Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Spain and Sao Tome and Principe

Name: Sao Tome and Principe
Address: ST

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Tome and Principe: $1,206 a month against $1,775 in Spain, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

86

Cost of Living Index in Spain
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Spain Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Sao Tome and Principe
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Sao Tome and Principe Living Index

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🇪🇸 Spain

$1,775

/mo nomad

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

$1,206

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Spain and in Sao Tome and Principe

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

A single person spends $1,775 per month in Spain vs $1,206 in Sao Tome and Principe, rent included.

Spain $1,775
Sao Tome and Principe $1,206

A couple spends around $2,606 per month in Spain vs $1,890 in Sao Tome and Principe, rent included.

Spain $2,606
Sao Tome and Principe $1,890

A family of three spends $3,438 per month in Spain vs $2,575 in Sao Tome and Principe, rent included.

Spain $3,438
Sao Tome and Principe $2,575

The regional cost range is wider in Spain ($931–$2,610) than in Sao Tome and Principe ($199–$1,211), so city choice matters more there.

The cost of living in Spain is about 47% higher than in Sao Tome and Principe on average.

Spain sits 30% above the global median, while Sao Tome and Principe is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.69 €14.99

$8.86 STN 195

88.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.7 €50.0

$43.95 STN 967

26.73%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.37 €10.21

$8.60 STN 189

32.21%

Cappuccino

$2.42 €2.17

$2.40 STN 52.7

0.83%

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

$2.68 €2.41

$1.81 STN 39.89

48.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 €1.61

$1.13 STN 24.76

58.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.42 €3.08

$1.74 STN 38.32

96.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.88 €3.48

$1.88 STN 41.45

106.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 €1.08

$1.53 STN 33.69

-21.57%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 €1.33

$1.52 STN 33.44

-2.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 €1.50

$1.87 STN 41.10

-10.70%

Eggs

$3.42 €3.07

$4.40 STN 96.7

-22.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.17 €12.73

$19.33 STN 425

-26.69%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.33 €7.48

$19.32 STN 425

-56.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.20 €14.56

$21.09 STN 464

-23.19%

Apples (1kg)

$2.45 €2.20

$3.80 STN 83.6

-35.53%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.82

$1.76 STN 38.65

15.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 €1.87

$3.58 STN 78.8

-41.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 €2.32

$3.54 STN 78.0

-27.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 €1.64

$2.87 STN 63.2

-36.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.00 €1.80

$2.38 STN 52.4

-15.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 €1.18

$0.53 STN 11.68

147.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.77 €0.69

$2.06 STN 45.40

-62.62%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.36 €5.72

$2.19 STN 48.09

190.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.64 €5.07

$7.98 STN 176

-29.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 €1.17

$1.47 STN 32.25

-11.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.68 STN 36.91

24.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.64 €1.48

$1.34 STN 29.52

22.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.91 €29.57

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.43 €3.98

$1.64 STN 36.10

170.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.47 €1.32

$2.66 STN 58.6

-44.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.98 €22.44

$13.81 STN 304

80.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.77 €1.59

$1.74 STN 38.37

1.72%

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

$35.5K €31.9K

$24.4K STN 535.9K

45.83%

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

$30.6K €27.5K

$31.6K STN 694.4K

-3.01%

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

$149 €134

$224 STN 4,934

-33.43%

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

$17.67 €15.88

$30.91 STN 680

-42.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.88 €28.64

$65.8 STN 1,447

-51.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.24 €39.74

$34.11 STN 750

29.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.29 €13.74

$25.43 STN 560

-39.87%

Cinema Ticket

$9.66 €8.68

$20.50 STN 451

-52.88%

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

$544 €489

$228 STN 5,021

138.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.6K €9,527

$2,158 STN 47.5K

391.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.9 €76.3

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.11 €33.34

$75.2 STN 1,653

-50.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.2 €80.1

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 €95.0

$18.67 STN 411

466.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,056 €949

$288 STN 6,339

266.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$808 €726

$195 STN 4,300

313.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,621 €1,456

$920 STN 20.2K

76.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,246 €1,119

$437 STN 9,606

185.39%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,135 €3,715

$1,861 STN 40.9K

122.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,633 €2,365

$1,125 STN 24.8K

133.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,999 €1,796

$441 STN 9,709

353.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

7.38

-55.28%

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

Last update for Spain: October 24, 2026

Last update for Sao Tome and Principe: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Spain

$808 45.5%

Sao Tome and Principe

$195 16.2% 75.8% $612

Groceries & Markets

Spain

$272 15.3%

Sao Tome and Principe

$402 33.3% 48% $130

Eating Out

Spain

$239 13.5%

Sao Tome and Principe

$150 12.4% 37.5% $90

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Spain

$199 11.2%

Sao Tome and Principe

$321 26.6% 61.4% $122

Clothing & Footwear

Spain

$143 8%

Sao Tome and Principe

$42 * 3.5% 70.4% $100

Sport & Entertainment

Spain

$64 3.6%

Sao Tome and Principe

$75 6.2% 18.2% $12

Getting Around

Spain

$51 2.9%

Sao Tome and Principe

$20 * 1.7% 60.3% $31

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $920 in Spain vs $288 in Sao Tome and Principe. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,508 in Madrid and $288 in Sao Tome.

Average salary: $1,972 in Spain vs $259 in Sao Tome and Principe. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 219% higher in Spain.

Dining out costs 36% more in Spain.

Salaries are about 7.6 times higher in Spain, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Spain.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Spain

🇸🇹 Sao Tome and Principe

🕒 Local time

00:19 12:19 AM

23:19 11:19 PM

1 h behind Spain

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

47,415,750

204,327

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra STN Db

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 STN = 4.55 USD

100 STN = 4.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

STN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

Sao Tome and Principe Dobra exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 22 STN (100 STN = 4.55 USD). 1 EUR = 24.49 STN (100 STN = 4.08 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Spain Sao Tome and Principe 4,580 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Spain
Sao Tome and Principe

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

Spain vs Sao Tome and Principe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sao Tome and Principe is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 32% lower on average.

Housing costs more in Spain: a central one-bedroom averages $920 versus $288 in Sao Tome and Principe.

$1,500 buys a comfortable lifestyle in Sao Tome and Principe, but in Spain it only works with careful planning outside the capital. Same money, very different lives.

Sao Tome and Principe is the budget-friendly choice for expats. But cost isn’t everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.