Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Mahé

For one person, living is cheaper in Mahé: $1,773 a month against $2,101 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
Learn more

Bilbao Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Mahé
Learn more

Mahé Living Index

Jump to prices

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,101

/mo nomad

Mahé

🇸🇨 Seychelles

$1,773

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Mahé

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,101 in Bilbao versus $1,773 in Mahé.

Bilbao $2,101
Mahé $1,773

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,158 in Bilbao versus $2,601 in Mahé.

Bilbao $3,158
Mahé $2,601

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,215 in Bilbao versus $3,429 in Mahé.

Bilbao $4,215
Mahé $3,429

Living in Bilbao is roughly 19% more expensive than in Mahé, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 55% above, Mahé 31% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.59 €20.10

$17.59 SCR 255

28.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.6 €65.4

$106 SCR 1,546

-30.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 €10.82

$5.73 SCR 83.2

112.22%

Cappuccino

$2.56 €2.28

$6.59 SCR 95.7

-61.15%

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

$3.17 €2.82

$1.65 SCR 24.00

92.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 €1.70

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.31 €2.94

$13.03 SCR 189

-74.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.05

$9.09 SCR 132

-62.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 €1.19

$1.56 SCR 22.72

-14.10%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.13 SCR 16.46

42.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.86 SCR 27.04

-20.97%

Eggs

$3.35 €2.98

$4.11 SCR 59.7

-18.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.44 €13.74

$15.85 SCR 230

-2.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.25 €7.34

$8.18 SCR 119

0.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.39 €12.80

$12.63 SCR 183

13.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 €2.58

$2.11 SCR 30.59

37.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 €2.37

$2.29 SCR 33.30

16.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.64 €2.35

$6.54 SCR 95.0

-59.63%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 €1.45

$1.09 SCR 15.82

50.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.09 SCR 15.84

133.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.04 SCR 15.14

23.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.83

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.65 €5.91

$14.54 SCR 211

-54.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.77 €6.91

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 €2.29

$2.20 SCR 31.96

17.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.77 €1.58

$0.75 SCR 10.83

136.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$51.4 €45.76

$35.49 SCR 515

44.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.66 €5.03

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.00 €0.89

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 €29.24

$14.42 SCR 210

128.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.53 SCR 22.17

17.65%

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

$33.7K €29.9K

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

$32.0K €28.4K

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

$141 €126

$50.0 SCR 727

182.15%

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

$20.30 €18.06

$21.17 SCR 307

-4.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.31 €26.96

$108 SCR 1,574

-72.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.4 €49.29

$53.1 SCR 772

4.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.19 €13.51

Cinema Ticket

$10.22 €9.09

$6.50 SCR 94.5

57.23%

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

$526 €468

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.4

$30.20 SCR 439

244.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.05 €32.95

$12.25 SCR 178

202.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 €66.3

$48.21 SCR 700

54.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 €127

$61.2 SCR 889

133.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,267 €1,127

$853 SCR 12.4K

48.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 €913

$850 SCR 12.3K

20.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,414 €2,147

$1,757 SCR 25.5K

37.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,694 €1,507

$1,083 SCR 15.7K

56.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,882 €5,232

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,700 €3,291

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,424 €2,156

$857 SCR 12.4K

182.99%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 18, 2026

Last update for Mahé: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1K 48.9%

Mahé

$850 47.9% 17.2% $176

Eating Out

Bilbao

$292 13.9%

Mahé

$327 * 18.4% 12.1% $35

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$285 13.6%

Mahé

$244 * 13.7% 14.6% $42

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$192 9.1%

Mahé

$180 10.1% 6.4% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$161 7.7%

Mahé

$68 3.9% 57.6% $93

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$76 3.6%

Mahé

$66 3.7% 12.8% $9.7

Getting Around

Bilbao

$69 3.3%

Mahé

$38 * 2.2% 44.4% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,267 in Bilbao and $853 in Mahé. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 183% 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: $74.0 in Bilbao vs $106 in Mahé. Groceries flip the comparison at $285 vs $244, with Mahé cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇸🇨 Mahé

🕒 Local time

05:17 5:17 AM

07:17 7:17 AM

2 h ahead of Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

78,539

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Seychellois Rupee SCR ₨

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SCR = 6.88 USD

100 SCR = 6.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SCR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Seychellois Rupee exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 14.52 SCR (100 SCR = 6.88 USD). 1 EUR = 16.33 SCR (100 SCR = 6.12 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bilbao Mahé 7,910 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Mahé

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 Mahé: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Mahé differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($2,101 vs $1,773 including rent). Mahé is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 183% 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: $1,267 in Bilbao versus $853 in Mahé. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 17% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,101 per month in Bilbao versus $1,773 in Mahé – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,773 in Mahé versus $2,101 in Bilbao, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Mahé but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Mahé 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 Mahé 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 Mahé gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.