Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Estepona and San Pawl Il-bahar

For one person, living is cheaper in San Pawl Il-bahar: $1,697 a month against $1,807 in Estepona, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Estepona
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Estepona Living Index
83

Cost of Living Index in San Pawl Il-bahar
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San Pawl Il-bahar Living Index

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Estepona

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,807

/mo nomad

San Pawl Il-bahar

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,697

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Estepona and in San Pawl Il-bahar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,807 in Estepona versus $1,697 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Estepona $1,807
San Pawl Il-bahar $1,697

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,759 in Estepona versus $2,593 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Estepona $2,759
San Pawl Il-bahar $2,593

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,712 in Estepona versus $3,489 in San Pawl Il-bahar.

Estepona $3,712
San Pawl Il-bahar $3,489

Living in Estepona is roughly 6% more expensive than in San Pawl Il-bahar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Estepona 34% above, San Pawl Il-bahar 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.42 €17.28

$19.75 €17.57

-1.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$78.0 €69.4

$82.2 €73.1

-5.06%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.05 €8.94

$11.28 €10.03

-10.90%

Cappuccino

$2.67 €2.37

$2.58 €2.30

3.49%

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

$2.37 €2.11

$2.47 €2.20

-4.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.95 €1.74

4.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.34 €3.86

$4.50 €4.00

-3.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 €3.93

$5.18 €4.60

-14.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 €1.10

$1.31 €1.17

-5.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.67 €1.49

$1.16 €1.03

43.97%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.54 €1.37

$3.82 €3.40

-59.69%

Eggs

$3.47 €3.09

$3.62 €3.22

-4.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.51 €12.01

$8.44 €7.50

60.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.15 €7.25

$7.75 €6.89

5.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.81 €14.07

$9.41 €8.37

68.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.54 €3.15

$2.98 €2.65

18.79%

Banana (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$2.05 €1.82

1.46%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 €1.96

$2.93 €2.60

-24.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.11 €2.77

$2.86 €2.54

8.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 €2.00

$1.57 €1.40

42.68%

Onion (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.84 €1.64

17.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.68 €1.50

$1.19 €1.06

41.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 €0.97

$1.20 €1.07

-9.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.72 €5.97

$6.33 €5.63

6.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.92 €5.27

$8.30 €7.38

-28.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.49 €1.32

-1.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 €2.58

$2.00 €1.78

45.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.76 €2.46

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.75 €1.55

$5.72 €5.09

-69.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.04 €0.93

$2.17 €1.93

-52.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.38 €11.90

$26.51 €23.58

-49.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.64

$1.47 €1.30

25.17%

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

$35.5K €31.6K

$38.3K €34.1K

-7.33%

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

$29.2K €26.0K

$39.6K €35.2K

-26.20%

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

$120 €107

$58.9 €52.4

103.77%

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

$15.97 €14.21

$20.63 €18.35

-22.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.74 €27.34

$39.96 €35.54

-23.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.96 €40.00

$49.65 €44.17

-9.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.60 €20.11

$13.51 €12.02

67.28%

Cinema Ticket

$11.29 €10.04

$9.96 €8.86

13.35%

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

$554 €493

$371 €330

49.46%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,051 €7,162

$11.1K €9,915

-27.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.5 €50.3

$22.55 €20.06

150.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.50 €36.91

$33.53 €29.83

23.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.9 €85.3

$96.5 €85.8

-0.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.5 €88.5

$75.4 €67.1

31.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,186 €1,055

$981 €872

20.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$869 €773

$848 €755

2.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,640 €1,459

35.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,421 €1,264

$1,348 €1,199

5.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,673 €4,157

$3,441 €3,061

35.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,540 €4,038

$2,867 €2,550

58.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,459 €1,298

$1,670 €1,485

-12.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.5

2.9

20.69%

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

Last update for Estepona: October 12, 2026

Last update for San Pawl Il-bahar: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Estepona

$869 48.1%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$848 50% 2.3% $20

Groceries & Markets

Estepona

$288 16%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$256 15.1% 11.3% $33

Eating Out

Estepona

$266 14.7%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$273 16.1% 2.9% $7.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Estepona

$167 9.2%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$119 7% 28.3% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Estepona

$132 7.3%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$103 6.1% 22.3% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Estepona

$68 3.7%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$70 4.1% 3% $2

Getting Around

Estepona

$18 * 1%

San Pawl Il-bahar

$28 * 1.6% 53.4% $9.6

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 $1,186 in Estepona and $981 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

San Pawl Il-bahar pays 14% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $78.0 in Estepona vs $82.0 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Groceries flip the comparison at $288 vs $256, with San Pawl Il-bahar cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Estepona

🇲🇹 San Pawl Il-bahar

🕒 Local time

17:53 5:53 PM

Same time as Estepona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

76,975

21,046

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Estepona San Pawl Il-bahar 1,750 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Estepona
San Pawl Il-bahar

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

Estepona vs San Pawl Il-bahar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

San Pawl Il-bahar is cheaper overall, especially in groceries and clothing. The 6% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 14% lower in San Pawl Il-bahar. 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: $1,186 in Estepona versus $981 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $554 in Estepona versus $371 in San Pawl Il-bahar. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in San Pawl Il-bahar – a meal for two runs $82.0 versus $78.0 in Estepona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,697 in San Pawl Il-bahar versus $1,807 in Estepona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in San Pawl Il-bahar but tight or insufficient in Estepona. The gap between the two cities makes San Pawl Il-bahar 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, Estepona and San Pawl Il-bahar 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 San Pawl Il-bahar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Estepona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.