Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bålsta and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Bålsta: $1,563 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

75

Cost of Living Index in Bålsta
Learn more

Bålsta Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Bålsta

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,563

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,563 in Bålsta versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Bålsta $1,563
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,445 in Bålsta versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Bålsta $2,445
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,328 in Bålsta versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Bålsta $3,328
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Bålsta costs roughly 36% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bålsta 15% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.67 SEK 134

$17.59 €15.75

-22.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.8 SEK 656

$67.5 €60.5

-1.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.80 SEK 86.4

$13.53 €12.12

-34.96%

Cappuccino

$3.95 SEK 38.79

$3.19 €2.86

23.82%

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

$2.68 SEK 26.31

$2.91 €2.61

-7.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 SEK 21.99

$1.89 €1.70

18.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.16 SEK 70.3

$4.01 €3.59

78.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.96 SEK 68.3

$4.53 €4.06

53.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 SEK 14.62

$1.31 €1.17

13.74%

White Bread (500g)

$2.00 SEK 19.66

$2.02 €1.81

-0.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.51 SEK 34.42

$1.85 €1.66

89.73%

Eggs

$3.71 SEK 36.45

$4.83 €4.33

-23.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.01 SEK 108

$16.74 €14.99

-34.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.21 SEK 120

$9.12 €8.17

33.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.02 SEK 108

$19.64 €17.59

-43.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.50 SEK 24.52

$2.98 €2.67

-16.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.60 SEK 25.54

$2.02 €1.81

28.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.07 SEK 20.32

$2.70 €2.42

-23.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.90 SEK 28.42

$2.80 €2.51

3.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.50 SEK 14.75

$2.09 €1.87

-28.23%

Onion (1kg)

$1.18 SEK 11.59

$2.07 €1.85

-43.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 SEK 15.20

$1.46 €1.31

6.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 SEK 9.73

$0.94 €0.84

5.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.26 SEK 71.3

$6.87 €6.15

5.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.20 SEK 100

$7.89 €7.06

29.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 SEK 15.07

$1.41 €1.26

9.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.96 SEK 19.26

$2.54 €2.27

-22.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.28 SEK 32.18

$3.14 €2.82

4.46%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.1 SEK 776

$25.45 €22.79

210.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.03 SEK 59.2

$2.99 €2.68

101.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.54 SEK 15.16

$1.49 €1.34

3.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$77.4 SEK 760

$33.37 €29.89

132.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.76 SEK 17.28

$1.80 €1.61

-2.22%

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

$33.2K SEK 325.6K

$33.2K €29.7K

-0.04%

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

$33.8K SEK 331.6K

$31.7K €28.4K

6.61%

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

$50.1 SEK 491

$180 €162

-72.25%

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

$20.16 SEK 198

$13.84 €12.39

45.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.59 SEK 389

$33.70 €30.18

17.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.16 SEK 365

$51.5 €46.13

-27.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.37 SEK 259

$15.96 €14.29

65.23%

Cinema Ticket

$12.93 SEK 127

$10.99 €9.85

17.65%

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

$121 SEK 1,189

$917 €821

-86.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,046 SEK 49.5K

$16.5K €14.8K

-69.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.2 SEK 679

$87.0 €77.9

-20.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$9.93 SEK 97.4

$38.51 €34.49

-74.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$81.0 SEK 794

$106 €94.8

-23.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 SEK 1,107

$120 €107

-5.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$801 SEK 7,861

$1,699 €1,522

-52.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$610 SEK 5,982

$1,355 €1,214

-55.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,368 SEK 13.4K

$2,603 €2,331

-47.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,030 SEK 10.1K

$2,062 €1,847

-50.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,003 SEK 39.3K

$6,915 €6,193

-42.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,823 SEK 27.7K

$5,128 €4,592

-44.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,868 SEK 38.0K

$2,211 €1,980

74.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.8

3.28

-14.63%

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

Last update for Bålsta: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bålsta

$610 39%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 122% $746

Groceries & Markets

Bålsta

$299 19.1%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 7.7% $23

Eating Out

Bålsta

$253 16.2%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 6.1% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Bålsta

$123 7.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 28.6% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bålsta

$110 7%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 108% $118

Getting Around

Bålsta

$106 6.8%

Barcelona

$48 2% 54.2% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Bålsta

$63 4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 16.6% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $801 in Bålsta and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bålsta pays 75% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Bålsta vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $299 vs $322 per month, with Bålsta cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Bålsta

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

08:34 8:34 AM

Same time as Bålsta

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,138

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.13 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 SEK (100 SEK = 9.13 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bålsta Barcelona 2,280 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bålsta
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

Bålsta vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bålsta wins on cost – living expenses run 36% lower than in Barcelona. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Bålsta the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 75% higher in Bålsta, 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: $801 in Bålsta versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,563 per month in Bålsta versus $2,453 in Barcelona – Bålsta is about 36% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Bålsta is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Bålsta and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.