Cost of living comparison
compared to
Manila vs. Cebu Cost of Living Summary
Manila is 7.9% more expensive than Cebu.
Manila vs. Cebu Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Manila instead of Cebu, you would:
pay 36.9% more for restaurants
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$3.02
₱190.63
|
$5.58
₱352.09
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$3.98
₱251.49
|
$3.98
₱251.49
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$1.58
₱99.44
|
$1.40
₱88.53
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$0.51
₱32.47
|
$0.85
₱53.41
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of restaurants
pay 8.4% more for groceries
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.39
₱87.81
|
$1.44
₱91.10
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.99
₱314.64
|
$3.89
₱245.21
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$7.45
₱470.31
|
$7.23
₱456.39
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$2.01
₱126.68
|
$2.28
₱143.97
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$2.04
₱128.61
|
$2.18
₱137.75
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.54
₱97.24
|
$1.49
₱94.00
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.65
₱40.78
|
$0.85
₱53.59
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.06
₱67.20
|
$1.36
₱85.92
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
₱43.29
|
$0.83
₱52.07
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.08
₱68.33
|
$1.03
₱65.09
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.88
₱55.49
|
$1.20
₱75.86
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of groceries
pay 0.2% less for transportation
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$5.11
₱322.37
|
$4.96
₱312.79
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$12.43
₱784.66
|
$12.75
₱804.78
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$21,359.52
₱1M
|
$21,359.52
₱1M
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$2.49
₱156.93
|
$2.54
₱160.45
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of transportation
pay 0.8% less for housing
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$27.82
₱1,755.69
|
$24.14
₱1,523.71
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$508.05
₱32,062.99
|
$543.82
₱34,320.32
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$303.66
₱19,163.72
|
$281.50
₱17,765.42
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$92.43
₱5,833.21
|
$94.04
₱5,935.14
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of housing
pay 58.0% more for childcare
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$276.74
₱17,464.80
|
$619.65
₱39,106.20
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,014.25
₱506K
|
$8,932.60
₱564K
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of childcare
pay 5.1% more for entertainment and sports
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$1.75
₱110.66
|
$1.20
₱75.45
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.52
₱159.28
|
$2.55
₱160.96
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$2.94
₱185.36
|
$3.11
₱196.16
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$32.41
₱2,045.47
|
$42.86
₱2,705.05
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$5.58
₱352.09
|
$6.77
₱427.54
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 6.7% more for clothing
|
Cebu
|
Manila
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$48.78
₱3,078.69
|
$58.27
₱3,677.38
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$25.04
₱1,580.12
|
$27.47
₱1,733.91
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$76.71
₱4,841.08
|
$76.69
₱4,839.72
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$58.05
₱3,663.52
|
$57.51
₱3,629.73
|
|
Cebu vs. Manila - Cost of clothing
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this
Change currency:
Compare further: Cebu vs. Manila
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
Ask the Elsewhere Community
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Manila or Cebu. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.