50 ₱94.3

-66.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.62 LYD 3.96

$2.36 ₱149

-73.73%

Onion (1kg)

$0.28 LYD 1.80

$1.90 ₱119

-85.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.30 LYD 1.92

$1.19 ₱74.9

-74.79%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.18 LYD 1.18

$0.63 ₱39.71

-71.43%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.75 LYD 4.84

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 LYD 4.42

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 LYD 4.93

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$1.72 LYD 11.03

$3.00 ₱189

-42.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.03 ₱379

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 ₱77.7

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 ₱110

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.80 LYD 5.13

$0.25 ₱15.86

220.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$39.03 LYD 250

$12.64 ₱796

208.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 LYD 4.84

$0.77 ₱48.62

-1.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.49 LYD 3.13

$0.23 ₱14.53

113.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.38 LYD 15.25

$4.46 ₱281

-46.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.02 LYD 0.13

$1.31 ₱82.8

-98.47%

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

$15.2K LYD 97.4K

$21.2K ₱1.3M

-28.45%

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

$16.5K LYD 105.4K

$19.1K ₱1.2M

-14.07%

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

$94.2 LYD 603

$120 ₱7,569

-21.68%

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

$5.59 LYD 35.80

$14.00 ₱882

-60.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.12 LYD 77.7

$27.54 ₱1,734

-55.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$16.94 LYD 109

$32.33 ₱2,035

-47.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.84 LYD 24.61

$6.65 ₱419

-42.26%

Cinema Ticket

$3.78 LYD 24.25

$5.65 ₱356

-33.10%

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

$52.5 LYD 337

$275 ₱17.3K

-80.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$879 LYD 5,630

$7,918 ₱498.5K

-88.90%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.92 LYD 134

$49.33 ₱3,106

-57.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.60 LYD 286

$25.24 ₱1,589

76.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$31.29 LYD 200

$77.0 ₱4,846

-59.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$30.69 LYD 197

$57.2 ₱3,601

-46.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$89.2 LYD 572

$500 ₱31.5K

-82.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$58.3 LYD 373

$309 ₱19.4K

-81.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$167 LYD 1,072

$1,078 ₱67.9K

-84.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$120 LYD 766

$615 ₱38.7K

-80.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$349 LYD 2,238

$2,886 ₱181.7K

-87.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$95.9 LYD 614

$1,917 ₱120.7K

-95.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$244 LYD 1,566

$346 ₱21.8K

-29.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

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

Last update for Zawiya: October 12, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zawiya

$112 25.4%

Cebu

$162 17.6% 44.6% $50

Groceries & Markets

Zawiya

$109 24.7%

Cebu

$206 22.4% 89.3% $97

Accommodation & Living

Zawiya

$58 13.2%

Cebu

$309 33.6% 430% $251

Clothing & Footwear

Zawiya

$57 13%

Cebu

$94 10.2% 63.7% $37

Getting Around

Zawiya

$45 10.3%

Cebu

$16 1.7% 65.7% $30

Eating Out

Zawiya

$34 7.8%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 157% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Zawiya

$25 5.6%

Cebu

$44 4.8% 78% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $89.2 in Zawiya and $500 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cebu pays 42% 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: $16.00 in Zawiya vs $24.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $109 vs $206 per month, with Zawiya cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇱🇾 Zawiya

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

21:29 9:29 PM

03:29 3:29 AM

6 h ahead of Zawiya

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

318,726

964,169

💱 Currency

Libyan Dinar LYD ل.د

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 LYD = 0.156 USD

1 LYD = 0.139 EUR

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD, EUR to LYD – Libyan Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇱🇾 Libyan Dinar (ل.د)

Libyan Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.41 LYD (1 LYD = 0.156 USD). 1 EUR = 7.2 LYD (1 LYD = 0.139 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 LYD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Zawiya Cebu 11,300 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Zawiya
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

Zawiya vs Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Zawiya is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, clothing, and eating out. The 108% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 42% 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: $89.2 in Zawiya versus $500 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $441 per month in Zawiya versus $918 in Cebu – a 108% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Zawiya runs roughly 209% less than in Cebu. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Either city works on $800 a month, though Zawiya gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

For families, Zawiya 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, Zawiya 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 Zawiya gentler on the wallet – expenses run 108% less than in Cebu. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.