Cost of Living in Cebu City, 🇵🇭 Philippines - For Locals, Nomads, and Tourists

Researched Updated Oct 25, 2026 Last changed Oct 31, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost

Housing 2 3 4 5 $507 $396 $793 $222 $40

Utilities 1 4 — $87 $143 $76 —

Internet & Mobile 7 8 $19 $29 $35 $15 $1

Groceries 15 16 17 18 29 $58 $181 $455 $117 $7

Transportation 34 10 $100 $75 $250 $21 $20

Dining Out 26 27 28 $468 $200 $318 $50 $42

Leisure Activities 11 12 19 $66 $104 $1,072 $45 $30

Health Insurance 14 $68 $70 $200 $8 —

Visa & Legal Fees 13 $39 $42 $167 — —

Total $1,325 $1,184 $3,433 $554 $140

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) 2 3 5 $348.83 $238 – $555 per month

Coworking Space 6 $95.14 per month

Airbnb (1 month) 2 4 $950.00 $507 – $1,339 per month

Coliving Space 23 $87.21 per month

Food & Dining

Coffee 21 $2.79 per cup

Beer 36 $1.63 per pint

Meal (Inexpensive) 26 27 $4.12 per meal

Fast Food Combo 20 $4.33 per meal

Apples 30 $3.52 per kg

Bread 15 $0.97 per loaf

Milk 16 $1.57 per liter

Rice 17 $0.82 per kg

Chicken Fillets 18 $4.60 per kg

Beef 29 $5.36 per kg

Wine (Mid-range) 32 $7.29 per bottle

Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 27 28 $24.50 per meal

Water (1.5L bottle) 45 $0.44 per bottle

Transportation

Taxi Start 10 $0.79 per trip

Taxi per km 10 $0.21 per km

Monthly Transport Pass 25 24 $12.91 per month

Gasoline 33 $1.35 per liter

Ride-hailing (5km) 34 $2.62 per trip

Scooter Rental 40 $126.85 per month

Services

Mobile Plan 8 $4.74 per month

Internet (60 Mbps+) 7 $23.77 per month

Gym Membership 19 $39.64 per month

Tennis Court (Weekend) 35 $6.34 per hour

SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 8 $3.95 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket 11 $4.92 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans 46 $63.42 per pair

Summer Dress 38 $20.60 per dress

Running Shoes 39 $79.12 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut 42 $3.96 per visit

Laundry 41 $0.44 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) 22 $12.68 per visit

Pharmacy (basic meds) 43 44 $3.80 per purchase

About these costs

Method: Researched
Last updated: Oct 25, 2026
Last changed: Oct 31, 2026
Exchange rate: 1 USD = 63.068 PHP on Oct 19, 2026

Checked against the sources below and compared with similar cities. Numbers in the list point to these sources.

Compared with Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Da Nang, Bangkok

Livingcost.org Cebu cross-check (meals, utilities, pub beer, beef)Index
Avida Riala IT Park furnished 1BR ₱35,000/moListings
Avida IT Park furnished 1BR ₱28,000/moListings
IT Park furnished 1BR monthly USD 1,339 incl. utilities and WiFiListings
Cebu 2025 rent bands by district (bare to furnished)Secondary
Kita Spaces IT Park coworking ₱6,000/30 daysOfficial
Globe GFiber 1499 UNLI 300 MbpsOfficial
GOMO 30GB ₱449; GoSURF299 cross-check (country prep)Official
Philippines RON95 ₱88.90/litre (2026-10-19)Index
LTFRB nationwide taxi ₱50 flag-down, ₱13.50/kmSecondary
Ayala Central Bloc cinema standard tickets ₱250–₱410Secondary
Cebu International School SY 2025-26 fee scheduleOfficial
BI visa extension fee schedule effective 30 Jun 2025Official
SafetyWing Essential USD 62.72 per 4 weeksOfficial
SM Markets SM Bonus white loaf 600g ₱61Listings
SM Markets Magnolia Fresh Milk 1L ₱99.25Listings
ShopSM SM Bonus 7Tonner rice 5kg ₱260 (₱52/kg)Listings
ShopSM Magnolia chicken breast fillet ₱380/kgListings
Anytime Fitness Philippines average membership ₱2,500/moOfficial
McDonald's Philippines Big Mac medium meal ₱273Secondary
Starbucks delivery menu Caffè Latte Tall ₱176Secondary
Chong Hua Hospital ENT consultation ₱800–₱1,000Secondary
WorkNook Cebu coworking from ₱5,500/monthSecondary
MyBus SM City Cebu–MCIA ₱50; Parkmall–MCIA ₱30Official
LTFRB traditional PUJ ₱13 first 4 km; ₱1.80/km afterOfficial
Jollibee Super Meal A ₱185 complete mealOfficial
Cebu inexpensive meal ₱225; mid-range dinner for two ₱1,200Secondary
Lantaw Il Corso sharing dinner ~₱1,400 for twoSecondary
SM Bonus C ground beef ₱338/kgListings
SM Bonus Fuji apple 400–500g ₱125Listings
San Miguel Pale Pilsen 330ml can ₱54.50Listings
Hardy's Merlot 750ml ₱460Listings
DOE Visayas monitoring: Cebu City RON95 ₱85.20/L commonOfficial
LTFRB TNVS matrix ₱45 flag-down, ₱15/km, ₱2/minSecondary
Citigreen Tennis Resort weekend hire ₱400–₱500/hrListings
Casual Cebu pub local beer ~₱60–₱120Secondary
Penshoppe jeans ₱1,399–₱1,699Listings
Penshoppe Dress Code knit dress ₱1,299Listings
Nike Journey Run ₱4,995Listings
RC MotoRental Cebu Honda Beat ₱8,000/monthListings
Wash Me Clean Cebu wash-dry-fold ₱28/kgListings
David's Salon haircut from ₱250 minimumOfficial
Watsons Neozep syrup 60mL ₱112.75Listings
DPRI paracetamol 500mg tablet median ₱0.72Official
Summit Natural Drinking Water 1.5L ₱27.95Listings
Levi's 501 Original Jeans ₱3,999–₱4,999Listings

Change history

Oct 31, 2026
- Method Generated Researched
- Airbnb (1 month) 700.92 950
- Apartment (1 bedroom) 408.87 348.83
- Apples 3.09 3.52
- Beef 8.01 5.36
- Beer 1.59 1.63
40 more changes
- Bread 1.25 0.97
- Chicken Fillets 5.17 4.6
- Cinema Ticket 5.84 4.92
- Coffee 2.75 2.79
- Coliving Space 300.39 87.21
- Coworking Space 125.16 95.14
- Dining Out local 50.07, nomad 467.28, expat 200.26, family 333.77, tourist 41.72 local 50.11, nomad 467.78, expat 200.26, family 318.24, tourist 41.7
- Doctor Visit (GP) 13.35 12.68
- Fast Food Combo 3.67 4.33
- Gasoline 1.14 1.35
- Groceries local 150.2, nomad 75.1, expat 233.64, family 584.1, tourist 6.68 local 116.96, nomad 58.48, expat 181.29, family 454.98, tourist 6.66
- Gym Membership 36.71 39.64
- Haircut 7.51 3.96
- Health Insurance local 8.34, nomad 63.42, expat 70.09, family 200.26, tourist 0 local 8.34, nomad 67.69, expat 70.08, family 200.26, tourist 0
- Housing local 141.85, nomad 634.16, expat 367.15, family 750.98, tourist 75.1 local 221.98, nomad 507.39, expat 396.39, family 792.8, tourist 39.64
- Internet & Mobile local 10.01, nomad 58.41, expat 46.73, family 75.1, tourist 2.5 local 15.05, nomad 19.03, expat 28.51, family 34.88, tourist 0.79
- Internet (60 Mbps+) 31.69 23.77
- Jeans 46.73 63.42
- Laundry 3.34 0.44
- Leisure Activities local 25.03, nomad 200.26, expat 133.51, family 250.33, tourist 30.04 local 44.56, nomad 65.66, expat 104.36, family 1071.69, tourist 29.97
- Meal (Inexpensive) 4.17 4.12
- Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 30.04 24.5
- Milk 1.75 1.57
- Mobile Plan 16.67 4.74
- Monthly Transport Pass 20.03 12.91
- Pharmacy (basic meds) 5.84 3.8
- Rice 1.03 0.82
- Ride-hailing (5km) 3.5 2.62
- Running Shoes 75.1 79.12
- SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 8.34 3.95
- Scooter Rental 8.34 126.85
- Summer Dress 25.03 20.6
- Taxi Start 0.75 0.79
- Taxi per km 0.25 0.21
- Tennis Court (Weekend) 6.68 6.34
- Transportation local 30.04, nomad 100.13, expat 75.1, family 250.33, tourist 20.03 local 20.83, nomad 99.89, expat 75, family 250.2, tourist 19.98
- Utilities local 53.4, nomad 108.48, expat 91.79, family 200.26, tourist 0 local 76.11, nomad 0, expat 87.21, family 142.71, tourist 0
- Visa & Legal Fees local 0, nomad 70.09, expat 41.72, family 166.88 local 0, nomad 39.27, expat 41.72, family 166.88
- Water (1.5L bottle) 0.75 0.44
- Wine (Mid-range) 10.85 7.29
Full researched refresh from generated export — all 45 cost lines (livingcost.org, fazwaz.ph, roampads.com, kitaspaces.com, gomo.ph)

Cebu City cost of living