Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ulsan and Bilbao

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulsan: $1,339 a month against $2,129 in Bilbao, rent and utilities included – about $9,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Ulsan
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Ulsan Living Index
103

Cost of Living Index in Bilbao
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Bilbao Living Index

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Ulsan

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,339

/mo nomad

Bilbao

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,129

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,339 in Ulsan versus $2,129 in Bilbao.

Ulsan $1,339
Bilbao $2,129

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,185 in Ulsan versus $3,159 in Bilbao.

Ulsan $2,185
Bilbao $3,159

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,030 in Ulsan versus $4,190 in Bilbao.

Ulsan $3,030
Bilbao $4,190

Living in Ulsan costs roughly 37% less than in Bilbao, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ulsan is 1% below, Bilbao is 58% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.62 ₩10.1K

$22.39 €19.92

-65.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.63 ₩59.3K

$71.3 €63.4

-37.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.93 ₩7,882

$12.25 €10.90

-51.59%

Cappuccino

$3.32 ₩4,410

$2.55 €2.27

30.20%

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

$0.88 ₩1,175

$3.03 €2.70

-70.96%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 ₩619

$1.89 €1.68

-75.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.01 ₩4,006

$3.33 €2.96

-9.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.38 ₩5,826

$3.41 €3.04

28.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.36 ₩3,139

$1.29 €1.15

82.95%

White Bread (500g)

$3.25 ₩4,315

$1.58 €1.41

105.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.16 ₩4,207

$1.48 €1.32

113.51%

Eggs

$2.73 ₩3,634

$3.31 €2.95

-17.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.88 ₩14.5K

$15.51 €13.80

-29.85%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.63 ₩14.1K

$7.99 €7.11

33.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$24.54 ₩32.6K

$14.47 €12.87

69.59%

Apples (1kg)

$11.39 ₩15.1K

$2.80 €2.49

306.79%

Banana (1kg)

$3.74 ₩4,975

$2.16 €1.93

73.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$8.09 ₩10.8K

$2.61 €2.32

209.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.05 ₩8,048

$2.55 €2.27

137.25%

Potato (1kg)

$6.01 ₩7,992

$1.63 €1.45

268.71%

Onion (1kg)

$3.26 ₩4,328

$2.50 €2.22

30.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.89 ₩3,844

$1.27 €1.13

127.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 ₩1,707

$0.90 €0.80

42.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.12 ₩4,154

$6.60 €5.88

-52.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.52 ₩24.6K

$8.00 €7.12

131.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.45 ₩3,264

$1.48 €1.31

65.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 ₩4,577

$2.50 €2.23

37.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.14 ₩1,511

$1.76 €1.57

-35.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.4 €44.87

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.89 ₩3,849

$5.54 €4.93

-47.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.78 ₩1,040

$1.03 €0.91

-24.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.96 ₩22.6K

$32.65 €29.04

-48.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 ₩1,899

$1.81 €1.61

-20.99%

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

$30.0K ₩39.9M

$34.7K €30.9K

-13.59%

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

$34.1K ₩45.4M

$30.7K €27.3K

11.21%

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

$197 ₩261.8K

$142 €127

38.33%

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

$37.06 ₩49.3K

$20.57 €18.29

80.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.21 ₩36.2K

$30.26 €26.92

-10.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.4 ₩80.3K

$55.0 €48.96

9.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.24 €13.55

Cinema Ticket

$10.30 ₩13.7K

$9.97 €8.87

3.31%

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

$263 ₩349.3K

$521 €463

-49.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K ₩29.3M

$11.4K €10.1K

93.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$51.5 ₩68.5K

$105 €93.4

-50.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.56 ₩60.6K

$37.72 €33.55

20.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.0 ₩81.2K

$75.7 €67.3

-19.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.0 ₩99.7K

$146 €130

-48.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$373 ₩495.3K

$1,261 €1,121

-70.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$244 ₩324.7K

$1,057 €940

-76.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$761 ₩1.0M

$2,392 €2,127

-68.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$648 ₩861.8K

$1,689 €1,503

-61.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,483 ₩6.0M

$5,657 €5,032

-20.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,479 ₩3.3M

$3,688 €3,281

-32.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,331 ₩3.1M

$2,394 €2,129

-2.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

2.98

41.61%

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

Last update for Ulsan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bilbao: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Ulsan

$489 36.5%

Bilbao

$282 13.3% 42.3% $207

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ulsan

$261 19.5%

Bilbao

$193 9.1% 26% $68

Accommodation & Living

Ulsan

$244 18.2%

Bilbao

$1.1K 49.7% 333% $813

Eating Out

Ulsan

$148 11%

Bilbao

$290 13.6% 96% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Ulsan

$105 7.8%

Bilbao

$164 7.7% 56.1% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Ulsan

$81 6.1%

Bilbao

$75 3.5% 7.5% $6

Getting Around

Ulsan

$11 * 0.9%

Bilbao

$68 3.2% 501% $57

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 $373 in Ulsan and $1,261 in Bilbao. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bilbao pays 3% 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: $45.00 in Ulsan vs $71.0 in Bilbao. Groceries flip the comparison at $489 vs $282, with Bilbao cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Ulsan

🇪🇸 Bilbao

🕒 Local time

04:08 4:08 AM

21:08 9:08 PM

7 h behind Ulsan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,129,827

346,096

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 1,330 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.52 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ulsan Bilbao 10,010 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Ulsan
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

Ulsan vs Bilbao: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ulsan and Bilbao differ by about 59% in total monthly costs ($1,339 vs $2,129 including rent). Ulsan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 3% 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: $373 in Ulsan versus $1,261 in Bilbao. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Bilbao pay roughly 73% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,339 per month in Ulsan versus $2,129 in Bilbao – a 59% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,339 in Ulsan versus $2,129 in Bilbao, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Ulsan but tight or insufficient in Bilbao. The gap between the two cities makes Ulsan 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, Ulsan 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 Ulsan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in Bilbao. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.