Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Lisbon

For one person, living costs are similar in Bilbao and in Lisbon: $2,129 and $2,223 a month, rent and utilities included.

103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
107

Cost of Living Index in Lisbon
Learn more

Lisbon Living Index

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Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,129

/mo nomad

Lisbon

🇵🇹 Portugal

$2,223

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Lisbon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,129 in Bilbao versus $2,223 in Lisbon.

Bilbao $2,129
Lisbon $2,223

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,159 in Bilbao versus $3,271 in Lisbon.

Bilbao $3,159
Lisbon $3,271

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,190 in Bilbao versus $4,319 in Lisbon.

Bilbao $4,190
Lisbon $4,319

Living in Bilbao costs roughly 4% less than in Lisbon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 58% above, Lisbon 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.39 €19.91

$16.50 €14.67

35.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.3 €63.4

$61.3 €54.5

16.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.25 €10.89

$11.27 €10.02

8.70%

Cappuccino

$2.55 €2.27

$3.06 €2.72

-16.67%

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

$3.03 €2.69

$2.26 €2.01

34.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.73 €1.54

9.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 €2.96

$3.39 €3.02

-1.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 €3.03

$3.40 €3.02

0.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.12 €1.00

15.18%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.86 €1.65

-15.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.53 €1.36

-3.27%

Eggs

$3.31 €2.95

$3.96 €3.53

-16.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.51 €13.80

$12.76 €11.35

21.55%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.99 €7.11

$7.90 €7.02

1.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 €12.87

$16.97 €15.09

-14.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$2.27 €2.02

23.35%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.75 €1.55

23.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.32

$1.85 €1.64

41.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.57 €2.28

-0.78%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.86 €1.65

-12.37%

Onion (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$2.02 €1.80

23.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.44 €1.28

-11.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 €0.80

$0.82 €0.73

9.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.60 €5.87

$6.56 €5.83

0.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.00 €7.12

$5.62 €5.00

42.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.28 €1.14

15.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 €2.23

$2.07 €1.84

20.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.57

$2.35 €2.09

-25.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.4 €44.86

$44.18 €39.29

14.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.54 €4.93

$3.99 €3.55

38.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.91

$1.09 €0.97

-5.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.65 €29.04

$16.64 €14.80

96.21%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.61

$2.28 €2.03

-20.61%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$33.7K €30.0K

3.15%

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

$30.7K €27.3K

$39.3K €34.9K

-21.88%

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

$142 €127

$167 €149

-15.02%

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

$20.57 €18.29

$18.80 €16.72

9.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.26 €26.92

$33.09 €29.43

-8.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 €48.96

$46.01 €40.92

19.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.24 €13.55

$19.19 €17.07

-20.58%

Cinema Ticket

$9.97 €8.87

$9.84 €8.75

1.32%

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

$521 €463

$677 €602

-23.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.1K

$16.9K €15.0K

-32.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.4

$101 €90.0

3.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.72 €33.55

$45.76 €40.70

-17.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.7 €67.3

$100.0 €88.9

-24.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 €129

$123 €109

18.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,261 €1,121

$1,614 €1,435

-21.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,057 €940

$1,197 €1,065

-11.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,392 €2,127

$2,862 €2,545

-16.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,689 €1,503

$1,990 €1,770

-15.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,657 €5,031

$7,577 €6,739

-25.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,688 €3,280

$4,307 €3,831

-14.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,394 €2,129

$1,588 €1,412

50.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

3.85

-22.60%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 11, 2026

Last update for Lisbon: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 49.7%

Lisbon

$1.2K 53.9% 13.2% $140

Eating Out

Bilbao

$290 13.6%

Lisbon

$242 10.9% 16.4% $47

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$282 13.3%

Lisbon

$269 12.1% 4.6% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$193 9.1%

Lisbon

$219 9.9% 13.6% $26

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$164 7.7%

Lisbon

$166 7.5% 1.6% $2.6

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$75 3.5%

Lisbon

$66 3% 12.4% $9.3

Getting Around

Bilbao

$68 3.2%

Lisbon

$63 2.8% 7.6% $5.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,261 in Bilbao and $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 51% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $71.0 in Bilbao vs $61.0 in Lisbon for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $282 vs $269 per month, with Lisbon cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇵🇹 Lisbon

🕒 Local time

01:33 1:33 AM

00:33 12:33 AM

1 h behind Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

545,923 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Bilbao Lisbon 730 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
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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 Lisbon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Lisbon differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($2,129 vs $2,223 including rent). Bilbao is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 51% 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 $1,614 in Lisbon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $521 in Bilbao versus $677 in Lisbon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Lisbon pay roughly 5% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,129 in Bilbao versus $2,223 in Lisbon, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Bilbao but tight or insufficient in Lisbon. The gap between the two cities makes Bilbao 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 Lisbon 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 Bilbao gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Lisbon. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.