Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Adama

For one person, living is cheaper in Adama: $1,030 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Adama
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Adama Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Adama

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$1,030

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Adama

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

A single person spends $2,453 per month in Barcelona vs $1,030 in Adama, rent included.

Barcelona $2,453
Adama $1,030

A couple spends around $3,509 per month in Barcelona vs $1,702 in Adama, rent included.

Barcelona $3,509
Adama $1,702

A family of three spends $4,564 per month in Barcelona vs $2,374 in Adama, rent included.

Barcelona $4,564
Adama $2,374

Barcelona costs about 138% more than Adama, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Barcelona sits 80% above the global median, while Adama is 24% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$3.06 ETB 492

474.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$43.00 ETB 6,919

56.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$4.98 ETB 801

171.69%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$0.90 ETB 144

254.44%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.58 ETB 93.8

401.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.31 ETB 50.5

509.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$0.83 ETB 134

383.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$2.31 ETB 372

96.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$0.77 ETB 124

70.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.17 ETB 188

72.65%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.20 ETB 353

-15.91%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.80 ETB 289

168.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$7.35 ETB 1,183

127.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$10.09 ETB 1,624

-9.61%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$9.40 ETB 1,513

108.94%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$5.51 ETB 887

-45.92%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.69 ETB 111

192.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.14 ETB 344

26.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$0.70 ETB 113

300.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.50 ETB 80.9

318.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.09 ETB 175

89.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.69 ETB 111

111.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.57 ETB 91.2

64.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$7.88 ETB 1,268

-12.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$5.78 ETB 931

36.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.70 ETB 113

101.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.28 ETB 206

98.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.28 ETB 206

133.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.27 ETB 42.87

451.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$2.03 ETB 326

1543.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.90 ETB 145

100.00%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$55.8K ETB 9.0M

-40.46%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$55.3K ETB 8.9M

-42.73%

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

$180 €162

$206 ETB 33.1K

-12.35%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$7.50 ETB 1,206

84.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$215 ETB 34.6K

-84.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$3.83 ETB 617

186.95%

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

$917 €821

$611 ETB 98.2K

50.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$30.5K ETB 4.9M

-45.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$32.75 ETB 5,270

165.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$72.3 ETB 11.6K

-46.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$79.9 ETB 12.9K

32.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$82.3 ETB 13.2K

45.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$352 ETB 56.6K

382.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$198 ETB 31.9K

584.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$980 ETB 157.7K

165.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$815 ETB 131.1K

153.05%

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)

$2,211 €1,981

$98.7 ETB 15.9K

2139.48%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

18.5

-82.27%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Adama: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Adama

$198 19.2% 85.4% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Adama

$211 20.5% 34.5% $111

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Adama

$63 6.1% 76.7% $205

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Adama

$428 41.6% 87.9% $200

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Adama

$120 11.7% 23.9% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Adama

$7.7 * 0.7% 89.6% $66

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Adama

$2.6 * 0.3% 94.6% $46

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,699 in Barcelona versus $352 in Adama. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in Barcelona are about 22 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67 in Barcelona versus $43 in Adama. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $322 vs $211 – making Adama the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇹 Adama

🕒 Local time

09:49 9:49 AM

11:49 11:49 AM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

228,623

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Adama 5,160 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Adama

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

Barcelona vs Adama: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona, $1,030 in Adama – Adama comes out roughly 58% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,679 per month in Barcelona and $1,545 in Adama. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Adama, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $352 there versus $1,699 in Barcelona.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67 in Barcelona and $43 in Adama. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 53% more in Barcelona, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Adama, where all-in costs run around $1,030, than in Barcelona at $2,453. In Adama it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barcelona it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

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