Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Novara

For one person, living is cheaper in Novara: $1,483 a month against $2,101 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Novara
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Novara Living Index

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Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,101

/mo nomad

Novara

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,483

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Novara

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,101 in Bilbao versus $1,483 in Novara.

Bilbao $2,101
Novara $1,483

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,158 in Bilbao versus $2,293 in Novara.

Bilbao $3,158
Novara $2,293

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,215 in Bilbao versus $3,103 in Novara.

Bilbao $4,215
Novara $3,103

Living in Bilbao is roughly 42% more expensive than in Novara, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 55% above, Novara 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.59 €20.10

$16.78 €14.92

34.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.6 €65.4

$56.6 €50.3

30.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.16 €10.82

$10.25 €9.12

18.63%

Cappuccino

$2.56 €2.28

$1.74 €1.55

47.13%

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

$3.17 €2.82

$3.46 €3.08

-8.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.91 €1.70

$1.72 €1.53

11.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.31 €2.94

$5.57 €4.96

-40.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.43 €3.05

$5.09 €4.52

-32.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 €1.19

$1.39 €1.24

-3.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.95 €1.74

-17.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 €1.31

$2.88 €2.56

-48.96%

Eggs

$3.35 €2.98

$3.33 €2.96

0.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.44 €13.74

$11.40 €10.14

35.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.25 €7.34

$8.76 €7.79

-5.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.39 €12.80

$13.22 €11.76

8.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 €2.58

$2.53 €2.25

14.62%

Banana (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.65 €1.46

30.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.66 €2.37

$3.41 €3.04

-21.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.64 €2.35

$2.16 €1.92

22.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.64 €1.45

$1.94 €1.73

-15.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.14 €1.02

122.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 €1.14

$1.03 €0.91

24.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.83

$0.75 €0.67

25.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.65 €5.91

$6.23 €5.55

6.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.77 €6.91

$5.58 €4.96

39.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.84 €1.63

-19.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.58 €2.29

$2.28 €2.03

13.16%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.77 €1.58

$1.69 €1.51

4.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$51.4 €45.76

$38.24 €34.01

34.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.66 €5.03

$4.36 €3.87

29.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.00 €0.89

$1.20 €1.06

-16.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.88 €29.24

$34.82 €30.97

-5.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$2.05 €1.82

-12.20%

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

$33.7K €29.9K

$26.9K €23.9K

25.23%

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

$32.0K €28.4K

$33.4K €29.7K

-4.27%

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

$141 €126

$176 €157

-20.00%

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

$20.30 €18.06

$10.41 €9.26

95.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.31 €26.96

$30.24 €26.90

0.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.4 €49.29

$78.3 €69.6

-29.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.19 €13.51

$18.96 €16.86

-19.88%

Cinema Ticket

$10.22 €9.09

$11.39 €10.13

-10.27%

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

$526 €468

$517 €460

1.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.2K

$9,907 €8,813

15.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$104 €92.4

$124 €110

-16.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.05 €32.95

$34.03 €30.27

8.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.5 €66.3

$55.5 €49.40

34.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$143 €127

$139 €123

3.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,267 €1,127

$644 €573

96.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,026 €913

$438 €389

134.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,414 €2,147

$1,048 €932

130.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,694 €1,507

$784 €698

116.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,882 €5,232

$2,850 €2,535

106.43%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,700 €3,291

$1,873 €1,666

97.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,424 €2,156

$2,082 €1,852

16.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

3.62

-17.68%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 18, 2026

Last update for Novara: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1K 48.9%

Novara

$438 29.5% 57.4% $589

Eating Out

Bilbao

$292 13.9%

Novara

$245 16.5% 16.1% $47

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$285 13.6%

Novara

$269 18.1% 5.7% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$192 9.1%

Novara

$217 14.6% 13.2% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$161 7.7%

Novara

$158 10.7% 1.9% $3

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$76 3.6%

Novara

$101 6.8% 33.2% $25

Getting Around

Bilbao

$69 3.3%

Novara

$55 3.7% 20% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,267 in Bilbao and $644 in Novara. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 16% 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 $57.0 in Novara for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $285 vs $269 per month, with Novara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇮🇹 Novara

🕒 Local time

01:17 1:17 AM

Same time as Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

100,910

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bilbao Novara 950 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Novara

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 Novara: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Novara differ by about 42% in total monthly costs ($2,101 vs $1,483 including rent). Novara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 16% 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 $644 in Novara. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $526 in Bilbao versus $517 in Novara. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 6% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,483 in Novara versus $2,101 in Bilbao, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Novara but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Novara 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 Novara 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 Novara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 42% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.