Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Almaty and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Almaty: $1,363 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

66

Cost of Living Index in Almaty
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Almaty Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Almaty

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$1,363

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $1,363 per month in Almaty vs $2,381 in Barcelona, rent included.

Almaty $1,363
Barcelona $2,381

A couple spends around $2,131 per month in Almaty vs $3,406 in Barcelona, rent included.

Almaty $2,131
Barcelona $3,406

A family of three spends $2,900 per month in Almaty vs $4,431 in Barcelona, rent included.

Almaty $2,900
Barcelona $4,431

Almaty is about 43% cheaper than Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Almaty and Barcelona sit above the global median – Almaty by 1%, Barcelona by 76%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.05 ₸5,899

$17.89 €15.92

-27.05%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$43.44 ₸19.6K

$66.2 €58.9

-34.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.76 ₸3,962

$13.69 €12.18

-36.01%

Cappuccino

$3.32 ₸1,501

$3.06 €2.72

8.50%

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

$1.34 ₸607

$3.07 €2.73

-56.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.83 ₸374

$1.94 €1.73

-57.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.36 ₸1,518

$3.87 €3.44

-13.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.02 ₸1,818

$4.61 €4.10

-12.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 ₸747

$1.30 €1.16

26.92%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 ₸421

$2.10 €1.87

-55.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 ₸927

$1.83 €1.62

12.02%

Eggs

$2.46 ₸1,113

$4.62 €4.11

-46.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.49 ₸5,646

$17.36 €15.44

-28.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.71 ₸3,035

$9.28 €8.25

-27.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.85 ₸4,905

$19.83 €17.64

-45.28%

Apples (1kg)

$1.78 ₸807

$3.01 €2.68

-40.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 ₸1,018

$2.03 €1.81

10.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.87 ₸1,299

$2.65 €2.36

8.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 ₸1,227

$2.87 €2.55

-5.57%

Potato (1kg)

$0.80 ₸362

$2.16 €1.92

-62.96%

Onion (1kg)

$0.55 ₸249

$2.15 €1.91

-74.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 ₸732

$1.47 €1.31

10.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.00 ₸453

$0.88 €0.79

13.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.58 ₸1,167

$6.93 €6.16

-62.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.15 ₸5,039

$7.83 €6.96

42.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 ₸572

$1.39 €1.24

-9.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 ₸1,120

$2.63 €2.34

-5.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.28 ₸128

$2.91 €2.59

-90.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$22.05 ₸9,970

$25.46 €22.64

-13.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.34 ₸607

$3.00 €2.66

-55.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 ₸288

$1.44 €1.28

-55.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.04 ₸4,993

$33.20 €29.53

-66.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.72 ₸326

$1.86 €1.65

-61.29%

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

$28.1K ₸12.7M

$32.3K €28.8K

-12.98%

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

$31.8K ₸14.4M

$31.7K €28.2K

0.32%

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

$90.5 ₸40.9K

$183 €163

-50.47%

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

$10.63 ₸4,805

$13.61 €12.11

-21.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.12 ₸8,190

$32.93 €29.29

-44.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$69.0 ₸31.2K

$54.7 €48.65

26.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.98 ₸12.2K

$16.52 €14.70

63.32%

Cinema Ticket

$6.77 ₸3,062

$11.23 €9.99

-39.72%

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

$444 ₸200.6K

$954 €849

-53.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K ₸5.4M

$16.6K €14.8K

-27.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.9 ₸41.5K

$86.0 €76.5

6.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.80 ₸21.6K

$39.11 €34.78

22.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$139 ₸63.0K

$104 €92.2

34.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 ₸59.4K

$119 €106

10.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$777 ₸351.2K

$1,695 €1,508

-54.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$494 ₸223.4K

$1,276 €1,135

-61.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,439 ₸650.4K

$2,576 €2,291

-44.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$905 ₸409.2K

$1,922 €1,710

-52.91%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,470 ₸1.1M

$7,281 €6,477

-66.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,517 ₸685.7K

$5,010 €4,456

-69.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$857 ₸387.2K

$2,227 €1,981

-61.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

20.65

3.28

529.57%

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

Last update for Almaty: October 18, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Almaty

$494 36.3%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 158% $782

Groceries & Markets

Almaty

$251 18.4%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 29.7% $75

Eating Out

Almaty

$204 15%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 32.1% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Almaty

$185 13.6%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 15.3% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Almaty

$119 8.8%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 92.3% $110

Sport & Entertainment

Almaty

$83 6.1%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 6.5% $5.4

Getting Around

Almaty

$28 2%

Barcelona

$47 2% 70.7% $20

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $777 in Almaty versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 160% higher in Barcelona, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Almaty versus $66.0 in Barcelona. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $251 vs $325 – making Almaty the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇰🇿 Almaty

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:34 11:34 PM

19:34 7:34 PM

4 h behind Almaty

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,475,400

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to KZT – Kazakhstani Tenge Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇿 Kazakhstani Tenge (₸)

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 23, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to KZT in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Almaty Barcelona 5,940 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Almaty
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

Almaty vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Barcelona is pricier by about 75%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,044 per month in Almaty and $3,571 in Barcelona. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Almaty, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $43.00 in Almaty and $66.0 in Barcelona. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,363 in Almaty and $2,381 in Barcelona. That's a gap of about 75%.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Almaty, where all-in costs run around $1,363, than in Barcelona at $2,381. In Almaty it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barcelona it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Almaty – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Almaty. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Barcelona makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.