Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Arlington, WA and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $2,779 in Arlington, WA, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

135

Cost of Living Index in Arlington, WA
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Arlington, WA Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Arlington, WA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,779

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,779 in Arlington, WA versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Arlington, WA $2,779
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,295 in Arlington, WA versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Arlington, WA $4,295
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,810 in Arlington, WA versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Arlington, WA $5,810
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Arlington, WA is roughly 13% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Arlington, WA 104% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.91 $24.91

$17.59 €15.76

41.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.4 $98.4

$67.5 €60.5

45.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.96 $13.96

$13.53 €12.12

3.18%

Cappuccino

$5.90 $5.90

$3.19 €2.86

84.95%

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

$2.95 $2.95

$2.91 €2.61

1.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 $3.04

$1.89 €1.70

60.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.92 $6.92

$4.01 €3.59

72.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.94 $6.94

$4.53 €4.06

53.20%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 $1.03

$1.31 €1.17

-21.37%

White Bread (500g)

$3.70 $3.70

$2.02 €1.81

83.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.16 $4.16

$1.85 €1.66

124.86%

Eggs

$3.97 $3.97

$4.83 €4.33

-17.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.96 $13.96

$16.74 €15.00

-16.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.96 $12.96

$9.12 €8.17

42.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.69 $22.69

$19.64 €17.60

15.53%

Apples (1kg)

$5.07 $5.07

$2.98 €2.67

70.13%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 $1.85

$2.02 €1.81

-8.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.19 $4.19

$2.70 €2.42

55.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.72 $4.72

$2.80 €2.51

68.57%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 $2.01

$2.09 €1.87

-3.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.40 $2.40

$2.07 €1.85

15.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.68 $2.68

$1.46 €1.31

83.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.39 $2.39

$0.94 €0.84

154.26%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.08 $12.08

$6.87 €6.16

75.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.15 $15.15

$7.89 €7.07

92.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 $2.06

$1.41 €1.26

46.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 $4.36

$2.54 €2.27

71.65%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.63 $2.63

$2.99 €2.68

-12.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.65 $1.65

$1.49 €1.34

10.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.89 $29.89

$33.37 €29.91

-10.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.41 $1.41

$1.80 €1.61

-21.67%

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

$27.6K $27.6K

$33.2K €29.7K

-16.83%

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

$26.5K $26.5K

$31.7K €28.4K

-16.49%

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

$294 $294

$180 €162

63.21%

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

$67.9 $67.9

$13.84 €12.40

390.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$86.9 $86.9

$33.70 €30.20

157.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.47 $32.47

$51.5 €46.16

-36.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$17.68 $17.68

$10.99 €9.85

60.87%

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

$2,749 $2,749

$917 €821

199.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$31.3K $31.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

89.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.3 $50.3

$87.0 €78.0

-42.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.7 $55.7

$38.51 €34.51

44.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 $102

$106 €94.8

-3.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$135 $135

$120 €107

13.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,519 $1,519

$1,699 €1,523

-10.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,281 $1,281

$1,355 €1,214

-5.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,805 $2,805

$2,603 €2,332

7.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,531 $2,531

$2,062 €1,848

22.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,787 $5,787

$2,211 €1,981

161.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.81

3.28

107.62%

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

Last update for Arlington, WA: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Arlington, WA

$1.3K 46.1%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 5.8% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Arlington, WA

$449 16.2%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 49.3% $221

Groceries & Markets

Arlington, WA

$431 15.5%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 25.3% $109

Eating Out

Arlington, WA

$384 13.8%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 30.3% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Arlington, WA

$155 5.6%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 2.2% $3.4

Sport & Entertainment

Arlington, WA

$68 2.4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 8.4% $5.7

Getting Around

Arlington, WA

$11 * 0.4%

Barcelona

$48 2% 345% $38

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 $1,519 in Arlington, WA and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Arlington, WA pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $98 in Arlington, WA vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $431 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Arlington, WA

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

03:04 3:04 AM

12:04 12:04 PM

9 h ahead of Arlington, WA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

365,438

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Arlington, WA Barcelona 8,650 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Arlington, WA
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

Arlington, WA vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,779 in Arlington, WA and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 12% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Arlington, WA is about 2.6 times higher, 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: $1,519 in Arlington, WA versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 34% higher in Arlington, WA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $2,779 per month in Arlington, WA versus $2,453 in Barcelona – Barcelona is about 12% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Barcelona wins on affordability, Arlington, WA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.