Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Southend-on-Sea

For one person, living is cheaper in Bilbao: $2,129 a month against $2,289 in Southend-on-Sea, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Southend-on-Sea outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
112

Cost of Living Index in Southend-on-Sea
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Southend-on-Sea Living Index

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Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,129

/mo nomad

Southend-on-Sea

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,289

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Southend-on-Sea

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 Southend-on-Sea actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,129 in Bilbao versus $2,289 in Southend-on-Sea.

Bilbao $2,129
Southend-on-Sea $2,289

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,159 in Bilbao versus $3,534 in Southend-on-Sea.

Bilbao $3,159
Southend-on-Sea $3,534

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,190 in Bilbao versus $4,779 in Southend-on-Sea.

Bilbao $4,190
Southend-on-Sea $4,779

Living in Bilbao costs roughly 7% less than in Southend-on-Sea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 58% above, Southend-on-Sea 70% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.39 €19.92

$19.89 £14.92

12.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.3 €63.4

$83.2 £62.5

-14.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.25 €10.90

$9.17 £6.88

33.59%

Cappuccino

$2.55 €2.27

$4.37 £3.28

-41.65%

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

$3.03 €2.70

$2.65 £1.99

14.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.91 £1.44

-1.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 €2.96

$7.05 £5.29

-52.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 €3.04

$4.64 £3.48

-26.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.46 £1.10

-11.64%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.40 £1.05

12.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.35 £1.01

9.63%

Eggs

$3.31 €2.95

$4.13 £3.10

-19.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.51 €13.80

$7.82 £5.87

98.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.99 €7.11

$6.51 £4.89

22.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 €12.87

$15.04 £11.28

-3.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$3.02 £2.26

-7.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 €1.93

$1.35 £1.01

60.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.32

$2.01 £1.51

29.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.60 £1.95

-1.92%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.78 £1.33

-8.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$1.83 £1.37

36.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 €1.13

$0.89 £0.67

42.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 €0.80

$1.58 £1.18

-43.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.60 €5.88

$22.06 £16.55

-70.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.00 €7.12

$10.13 £7.60

-21.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$3.32 £2.49

-55.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 €2.23

$3.29 £2.47

-24.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.57

$2.72 £2.04

-35.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.4 €44.87

$46.26 £34.70

9.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.54 €4.93

$5.77 £4.33

-3.99%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.91

$2.70 £2.03

-61.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.65 €29.04

$48.18 £36.15

-32.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.61

$2.06 £1.54

-12.14%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$38.1K £28.6K

-8.79%

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

$30.7K €27.3K

$40.5K £30.4K

-24.30%

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

$142 €127

$177 £133

-19.50%

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

$20.57 €18.29

$18.31 £13.74

12.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.26 €26.92

$42.18 £31.65

-28.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 €48.96

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.24 €13.55

Cinema Ticket

$9.97 €8.87

$3.92 £2.94

154.34%

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

$521 €463

$1,959 £1,470

-73.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.1K

$19.6K £14.7K

-42.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.4

$85.1 £63.8

23.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.72 €33.55

$46.31 £34.74

-18.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.7 €67.3

$92.7 £69.6

-18.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 €130

$105 £78.6

38.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,261 €1,121

$1,359 £1,020

-7.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,057 €940

$1,247 £935

-15.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,392 €2,127

$2,334 £1,751

2.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,689 €1,503

$2,372 £1,780

-28.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,657 €5,032

$4,640 £3,481

21.91%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,688 €3,281

$3,970 £2,978

-7.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,394 €2,129

$3,700 £2,776

-35.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

5.04

-40.87%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 11, 2026

Last update for Southend-on-Sea: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 49.7%

Southend-on-Sea

$1.2K 54.5% 17.9% $190

Eating Out

Bilbao

$290 13.6%

Southend-on-Sea

$302 13.2% 4.2% $12

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$282 13.3%

Southend-on-Sea

$271 11.8% 4% $11

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$193 9.1%

Southend-on-Sea

$237 10.4% 22.9% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$164 7.7%

Southend-on-Sea

$148 6.5% 9.6% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$75 3.5%

Southend-on-Sea

$7.8 * 0.3% 89.5% $67

Getting Around

Bilbao

$68 3.2%

Southend-on-Sea

$76 3.3% 12.1% $8.2

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 $1,261 in Bilbao and $1,359 in Southend-on-Sea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Southend-on-Sea pays 55% 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: $71.0 in Bilbao vs $83.0 in Southend-on-Sea. Groceries flip the comparison at $282 vs $271, with Southend-on-Sea cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇬🇧 Southend-on-Sea

🕒 Local time

06:27 6:27 AM

05:27 5:27 AM

1 h behind Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

181,808

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Bilbao Southend-on-Sea 960 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Southend-on-Sea

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 Southend-on-Sea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Southend-on-Sea differ by about 8% in total monthly costs ($2,129 vs $2,289 including rent). Bilbao is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 55% lower in Southend-on-Sea. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,261 in Bilbao versus $1,359 in Southend-on-Sea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $521 in Bilbao versus $1,959 in Southend-on-Sea. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Southend-on-Sea pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,129 in Bilbao versus $2,289 in Southend-on-Sea, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Bilbao but tight or insufficient in Southend-on-Sea. 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 Southend-on-Sea 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 8% less than in Southend-on-Sea. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.