Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Istanbul

For one person, living is cheaper in Istanbul: $1,526 a month against $2,101 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
Learn more

Bilbao Living Index
74

Cost of Living Index in Istanbul
Learn more

Istanbul Living Index

Jump to prices

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,101

/mo nomad

Istanbul

🇹🇷 Turkey

$1,526

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Istanbul

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,101 in Bilbao versus $1,526 in Istanbul.

Bilbao $2,101
Istanbul $1,526

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,137 in Bilbao versus $2,399 in Istanbul.

Bilbao $3,137
Istanbul $2,399

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,172 in Bilbao versus $3,272 in Istanbul.

Bilbao $4,172
Istanbul $3,272

Living in Bilbao is roughly 38% more expensive than in Istanbul, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 57% above, Istanbul 14% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.91 €18.66

$11.88 ₺585

76.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.0 €61.6

$55.1 ₺2,714

25.21%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.14 €10.83

$9.14 ₺450

32.82%

Cappuccino

$2.50 €2.23

$4.24 ₺209

-41.04%

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

$2.91 €2.59

$1.75 ₺86.0

66.29%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.55

$0.54 ₺26.83

220.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.40 €3.03

$4.69 ₺231

-27.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 €2.92

$5.97 ₺294

-45.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.26 ₺62.1

3.17%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 €1.41

$0.95 ₺46.81

66.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 €1.35

$2.31 ₺114

-34.63%

Eggs

$3.32 €2.96

$2.47 ₺122

34.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.39 €12.85

$10.55 ₺520

36.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.05 €7.18

$5.60 ₺276

43.75%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.25 €11.82

$21.21 ₺1,045

-37.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 €2.43

$1.93 ₺95.1

40.93%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.29 ₺113

-11.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.33

$1.28 ₺63.1

103.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.13

$1.84 ₺90.8

29.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.52 €1.36

$0.67 ₺32.86

126.87%

Onion (1kg)

$2.41 €2.15

$0.59 ₺29.31

308.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 €1.08

$1.33 ₺65.4

-9.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.70

$0.59 ₺29.10

32.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.83 €6.09

$2.36 ₺116

189.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.94

$13.47 ₺664

-42.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$2.42 ₺119

-38.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.34

$3.54 ₺174

-25.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.83 €1.63

$0.83 ₺40.64

120.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.7 €45.25

$66.5 ₺3,273

-23.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.63 €5.02

$1.35 ₺66.6

317.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 €0.88

$0.85 ₺42.05

16.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$31.89 €28.46

$10.86 ₺535

193.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.47 ₺72.3

21.77%

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

$35.0K €31.2K

$51.6K ₺2.5M

-32.18%

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

$30.4K €27.1K

$44.4K ₺2.2M

-31.65%

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

$142 €127

$89.2 ₺4,395

59.58%

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

$20.34 €18.15

$11.60 ₺572

75.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.13 €26.89

$16.10 ₺793

87.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.8 €49.81

$77.3 ₺3,805

-27.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.27 €13.62

$22.66 ₺1,116

-32.61%

Cinema Ticket

$9.92 €8.86

$8.34 ₺411

18.94%

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

$538 €480

$974 ₺48.0K

-44.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K €10.3K

$25.8K ₺1.3M

-55.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.5 €79.9

$52.7 ₺2,597

69.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.39 €30.69

$39.16 ₺1,929

-12.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.7 €61.3

$103 ₺5,083

-33.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$127 €114

$96.6 ₺4,759

31.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,261 €1,125

$994 ₺49.0K

26.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,054 €941

$629 ₺31.0K

67.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,469 €2,203

$2,024 ₺99.7K

21.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,707 €1,523

$1,155 ₺56.9K

47.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,875 €5,243

$3,160 ₺155.7K

85.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,675 €3,280

$1,838 ₺90.5K

99.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,385 €2,128

$1,203 ₺59.3K

98.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

41.09

-92.75%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 5, 2026

Last update for Istanbul: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 50.6%

Istanbul

$629 41.2% 40.3% $425

Eating Out

Bilbao

$276 13.2%

Istanbul

$218 14.3% 21% $58

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$271 13%

Istanbul

$264 17.3% 2.7% $7.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$193 9.3%

Istanbul

$117 7.7% 39.4% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$144 6.9%

Istanbul

$131 8.6% 8.9% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$76 3.6%

Istanbul

$94 6.1% 24.1% $18

Getting Around

Bilbao

$69 3.3%

Istanbul

$75 4.9% 9.9% $6.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,261 in Bilbao and $994 in Istanbul. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 98% 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 $55.0 in Istanbul for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $271 vs $264 per month, with Istanbul cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇹🇷 Istanbul

🕒 Local time

10:28 10:28 AM

11:28 11:28 AM

1 h ahead of Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

15,701,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkish Lira TRY ₺

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 TRY = 2.03 USD

100 TRY = 1.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TRY, 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).

Turkish Lira exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 49.26 TRY (100 TRY = 2.03 USD). 1 EUR = 55.25 TRY (100 TRY = 1.81 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bilbao Istanbul 2,630 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Istanbul

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 Istanbul: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Istanbul differ by about 38% in total monthly costs ($2,101 vs $1,526 including rent). Istanbul is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 98% 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 $994 in Istanbul. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $538 in Bilbao versus $974 in Istanbul. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 3% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,526 in Istanbul versus $2,101 in Bilbao, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Istanbul but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Istanbul 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 Istanbul 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 Istanbul gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.