Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Albert Lea, MN and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Albert Lea, MN: $1,944 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

95

Cost of Living Index in Albert Lea, MN
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Albert Lea, MN Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Albert Lea, MN

🇺🇸 United States

$1,944

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Albert Lea, MN and in Barcelona

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,944 in Albert Lea, MN versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Albert Lea, MN $1,944
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,969 in Albert Lea, MN versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Albert Lea, MN $2,969
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,995 in Albert Lea, MN versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Albert Lea, MN $3,995
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Albert Lea, MN costs roughly 18% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Albert Lea, MN 43% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.02 $20.02

$17.89 €15.92

11.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$102 $102

$66.2 €58.9

53.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.92 $11.92

$13.69 €12.18

-12.93%

Cappuccino

$6.29 $6.29

$3.06 €2.72

105.56%

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

$3.06 $3.06

$3.07 €2.73

-0.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.56 $2.56

$1.94 €1.73

31.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.88 $4.88

$3.87 €3.44

26.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.69 $5.69

$4.61 €4.10

23.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.92 $0.92

$1.30 €1.16

-29.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.93 $2.93

$2.10 €1.87

39.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 $2.17

$1.83 €1.62

18.58%

Eggs

$3.90 $3.90

$4.62 €4.11

-15.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 $8.84

$17.36 €15.44

-49.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$16.56 $16.56

$9.28 €8.25

78.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.96 $18.96

$19.83 €17.64

-4.39%

Apples (1kg)

$5.40 $5.40

$3.01 €2.68

79.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.50 $1.50

$2.03 €1.81

-26.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.89 $4.89

$2.65 €2.36

84.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.72 $3.72

$2.87 €2.55

29.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.73 $2.73

$2.16 €1.92

26.39%

Onion (1kg)

$2.22 $2.22

$2.15 €1.91

3.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.70 $2.70

$1.47 €1.31

83.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.30 $2.30

$0.88 €0.79

161.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.92 $9.92

$6.93 €6.16

43.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.24 $15.24

$7.83 €6.96

94.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.74 $1.74

$1.39 €1.24

25.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 $3.39

$2.63 €2.34

28.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.09 $2.09

$2.91 €2.59

-28.18%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.95 $1.95

$3.00 €2.66

-35.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 $1.28

$1.44 €1.28

-11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.31 $20.31

$33.20 €29.53

-38.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.94 $0.94

$1.86 €1.65

-49.46%

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

$26.7K $26.7K

$32.3K €28.8K

-17.53%

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

$25.6K $25.6K

$31.7K €28.2K

-19.26%

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

$185 $185

$183 €163

1.03%

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

$53.4 $53.4

$13.61 €12.11

292.21%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$79.6 $79.6

$32.93 €29.29

141.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.66 $39.66

$54.7 €48.65

-27.48%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$9.82 $9.82

$11.23 €9.99

-12.56%

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

$1,350 $1,350

$954 €849

41.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K $11.9K

$16.6K €14.8K

-28.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.76 $45.76

$86.0 €76.5

-46.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.54 $24.54

$39.11 €34.78

-37.25%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$50.6 $50.6

$104 €92.2

-51.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.6 $59.6

$119 €106

-49.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 $1,030

$1,695 €1,508

-39.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$739 $739

$1,276 €1,135

-42.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,586 $1,586

$2,576 €2,291

-38.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,188 $1,188

$1,922 €1,710

-38.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,942 $2,942

$7,281 €6,477

-59.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,028 $2,028

$5,010 €4,456

-59.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,957 $2,957

$2,227 €1,981

32.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

3.28

100.30%

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

Last update for Albert Lea, MN: October 19, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Albert Lea, MN

$739 38%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 72.6% $537

Groceries & Markets

Albert Lea, MN

$400 20.6%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 18.8% $75

Eating Out

Albert Lea, MN

$330 17%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 18.2% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Albert Lea, MN

$318 16.3%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 27.8% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Albert Lea, MN

$81 4.2%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 92.4% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Albert Lea, MN

$59 3.1%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 30.1% $18

Getting Around

Albert Lea, MN

$17 * 0.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 183% $31

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 $1,030 in Albert Lea, MN and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Albert Lea, MN pays 33% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $102 in Albert Lea, MN vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $400 vs $325 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Albert Lea, MN

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

02:36 2:36 AM

09:36 9:36 AM

7 h ahead of Albert Lea, MN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

17,758

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Albert Lea, MN Barcelona 7,360 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Albert Lea, MN
Barcelona

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

Albert Lea, MN vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Albert Lea, MN and Barcelona differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($1,944 vs $2,381 including rent). Albert Lea, MN is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 33% higher in Albert Lea, MN, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,030 in Albert Lea, MN versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,350 in Albert Lea, MN versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Albert Lea, MN – a meal for two runs $102 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,944 in Albert Lea, MN versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Albert Lea, MN but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Albert Lea, MN 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, Albert Lea, MN and Barcelona 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 Albert Lea, MN gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.