I don't understand how some foreigners spend over 200,000 to 300,000 pesos a month.

I don't understand how some foreigners spend over 200,000 to 300,000 pesos a month.

Hello, everyone!

Lately I keep seeing posts saying that living in the Philippines has gotten (?) expensive. Especially foreigners who claim you need 200,000, 300,000, even 400,000 pesos a month to live comfortably at a Western standard of living. There's also a lot of talk that you can't "live like a king" in the Philippines anymore unless you spend thousands of dollars a month.

Every time I read these posts, the same question comes up. Where do they spend all that money? What exactly does "living like a king" mean to these people?

I'm an American from Texas, and I live in Metro Manila now. I've also lived in another Southeast Asian country, Thailand, and there I learned that knowing how to weigh the value of your money makes a huge difference in quality of life. I don't think I'm particularly stingy, and I don't try to buy the cheapest of everything. I'm happy to spend money on things I enjoy, and I don't believe you have to give up comfort to save a few pesos. But I do believe it matters to know how you live, compare alternatives, and check whether the extra money you spend is worth it.

So instead of arguing over hypothetical budgets and tossing out random numbers, I tracked my actual living expenses for this October. As of writing this, including an estimate for motorcycle fuel, the total is roughly 85,000 pesos, and unless something unusual happens, I expect to finish the month under 100,000 pesos. This is a tentative figure, not a final amount after month-end reconciliation, and one-time purchases like furniture and appliances are excluded.

For reference, rent including maintenance fees is 27,000 pesos, internet is 1,699 pesos, and my gym membership is 3,650 pesos. The electricity bill is about 13,727 pesos, which gives a fairly good picture of my usual usage. The rest goes to groceries, dining out, delivery, transportation, and other household supplies.

There's a reason my electricity bill is relatively high. I work remotely, so I'm at home most of the day, and I run the air conditioner a lot. This is a tropical country, and the heat and humidity are uncomfortable. I have no intention of sitting in a stuffy condo just to save a few thousand pesos on electricity. Could I cut back on the AC to lower the bill? Of course. But why would I, when I can comfortably afford to pay for that comfort?

That's a deliberate expense because it directly improves my daily quality of life. I'm not trying to minimize every expense or squeeze out every last peso. If I believe an additional cost is justified, I'll pay it, and keeping my home comfortable is one of those.

Before anyone assumes I live in a run-down 28-square-meter box, subsisting on street food and giving up basic comforts, let me explain what my life actually looks like.

I live in a fully furnished studio condo of about 47 square meters (one bedroom) in Newport, Pasay. It has a separate bedroom, a proper kitchen, a comfortable living room, two split-type air conditioners, and a location that suits me well. I'm not living in a rundown apartment, and I don't feel like I'm missing anything essential. Could I rent a much bigger condo in Makati or BGC for over 100,000 pesos? Of course. But why would I, when I'm already comfortable? What would the roughly 70,000 pesos extra per month actually give me that's meaningful?

I think this is where many people misunderstand the concept of value. A more expensive home isn't necessarily a better home for your situation. Across Metro Manila there are plenty of decent apartments, condos, and townhouses that don't charge premium gated-community prices. Depending on the neighborhood, you can find larger units with several bedrooms, a proper kitchen, and split-type inverter air conditioners without paying six figures a month.

Speaking of air conditioning, I really don't understand people who treat central air as an absolute necessity. A properly sized and maintained split-type inverter system cools a room very effectively, and being able to control the temperature separately can even be an advantage. If you prefer central air, that's perfectly fine, but it's a personal preference, not a universal requirement for a comfortable home.

Food follows the same logic. I grew up eating well in Texas, and moving to the Philippines hasn't changed that. Back home, I'd send money to my grandmother and ask her to shop at Walmart or H-E-B for me. I bought ribeye steaks, real maple syrup, brioche, butter, and other ingredients I liked. Here, I buy pretty much the same things.

I regularly buy imported groceries at places like S&R. I cook USDA ribeye steaks at home, make my own breakfast, buy imported ingredients, order food delivery, and when I'm in the mood, eat out at restaurants like Longhorn Steakhouse. I haven't suddenly switched to instant noodles and canned sardines to meet a budget.

In September I spent about 374 dollars on groceries, and a lot of what I bought in September was still being used in October. This month I mostly stocked up on perishables and household essentials, and I also filled the freezer with steaks and bought more imported ingredients. I think this is one thing people overlook when they talk about grocery costs: you don't eat everything you buy in the same month.

When you buy several kilos of meat, cleaning supplies, laundry products, or pantry staples, they can last weeks or months. Buying in bulk can make one month's spending look unusually high, but it can reduce the money you need to spend in the following months.

And yes, imported goods can be more expensive in the Philippines. I understand that. Shipping maple syrup from Canada to Texas involves different logistics than shipping it to the Philippines and distributing it here. International freight, duties and taxes, distribution, and retailer margins all affect the final price. I know those costs, and I'm happy to pay them because I like those products. Even with that premium, my total cost of living is nowhere near the amount some foreigners insist is essential.

One of the things people underestimate most in Metro Manila, and in the Philippines generally, is what I call the "time tax." Traffic, commuting, errands, coordinating deliveries, and inefficient bureaucratic processes can eat an enormous amount of time even for relatively simple tasks. So naturally people want to buy that time back with money.

That's not wrong at all. I do it too. Sometimes I order food because I don't feel like cooking, and sometimes I have groceries delivered because I don't want to sit in traffic to pick up a few items. If convenience is worth the price, I'm happy to pay for it.

But you should know what you're actually buying. When you order every meal in, you're paying someone else to cook and deliver it. When you hire a household helper, you're paying someone else to clean, do laundry, and handle other chores. When you rely on ride-hailing services, you're paying for someone else's vehicle, labor, and time. You're buying convenience. You're outsourcing responsibility and using that time for something else.

And again, that alone isn't wrong. The problem is when people build their entire way of life…