Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Cape Town

For one person, living is cheaper in Cape Town: $1,527 a month against $2,157 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $7,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

104

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Cape Town
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Cape Town Living Index

Jump to prices

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,157

/mo nomad

Cape Town

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,527

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Cape Town

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bilbao and in Cape Town actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,157 in Bilbao versus $1,527 in Cape Town.

Bilbao $2,157
Cape Town $1,527

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,105 in Bilbao versus $2,417 in Cape Town.

Bilbao $3,105
Cape Town $2,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,053 in Bilbao versus $3,306 in Cape Town.

Bilbao $4,053
Cape Town $3,306

Living in Bilbao is roughly 41% more expensive than in Cape Town, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 60% above, Cape Town 13% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.95 €19.54

$12.01 R 198

82.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.7 €64.7

$42.92 R 707

69.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.38 €11.02

$6.15 R 101

101.30%

Cappuccino

$2.65 €2.36

$2.37 R 39.04

11.81%

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

$3.15 €2.81

$1.27 R 20.96

148.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 €1.61

$0.94 R 15.46

92.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.30 €2.94

$2.96 R 48.77

11.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 €2.98

$3.69 R 60.8

-9.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.32 R 21.73

-2.27%

White Bread (500g)

$1.65 €1.47

$1.21 R 19.87

36.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 €1.33

$2.20 R 36.26

-32.27%

Eggs

$3.30 €2.94

$3.10 R 51.1

6.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.64 €13.92

$8.73 R 144

79.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.29 €7.38

$6.89 R 114

20.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.34 €12.77

$9.26 R 153

54.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 €2.56

$1.83 R 30.08

56.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.95 R 32.12

7.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 €2.25

$1.66 R 27.32

51.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.14 R 35.19

20.09%

Potato (1kg)

$1.57 €1.40

$1.58 R 26.01

-0.63%

Onion (1kg)

$2.48 €2.21

$1.47 R 24.29

68.71%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.35 R 22.18

-2.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 €0.78

$1.14 R 18.85

-23.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.61 €5.89

$3.58 R 59.0

84.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.01 €7.13

$6.05 R 99.7

32.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.39 R 22.95

12.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.28

$2.18 R 35.90

17.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.88 €1.67

$1.40 R 23.02

34.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.8 €45.23

$60.8 R 1,001

-16.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.63 €5.01

$0.93 R 15.26

505.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.92

$0.90 R 14.83

14.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.72 €22.01

$4.96 R 81.7

398.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.54 R 25.37

19.48%

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

$33.4K €29.8K

$35.4K R 582.8K

-5.42%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$33.4K R 549.9K

-3.07%

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

$142 €126

$117 R 1,929

21.00%

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

$20.39 €18.16

$25.71 R 424

-20.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.72 €26.46

$39.41 R 649

-24.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.2 €45.55

$51.6 R 850

-0.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.08 €13.43

$11.35 R 187

32.86%

Cinema Ticket

$10.08 €8.98

$8.89 R 146

13.39%

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

$525 €467

$308 R 5,069

70.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.5K €15.6K

$8,141 R 134.2K

115.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €90.6

$57.4 R 946

77.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.90 €32.85

$31.75 R 523

16.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 €67.6

$116 R 1,911

-34.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 €128

$101 R 1,660

42.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,206

$1,047 R 17.2K

29.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,092 €972

$669 R 11.0K

63.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,061 €1,835

$1,861 R 30.7K

10.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,560 €1,389

$1,407 R 23.2K

10.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,729 €5,101

$2,410 R 39.7K

137.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,749 €3,338

$1,570 R 25.9K

138.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,361 €2,102

$1,630 R 26.9K

44.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

10.89

-72.64%

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

Last update for Bilbao: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cape Town: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 50.6%

Cape Town

$669 43.8% 38.7% $423

Eating Out

Bilbao

$288 13.3%

Cape Town

$174 11.4% 39.5% $114

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$284 13.2%

Cape Town

$223 14.6% 21.4% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$192 8.9%

Cape Town

$182 11.9% 5% $9.6

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$161 7.5%

Cape Town

$138 9% 14.7% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$71 3.3%

Cape Town

$69 4.5% 2.7% $1.9

Getting Around

Bilbao

$69 3.2%

Cape Town

$72 4.7% 3.9% $2.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,355 in Bilbao and $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 45% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $73 in Bilbao vs $43 in Cape Town for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $284 vs $223 per month, with Cape Town cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇿🇦 Cape Town

🕒 Local time

06:51 6:51 AM

07:51 7:51 AM

1 h ahead of Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

3,740,026 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bilbao Cape Town 8,850 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Cape Town

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

Bilbao vs Cape Town: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,157 in Bilbao and $1,527 in Cape Town, so Cape Town is about 29% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 45% higher in Bilbao, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,355 in Bilbao versus $1,047 in Cape Town. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $525 in Bilbao versus $308 in Cape Town. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cape Town is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

It comes down to priorities – Cape Town wins on affordability, Bilbao on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.