Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bilbao and Stirling

For one person, living costs are similar in Bilbao and in Stirling: $2,129 and $2,088 a month, rent and utilities included.

103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index
102

Cost of Living Index in Stirling
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Stirling Living Index

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Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,129

/mo nomad

Stirling

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,088

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bilbao and in Stirling

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,129 in Bilbao versus $2,088 in Stirling.

Bilbao $2,129
Stirling $2,088

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,159 in Bilbao versus $3,217 in Stirling.

Bilbao $3,159
Stirling $3,217

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,190 in Bilbao versus $4,347 in Stirling.

Bilbao $4,190
Stirling $4,347

Living in Bilbao is roughly 2% more expensive than in Stirling, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bilbao 58% above, Stirling 55% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.39 €19.92

$19.80 £14.86

13.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.3 €63.4

$93.8 £70.4

-24.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.25 €10.90

$10.54 £7.91

16.22%

Cappuccino

$2.55 €2.27

$4.66 £3.50

-45.28%

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

$3.03 €2.70

$2.45 £1.83

23.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.89 £1.42

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 €2.96

$5.96 £4.47

-44.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.41 €3.04

$4.53 £3.40

-24.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.36 £1.02

-5.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.58 €1.41

$1.36 £1.02

16.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.91 £1.43

-22.51%

Eggs

$3.31 €2.95

$3.52 £2.64

-5.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.51 €13.80

$8.85 £6.64

75.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.99 €7.11

$7.63 £5.72

4.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.47 €12.87

$6.74 £5.06

114.69%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 €2.49

$2.96 £2.22

-5.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.16 €1.93

$1.34 £1.01

61.19%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.32

$2.71 £2.03

-3.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.55 €2.27

$2.58 £1.93

-1.16%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.63 £1.22

Onion (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$1.44 £1.08

73.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.03 £0.77

23.30%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 €0.80

$1.43 £1.07

-37.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.60 €5.88

$21.77 £16.33

-69.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.00 €7.12

$10.91 £8.18

-26.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$2.76 £2.07

-46.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 €2.23

$2.98 £2.23

-16.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 €1.57

$6.17 £4.63

-71.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.4 €44.87

$75.6 £56.7

-33.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.54 €4.93

$3.95 £2.96

40.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.03 €0.91

$2.44 £1.83

-57.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.65 €29.04

$23.54 £17.66

38.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.81 €1.61

$2.00 £1.50

-9.50%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$38.2K £28.6K

-9.02%

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

$30.7K €27.3K

$39.9K £29.9K

-23.01%

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

$142 €127

$274 £206

-48.14%

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

$20.57 €18.29

$15.17 £11.38

35.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.26 €26.92

$39.10 £29.33

-22.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.0 €48.96

$31.86 £23.90

72.76%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.24 €13.55

$16.57 £12.43

-8.03%

Cinema Ticket

$9.97 €8.87

$8.96 £6.72

11.27%

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

$521 €463

$1,729 £1,297

-69.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.4K €10.1K

$23.0K £17.3K

-50.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$105 €93.4

$95.4 £71.6

10.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.72 €33.55

$36.37 £27.28

3.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.7 €67.3

$94.2 £70.7

-19.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 €130

$53.0 £39.73

174.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,261 €1,121

$1,042 £782

21.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,057 €940

$914 £686

15.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,392 €2,127

$2,379 £1,785

0.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,689 €1,503

$1,714 £1,286

-1.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,657 €5,032

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,688 €3,281

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,394 €2,129

$3,411 £2,559

-29.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.98

5.11

-41.68%

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

Last update for Bilbao: October 11, 2026

Last update for Stirling: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bilbao

$1.1K 49.7%

Stirling

$914 43.8% 13.5% $143

Eating Out

Bilbao

$290 13.6%

Stirling

$302 14.5% 4.3% $13

Groceries & Markets

Bilbao

$282 13.3%

Stirling

$251 12% 11.1% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bilbao

$193 9.1%

Stirling

$329 15.8% 70.2% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Bilbao

$164 7.7%

Stirling

$126 6% 23.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Bilbao

$75 3.5%

Stirling

$50 2.4% 33.6% $25

Getting Around

Bilbao

$68 3.2%

Stirling

$116 5.6% 70.7% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,261 in Bilbao and $1,042 in Stirling. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stirling pays 42% 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 $94.0 in Stirling. Groceries flip the comparison at $282 vs $251, with Stirling cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🇬🇧 Stirling

🕒 Local time

18:45 6:45 PM

17:45 5:45 PM

1 h behind Bilbao

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,096

37,800

💱 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 Stirling 1,430 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bilbao
Stirling

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 Stirling: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bilbao and Stirling differ by about 2% in total monthly costs ($2,129 vs $2,088 including rent). Stirling is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 42% lower in Stirling. 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 $1,042 in Stirling. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $521 in Bilbao versus $1,729 in Stirling. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 12% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,088 in Stirling versus $2,129 in Bilbao, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Stirling but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Stirling 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 Stirling 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 Stirling gentler on the wallet – expenses run 2% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.