Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cebu and Bilbao

For one person, living is cheaper in Cebu: $934 a month against $2,101 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $14,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

44

Cost of Living Index in Cebu
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Cebu Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index

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Cebu

🇵🇭 Philippines

$934

/mo nomad

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,101

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cebu and in Bilbao

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Cebu and in Bilbao actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $934 in Cebu versus $2,101 in Bilbao.

Cebu $934
Bilbao $2,101

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,415 in Cebu versus $3,137 in Bilbao.

Cebu $1,415
Bilbao $3,137

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,896 in Cebu versus $4,172 in Bilbao.

Cebu $1,896
Bilbao $4,172

Living in Cebu costs roughly 56% less than in Bilbao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cebu is 30% below, Bilbao is 57% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.03 ₱190

$20.91 €18.66

-85.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.48 ₱1,473

$69.0 €61.6

-65.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.09 ₱256

$12.14 €10.83

-66.31%

Cappuccino

$2.52 ₱158

$2.50 €2.23

0.80%

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

$1.54 ₱96.9

$2.91 €2.59

-47.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱30.98

$1.73 €1.55

-71.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.79 ₱112

$3.40 €3.03

-47.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 ₱142

$3.27 €2.92

-30.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 ₱122

$1.30 €1.16

50.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 ₱89.7

$1.58 €1.41

-9.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.02 ₱63.8

$1.51 €1.35

-32.45%

Eggs

$2.06 ₱129

$3.32 €2.96

-37.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.81 ₱615

$14.39 €12.85

-31.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.61 ₱289

$8.05 €7.18

-42.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.70 ₱483

$13.25 €11.82

-41.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.31 ₱207

$2.72 €2.43

21.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 ₱90.9

$2.02 €1.80

-28.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$2.61 €2.33

-9.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.54 ₱96.4

$2.38 €2.13

-35.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.36 ₱148

$1.52 €1.36

55.26%

Onion (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$2.41 €2.15

-17.43%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 ₱72.1

$1.21 €1.08

-4.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 ₱42.15

$0.78 €0.70

-14.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.00 ₱188

$6.83 €6.09

-56.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.35 ₱398

$7.78 €6.94

-18.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₱81.9

$1.48 €1.32

-11.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 ₱108

$2.62 €2.34

-33.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.25 ₱15.78

$1.83 €1.63

-86.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.65 ₱793

$50.7 €45.25

-75.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.74 ₱46.32

$5.63 €5.02

-86.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.21 ₱13.11

$0.99 €0.88

-78.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 ₱271

$31.89 €28.46

-86.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 ₱83.5

$1.79 €1.60

-25.70%

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

$21.8K ₱1.4M

$35.0K €31.2K

-37.84%

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

$19.4K ₱1.2M

$30.4K €27.1K

-36.15%

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

$121 ₱7,563

$142 €127

-15.31%

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

$14.45 ₱907

$20.34 €18.15

-28.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.29 ₱1,774

$30.13 €26.89

-6.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.68 ₱2,050

$55.8 €49.81

-41.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.39 ₱401

$15.27 €13.62

-58.15%

Cinema Ticket

$5.46 ₱342

$9.92 €8.86

-44.96%

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

$273 ₱17.1K

$538 €480

-49.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,156 ₱511.5K

$11.5K €10.3K

-29.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.57 ₱3,109

$89.5 €79.9

-44.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.87 ₱1,560

$34.39 €30.69

-27.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$76.6 ₱4,804

$68.7 €61.3

11.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.3 ₱3,717

$127 €114

-53.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$506 ₱31.7K

$1,261 €1,125

-59.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$309 ₱19.4K

$1,054 €941

-70.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,052 ₱66.0K

$2,469 €2,203

-57.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 ₱38.8K

$1,707 €1,523

-63.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,915 ₱182.9K

$5,875 €5,243

-50.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,867 ₱117.1K

$3,675 €3,280

-49.20%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$341 ₱21.4K

$2,385 €2,128

-85.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

2.98

141.61%

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

Last update for Cebu: October 5, 2026

Last update for Bilbao: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cebu

$309 33.5%

Bilbao

$1.1K 50.6% 241% $745

Groceries & Markets

Cebu

$210 22.7%

Bilbao

$271 13% 28.9% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cebu

$163 17.7%

Bilbao

$193 9.3% 18.1% $30

Clothing & Footwear

Cebu

$95 10.2%

Bilbao

$144 6.9% 52.2% $49

Eating Out

Cebu

$88 9.6%

Bilbao

$276 13.2% 212% $187

Sport & Entertainment

Cebu

$44 4.7%

Bilbao

$76 3.6% 73.6% $32

Getting Around

Cebu

$15 1.7%

Bilbao

$69 3.3% 344% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $506 in Cebu and $1,261 in Bilbao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 599% 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: $23.00 in Cebu vs $69.0 in Bilbao for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $210 vs $271 per month, with Cebu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cebu

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🕒 Local time

20:05 8:05 PM

14:05 2:05 PM

6 h behind Cebu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

964,169

346,096

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.42 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 62.72 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.42 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cebu Bilbao 12,000 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Cebu
Bilbao

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

Cebu vs Bilbao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cebu and Bilbao differ by about 125% in total monthly costs ($934 vs $2,101 including rent). Cebu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 599% lower in Bilbao. 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: $506 in Cebu versus $1,261 in Bilbao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $273 in Cebu versus $538 in Bilbao. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 29% higher in Bilbao. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $934 in Cebu versus $2,101 in Bilbao, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cebu but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Cebu 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, Cebu and Bilbao 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 Cebu gentler on the wallet – expenses run 125% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.