Cost of Living: Bilbao vs Nice (2026)

Spain vs France — relocation comparison

Your passport:

Livability Score

Bilbao

Nice

$1,259/mo

Rent

1BR centre

$1,142/mo

$4k/yr

Take-home savings

At each city's local median pay

$11k/yr

5 yr

PR path

5 yr

Beckham Law (Régimen Especial), Startups Law — Entrepreneur & Remote-Worker Route into Beckham (Limited)

Tax breaks

Open incentive regimes for newcomers

—

Freelance setup

Autónomo

No VAT exemption
€1800/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Micro-entrepreneur

VAT-free under €38k
22% social
€1000/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Sourced from Numbeo · Updated May 2026

TL;DRBilbao is safer — homicide rate 0.7 vs 1.3 per 100k. Both are solid options for settling down — the spreadsheet won't save you from this one.

Too close to call — 73 vs 70. Bilbao has a slight edge, but Nice might suit you better depending on your priorities.

How the livability score breaks down

Bilbao

Nice

16.7/25

💰 Affordability

17.9/25

14.3/15

🔒 Violent Crime

13.7/15

5.1/10

🛡️ Perceived Safety

4.5/10

5.3/15

⚡ Internet

5.3/15

12.2/15

🗳️ Democracy

12/15

6.3/10

🗣️ English

6.3/10

9.9/10

☀️ Climate

8.7/10

7.2/10

📊 Stability

8/10

9.7/10

🚗 Road Safety

9/10

7.7/10

🕊️ Geopolitical Safety

6.1/10

Verdict delivered. Your move.

The winner's file

🇪🇸 Bilbao

Full profile. Verify before you pack.

Due diligence

🇫🇷 Nice

Every verdict deserves an appeal.

Plot twist

Paris vs Nice

Someone else's dilemma, equally unsolvable.

Household

Bilbao

Metric

Nice

✓$578/mo

🛒

Living costs (no rent)

lower is better

$746/mo

$6,395

🧳

Cost to land

lower is better

$4,491✓

✓84 / 100

🛡️

Settler safety

higher is better

77 / 100

✓0.7 / 100k

🔒

Homicides

lower is better

1.3 / 100k

✓3.5 / 100k

🚗

Road deaths

lower is better

4.7 / 100k

✓51 / 100

🚨

Safety Index

higher is better

45 / 100

77°F

☀️

Summer high

personal taste

82°F

43°F

❄️

Winter low

personal taste

43°F

10.1 μg/m³

🌬️

Air quality (PM2.5)

lower is better

10 μg/m³

87 / 100

🏥

Healthcare

higher is better

86 / 100

8.1 / 10

🗳️

Democracy

higher is better

8.0 / 10

✓7.4 / 9

🤝

Migrant acceptance

higher is better

6.5 / 9

✓76 / 100

🏳️‍🌈

Rainbow Index

higher is better

62 / 100

38/100

🗣️

Street English

higher is better

38/100

$58k

💼

GDP per capita (PPP)

higher is better

$63k✓

2.8% · Boringly steady

📈

Inflation

lower is better

2.0% · Boringly steady✓

90/100

🗽

Freedom House

higher is better

90/100

A median Software Engineer in Bilbao takes home $3,350/mo under Standard employee. In Nice: $3,957/mo under Standard employee.

$607/mo more in Nice

🎯 Bilbao's Beckham Law (Régimen Especial) isn't modelled above — if you qualify, take-home would be $3,470/mo instead.

Each city pays its own median — Software Engineer gross via Levels.fyi / Eurostat. Moving changes your salary too; that's the point.

$60k

💰

Gross income

$66k

−$16k

🏛️

Income tax

Standard employee

−$12k

−$4k

🛡️

Social contributions

−$6k

$40k/yr

$3k/mo

💵

Take-home pay

$47k/yr✓

$4k/mo

−$36k

🏠

Cost of living

−$37k

$4k/yr

🐖

Annual savings

$11k/yr✓

Swap the local medians for your actual number

Sources: Numbeo · UNODC · Ookla · WHO · EIU · Gallup · World Bank · Freedom House · Updated May 2026

💰

Cost of Living

Nice

$118/mo cheaper on rent alone

🔒

Safety

Bilbao

0.7 homicides per 100k

☀️

Weather

—

77°F vs 82°F summers

Sun

How much sky you actually get

34% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

Sky clear

avg daytime

55% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

9.0h

Shortest day

Dec

9.0h

15.3h

Longest day

Jun

15.4h

Sun clocks out before 5pm in both cities come December. Plan accordingly.

Source: WeatherSpark (clear-sky share of daytime hours)

Settler Essentials

Democracy trend

stable →

improving ↑

Inflation trend

stable →

Moderate

🇺🇸 Your visa

Moderate

Easy

EU visa

Easy

Complex

RU visa

Complex

Moderate

UA visa

Easy

Conditional (1+ yr)

pareja de hecho

Partner pathway

Conditional (1+ yr)

PACS (pacte civil de solidarité) / concubinage

Visa stamps:Easy <90 daysModerate 3–6 moComplex 6+ mo

Sources: EIU · Freedom House · Startup Genome · official immigration portals

Reproductive Rights

Because your body shouldn't need a visa too

On request

Abortion access

On request

14 wk

Gestational limit

14 wk

On request up to 14 weeks. 2023 reform removed mandatory waiting period.

On request up to 14 weeks. Enshrined as a constitutional right in March 2024.

Source: Center for Reproductive Rights

LGBTQ+ Rights

Can you hold hands without doing a risk assessment first

Legal

Marriage

Legal

Joint adoption

Adoption

Joint adoption

Yes

Job protection

Yes

Hate crime law

Yes

Bilbao vs Nice — Common Questions

Is Bilbao cheaper than Nice?▾

Nice is cheaper. A 1-bedroom apartment in city centre costs around $1142/month there vs $1259/month in the other city (Numbeo data).

Which is safer, Bilbao or Nice?▾

Bilbao is statistically safer based on UNODC homicide data. Bilbao has a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 and Nice has 1.34 per 100,000.

Should I move to Bilbao or Nice?▾

Too close to call — 73 vs 70. Bilbao has a slight edge, but Nice might suit you better depending on your priorities. See the full comparison above for rent, safety, internet speed, climate, and democracy scores to decide which city fits your priorities.

Which has better weather, Bilbao or Nice?▾

Nice is warmer in summer (82°F vs 77°F). Bilbao has milder summers, which suits those who prefer cooler weather. Climate preference is personal — use the weather section above to compare seasons.

What's the cost of rent in Bilbao vs Nice?▾

A 1-bedroom in the centre: $1142/month in Nice, $1259/month in Bilbao (Numbeo). That's 9% cheaper rent in Nice.