Is it true that average Filipinos live off 40 USD a month in Cebu Philippines ?

Some live off a lot less

We met a security guard in one of the large shopping centres in Cebu who lives on 40 Australian Dollars a month which is even less. One of the women who works at a beauty parlor has 8 children and earns $1 Aus a day so that is even less again. Accommodation can be as cheap as you like. 3 of us shared a room at Vacation Hotel Cebu for $A30 a night (and that was with a pool) and it is so cheap to eat. You can buy fruit and vegetable from the local markets and do it extremely cheaply......but the supermarkets are really good prices too. You will really love Cebu, it is a beautiful place and everyone is really nice.

A lot of filipinos live on 40 USD a month, some even lesser. How do they pay for expenses?

Some don't. The live in shacks or houses made of cardboard boxes or scrap materials. Some live with relatives so they won't have to pay rent. As for food, some Filipinos get food from their backyard, like vegetables. for others, I do not know how they manage. For entertainment, they don't pay for it. Some just watch TV at the neighbor's house. ;-)

If you're going on a trip for fun, and going to rent a room.. keep these words in mind "PENSION HOUSE".

You can find a nice clean, decent room, for very low prices per day. Possibly $7/day or less. (Warning the showers are likely cold water.)

To give you an idea of expenses, I took over 30 people on a rented bus tour of Bohol Island, buying the food, and the entry to a couple of tourist locations for about $120. That's for everything for the day, for 30 people. The beach, 3 tourists sites, bus and driver, food...

If you have family in Cebu, you can live very inexpensively. What is the purpose of your trip? What do you want to do? What style of living do you want?

If you want, drop me a note, and I'll see if I can get you some more answers from my fiancee's cousins in Cebu. I usually chat with them every 1 or 2 days.

Don't listen to anyone else, I have family who work there and they don't earn much.

I have two aunties who are high school teachers, they only get 3000-6000 pesos/month.

My uncle hired a maid and only pays her 2000 pesos/month

Life is hard in the Philippines, but you can get food for cheap.

Buy your food from the local open markets and cook it yourself, cheapest way to eat.

Restaurants are more expensive, it costs about 60 pesos to buy a Big Mac, this is already expensive for most people.

Entertainment - only the richer people usually go the cinemas, etc...

Rent - most share an apartment, and most still live in their parents' house...

Filipinos are very family-oriented and they will do all they can to help each other out.

You must understand that the wealth is not spread evenly in the Philippines. There are the very rich who have condos, houses, etc (like me), and the very poor who live in the slums, shanty houses, etc... Even the middle class I'd say live a hard live in terms of money.

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By the way, I have 3 houses in the Philippines:

1 is our main house, 5 bedrooms + attic + veranda + garage + garden

1 is for rent at 10,000 pesos/month to a lawyer, behind our main house

1 is where my other relatives stay

and my father has purchased lots of land in the province.

And, my father bought me a condo in mandaluyong city :D

Sounds about right to me. Bear in mind they're not stopping in at the 7 -11 for a snickers or driving around in a Civic. They eat rice + one thing every day. They catch food when possible. They drink water or coke (or arak - which is fun juice if you can handle the evil taste) They don't shop at the Gap. They wear flip flops, shorts and a t-shirt. They live in a 2 room dive with 7 people. That kind of lifestyle costs the princely sum of about 40 bucks a month. Do you want to live like that?

Are you planning to go to Cebu? Well, I'm from Cebu myself. I think that staying at a relatives place is probably the most convenient, if not find some cheap hotels to stay in. I really dont know nowadays, economies all messed up. I havent been back to my homeland Cebu for so many years, so I dont got a clue in regards to the pricings over there.

It may be true and it may be false, it depends on what kind of people your talking about. If your talking about people living in average life, 40 USD is insufficient. usually it will reach up to 200USD but that is with a family of 5.

But if your talking about the people living in dump site or the squatters, 40USD is too much for them. (to other people, pls. don't be offend.) Because life in the Philippines gets harder and harder each year because of the people who wants many children but can't support them.

So if you want to live cheap in Philippines, you should know how to cook and to buy the ingredients. There also some instant noodles there and cans if you really want a cheap life in philippines.

GOOD LUCK

Monthly salary (minimum) is around 7500-8500 per month (entry level) so thats roughly about 160USD a month. But standard of living is low too, you can buy a MCDonalds meal for P50 - $1, compared in the US, McDonalds meal is 3 to 4x more expensive.

You can live VERY WELL with $500-$1000 a month (25,000 pesos-50,000). Last year, 5-star hotel costs about 3700 pesos, but there are other more economical hotels in the area.

To live cheap, live in a relative's house buy them groceries once every week average is about $50 or tell them that you are willing to pay rent and electricity ( I dont think they will let you), buy them gifts ( depends on their tastes), pay for gas (if you are to use their car) and pay for the expenses (entire family if you are with them) if you are going out.

But if you want to live on your own, better check with the people who live there which place is cheapest but nice.

Cebu is such a beautiful place, friendly people, honest taxi drivers and dont forget to go to bohol to see the Tarsiers (worlds smallest primate) and the Chocolate Hills!

yes for $40 a month filipino family can survive , but for you i dont think so make it a $100 in cebu maybe you can have fun living there

Err i dont think many people are living your kind of life.

You see, in some places of the Philippines there are abandoned houses and shacks. Living in those places are really poor people called 'squatters'.

Sometimes they are able to find food out and about, and in garbage dumps. Its pretty sad.

The reason why its the 'average' is that poor people in the philippines tend to reproduce quickly, but their offspring die pretty young when they lack food.

The proportion of squatters is high compared to middle class and well-off people. That drags the average living cost down.