Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Cebu

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $2,101 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index

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Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,101

/mo nomad

Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Cebu

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 Cebu actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,101 in Bilbao versus $934 in Cebu.

Bilbao $2,101
Cebu $934

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,137 in Bilbao versus $1,415 in Cebu.

Bilbao $3,137
Cebu $1,415

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,172 in Bilbao versus $1,896 in Cebu.

Bilbao $4,172
Cebu $1,896

Living in Bilbao is roughly 125% more expensive than in Cebu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bilbao is 57% above, Cebu is 30% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.91 €18.66

$3.03 ₱190

590.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.0 €61.6

$23.48 ₱1,473

193.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.14 €10.83

$4.09 ₱256

196.82%

Cappuccino

$2.50 €2.23

$2.52 ₱158

-0.79%

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

$2.91 €2.59

$1.54 ₱96.9

88.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.49 ₱30.98

253.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.03

$1.79 ₱112

89.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 €2.92

$2.26 ₱142

44.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.95 ₱122

-33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.43 ₱89.7

10.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$1.02 ₱63.8

48.04%

Eggs

$3.32 €2.96

$2.06 ₱129

61.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.39 €12.85

$9.81 ₱615

46.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.05 €7.18

$4.61 ₱289

74.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.25 €11.82

$7.70 ₱483

72.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 €2.43

$3.31 ₱207

-17.82%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.45 ₱90.9

39.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.33

$2.36 ₱148

10.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.13

$1.54 ₱96.4

54.55%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 €1.36

$2.36 ₱148

-35.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.41 €2.15

$1.99 ₱125

21.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 €1.08

$1.15 ₱72.1

5.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.70

$0.67 ₱42.15

16.42%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.83 €6.09

$3.00 ₱188

127.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.94

$6.35 ₱398

22.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.31 ₱81.9

12.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.34

$1.73 ₱108

51.45%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.83 €1.63

$0.25 ₱15.78

632.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.7 €45.25

$12.65 ₱793

300.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.63 €5.02

$0.74 ₱46.32

660.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$0.21 ₱13.11

371.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.89 €28.46

$4.33 ₱271

636.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.33 ₱83.5

34.59%

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

$35.0K €31.2K

$21.8K ₱1.4M

60.87%

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

$30.4K €27.1K

$19.4K ₱1.2M

56.62%

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

$142 €127

$121 ₱7,563

18.08%

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

$20.34 €18.15

$14.45 ₱907

40.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.13 €26.89

$28.29 ₱1,774

6.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 €49.81

$32.68 ₱2,050

70.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.27 €13.62

$6.39 ₱401

138.97%

Cinema Ticket

$9.92 €8.86

$5.46 ₱342

81.68%

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

$538 €480

$273 ₱17.1K

96.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K €10.3K

$8,156 ₱511.5K

41.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.5 €79.9

$49.57 ₱3,109

80.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.39 €30.69

$24.87 ₱1,560

38.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.7 €61.3

$76.6 ₱4,804

-10.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 €114

$59.3 ₱3,717

115.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,261 €1,125

$506 ₱31.7K

149.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,054 €941

$309 ₱19.4K

240.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,469 €2,203

$1,052 ₱66.0K

134.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,707 €1,523

$619 ₱38.8K

175.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,875 €5,243

$2,915 ₱182.9K

101.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,675 €3,280

$1,867 ₱117.1K

96.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,385 €2,128

$341 ₱21.4K

599.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

7.2

-58.61%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 5, 2026

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 50.6%

Cebu

$309 33.5% 70.7% $745

Eating Out

Bilbao

$276 13.2%

Cebu

$88 9.6% 67.9% $187

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$271 13%

Cebu

$210 22.7% 22.4% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$193 9.3%

Cebu

$163 17.7% 15.3% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$144 6.9%

Cebu

$95 10.2% 34.3% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$76 3.6%

Cebu

$44 4.7% 42.4% $32

Getting Around

Bilbao

$69 3.3%

Cebu

$15 1.7% 77.5% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,261 in Bilbao and $506 in Cebu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 599% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $69.0 in Bilbao vs $23.00 in Cebu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $271 vs $210 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇵🇭 Cebu

🕒 Local time

07:25 7:25 AM

13:25 1:25 PM

6 h ahead of Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

964,169

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.35 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bilbao Cebu 12,000 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Cebu

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 Cebu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Cebu differ by about 125% in total monthly costs ($2,101 vs $934 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 599% 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: $1,261 in Bilbao versus $506 in Cebu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $538 in Bilbao versus $273 in Cebu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 29% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $934 in Cebu versus $2,101 in Bilbao, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

Safety-wise, Bilbao and Cebu are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 125% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.