Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Madrid and Tokyo

For one person, living is cheaper in Tokyo: $1,648 a month against $2,265 in Madrid, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

109

Cost of Living Index in Madrid
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Madrid Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Tokyo
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Tokyo Living Index

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Madrid

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,265

/mo nomad

Tokyo

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,648

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Madrid and in Tokyo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,265 in Madrid versus $1,648 in Tokyo.

Madrid $2,265
Tokyo $1,648

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,311 in Madrid versus $2,604 in Tokyo.

Madrid $3,311
Tokyo $2,604

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,356 in Madrid versus $3,561 in Tokyo.

Madrid $4,356
Tokyo $3,561

Living in Madrid is roughly 37% more expensive than in Tokyo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Madrid 67% above, Tokyo 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.06 €16.06

$7.79 ¥1,230

131.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 €59.2

$38.57 ¥6,094

72.39%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.40 €10.14

$4.99 ¥788

128.46%

Cappuccino

$3.03 €2.69

$3.58 ¥565

-15.36%

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

$3.25 €2.89

$1.57 ¥249

107.01%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 €2.07

$0.90 ¥142

157.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$3.75 ¥593

2.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.82 €4.29

$5.22 ¥825

-7.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.55 ¥246

-14.84%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.75 ¥277

-8.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$5.56 ¥879

-68.53%

Eggs

$4.06 €3.61

$2.25 ¥355

80.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.34 €14.54

$11.31 ¥1,787

44.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.61 €8.55

$6.76 ¥1,068

42.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.43 €15.50

$16.83 ¥2,658

3.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 €2.34

$4.66 ¥736

-43.56%

Banana (1kg)

$2.18 €1.93

$2.27 ¥359

-3.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$4.33 ¥683

-42.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$5.23 ¥826

-50.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.25 €2.01

$3.33 ¥526

-32.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$3.00 ¥474

-30.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.16 ¥183

34.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 €0.96

$0.83 ¥130

30.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.70 €5.96

$3.88 ¥613

72.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.82 €6.95

$9.53 ¥1,506

-17.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.08

$1.63 ¥257

-25.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.25 €2.00

$2.62 ¥414

-14.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.22 ¥193

33.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.72 €33.56

$62.3 ¥9,848

-39.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.81 €3.39

$3.19 ¥505

19.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$3.09 ¥489

-51.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.99 €26.68

$18.70 ¥2,954

60.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.11 ¥175

61.26%

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

$33.7K €29.9K

$22.0K ¥3.5M

52.90%

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

$33.3K €29.6K

$15.1K ¥2.4M

120.77%

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

$190 €169

$148 ¥23.4K

28.43%

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

$17.57 €15.63

$22.75 ¥3,594

-22.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.34 €31.43

$29.86 ¥4,717

18.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.52 €44.04

$65.5 ¥10.4K

-24.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.20 €16.19

$26.19 ¥4,137

-30.51%

Cinema Ticket

$11.09 €9.87

$13.22 ¥2,089

-16.11%

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

$684 €609

$1,314 ¥207.6K

-47.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.2K €16.2K

$17.9K ¥2.8M

1.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 €78.1

$54.3 ¥8,584

61.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.06 €37.41

$32.73 ¥5,172

28.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 €98.3

$65.4 ¥10.3K

69.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €100

$70.6 ¥11.2K

59.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,509 €1,342

$1,288 ¥203.4K

17.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,162 €1,034

$684 ¥108.1K

69.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,804 €2,494

$2,507 ¥396.1K

11.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,867 €1,661

$1,460 ¥230.6K

27.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,017 €8,021

$9,204 ¥1.5M

-2.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,294 €3,819

$4,226 ¥667.6K

1.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,495 €2,219

$2,994 ¥473.0K

-16.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.14

2.25

39.56%

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

Last update for Madrid: October 18, 2026

Last update for Tokyo: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Madrid

$1.2K 51.3%

Tokyo

$684 41.5% 41.1% $478

Groceries & Markets

Madrid

$308 13.6%

Tokyo

$326 19.8% 5.9% $18

Eating Out

Madrid

$266 11.8%

Tokyo

$159 9.7% 40.2% $107

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Madrid

$243 10.7%

Tokyo

$201 12.2% 17.5% $42

Clothing & Footwear

Madrid

$159 7%

Tokyo

$100 6.1% 36.8% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Madrid

$72 3.2%

Tokyo

$92 5.6% 28.3% $20

Getting Around

Madrid

$56 2.5%

Tokyo

$86 5.2% 54.7% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,509 in Madrid and $1,288 in Tokyo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Tokyo pays 20% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Madrid vs $39.00 in Tokyo. Groceries flip the comparison at $308 vs $326, with Madrid cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Madrid

🇯🇵 Tokyo

🕒 Local time

04:00 4:00 AM

11:00 11:00 AM

7 h ahead of Madrid

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,332,035 Capital

13,613,660 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

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Between locations

Madrid Tokyo 10,770 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

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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

Madrid vs Tokyo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tokyo wins on cost – living expenses run 37% lower than in Madrid. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Tokyo the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 20% lower in Tokyo. 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: $1,509 in Madrid versus $1,288 in Tokyo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Madrid pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Tokyo – a meal for two runs $39.00 versus $66.0 in Madrid. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,648 in Tokyo versus $2,265 in Madrid, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Tokyo but tight or insufficient in Madrid. The gap between the two cities makes Tokyo the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Tokyo delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,648 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Tokyo hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Madrid and Tokyo 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 Tokyo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Madrid. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.