Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Okinawa and Bilbao

For one person, living is cheaper in Okinawa: $1,388 a month against $2,166 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $9,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

66

Cost of Living Index in Okinawa
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Okinawa Living Index
104

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index

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Okinawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,388

/mo nomad

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,166

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Okinawa 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 Okinawa and in Bilbao actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,388 in Okinawa versus $2,166 in Bilbao.

Okinawa $1,388
Bilbao $2,166

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,184 in Okinawa versus $3,118 in Bilbao.

Okinawa $2,184
Bilbao $3,118

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,980 in Okinawa versus $4,069 in Bilbao.

Okinawa $2,980
Bilbao $4,069

Living in Okinawa costs roughly 36% less than in Bilbao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Okinawa 2% above, Bilbao 59% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.12 ¥1,599

$22.64 €20.34

-55.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.24 ¥6,357

$73.0 €65.6

-44.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.04 ¥1,112

$12.47 €11.21

-43.54%

Cappuccino

$4.11 ¥649

$2.67 €2.40

53.93%

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

$1.40 ¥221

$3.12 €2.80

-55.13%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.92 ¥145

$1.91 €1.72

-51.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.51 ¥396

$3.30 €2.97

-23.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.27 ¥832

$3.30 €2.97

59.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 ¥249

$1.31 €1.18

20.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 ¥324

$1.65 €1.48

24.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.76 ¥594

$1.54 €1.39

144.16%

Eggs

$1.84 ¥290

$3.31 €2.98

-44.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.99 ¥2,843

$15.55 €13.97

15.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.79 ¥758

$7.97 €7.16

-39.90%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.45 ¥3,548

$14.56 €13.08

54.19%

Apples (1kg)

$3.81 ¥602

$2.76 €2.48

38.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.62 ¥413

$2.09 €1.88

25.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.20 ¥347

$2.54 €2.29

-13.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.26 ¥832

$2.65 €2.38

98.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.39 ¥377

$1.64 €1.47

45.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.56 ¥404

$2.43 €2.18

5.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 ¥202

$1.28 €1.15

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 ¥122

$0.93 €0.83

-17.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.90 ¥617

$6.57 €5.91

-40.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.40 ¥1,011

$7.59 €6.82

-15.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.95 ¥308

$1.51 €1.35

29.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.34 ¥528

$2.59 €2.33

28.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.44 ¥227

$1.95 €1.75

-26.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.1 ¥10.3K

$50.7 €45.56

28.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.82 ¥604

$5.37 €4.83

-28.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.54 ¥559

$1.03 €0.93

243.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.23 ¥1,773

$32.32 €29.04

-65.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.11 ¥175

$1.83 €1.64

-39.34%

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

$20.9K ¥3.3M

$33.3K €29.9K

-37.16%

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

$15.5K ¥2.5M

$32.3K €29.0K

-51.83%

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

$163 ¥25.7K

$145 €130

12.33%

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

$25.35 ¥4,006

$19.91 €17.89

27.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.1 ¥8,385

$29.47 €26.48

80.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.0 ¥11.5K

$50.8 €45.66

43.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$54.9 ¥8,676

$15.21 €13.67

261.08%

Cinema Ticket

$11.98 ¥1,893

$10.18 €9.14

17.68%

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

$327 ¥51.7K

$534 €480

-38.68%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,668 ¥895.5K

$11.7K €10.5K

-51.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.88 ¥7,723

$105 €94.0

-53.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$23.35 ¥3,689

$36.56 €32.85

-36.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.2 ¥12.8K

$76.0 €68.3

6.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.7 ¥15.1K

$143 €129

-33.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$411 ¥65.0K

$1,366 €1,228

-69.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$332 ¥52.4K

$1,093 €982

-69.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$852 ¥134.6K

$2,008 €1,804

-57.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$678 ¥107.1K

$1,559 €1,401

-56.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,422 ¥1.3M

$5,880 €5,283

43.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,185 ¥187.2K

$3,707 €3,331

-68.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,798 ¥284.0K

$2,346 €2,108

-23.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.23

2.98

-25.17%

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

Last update for Okinawa: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bilbao: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Okinawa

$332 23.9%

Bilbao

$1.1K 50.4% 229% $761

Groceries & Markets

Okinawa

$330 23.8%

Bilbao

$283 13.1% 14.2% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Okinawa

$241 17.4%

Bilbao

$194 9% 19.4% $47

Eating Out

Okinawa

$184 13.2%

Bilbao

$294 13.6% 59.9% $110

Clothing & Footwear

Okinawa

$112 8.1%

Bilbao

$162 7.5% 44.7% $50

Sport & Entertainment

Okinawa

$97 7%

Bilbao

$71 3.3% 26.6% $26

Getting Around

Okinawa

$92 6.7%

Bilbao

$69 3.2% 25.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $411 in Okinawa and $1,366 in Bilbao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 31% 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: $40 in Okinawa vs $73 in Bilbao. Groceries flip the comparison at $330 vs $283, with Bilbao cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Okinawa

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🕒 Local time

23:56 11:56 PM

15:56 3:56 PM

8 h behind Okinawa

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

142,752

346,096

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.69 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Okinawa Bilbao 10,780 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Okinawa
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

Okinawa vs Bilbao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Okinawa and Bilbao differ by about 56% in total monthly costs ($1,388 vs $2,166 including rent). Okinawa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 23% lower in Okinawa. 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: $411 in Okinawa versus $1,366 in Bilbao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $327 in Okinawa versus $534 in Bilbao. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Bilbao pay roughly 14% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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, Okinawa 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.

It comes down to priorities – Okinawa wins on affordability, Bilbao on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.