Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Al-'amarah

For one person, living is cheaper in Al-’amarah: $672 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $21,400 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
32

Cost of Living Index in Al-'amarah
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Al-'amarah Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Al-'amarah

🇮🇶 Iraq

$672

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Al-'amarah

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 Al-'amarah actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,453 per month in Barcelona vs $672 in Al-’amarah, rent included.

Barcelona $2,453
Al-'amarah $672

A couple spends around $3,509 per month in Barcelona vs $1,023 in Al-’amarah, rent included.

Barcelona $3,509
Al-'amarah $1,023

A family of three spends $4,564 per month in Barcelona vs $1,373 in Al-’amarah, rent included.

Barcelona $4,564
Al-'amarah $1,373

Barcelona costs about 265% more than Al-’amarah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Barcelona sits 80% above the global median, while Al-’amarah is 51% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.75

$4.08 IQD 6,163

331.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$19.39 IQD 29.3K

248.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$6.29 IQD 9,501

115.10%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.23 IQD 3,364

43.05%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.38 IQD 575

665.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.21 IQD 311

800.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$3.01 IQD 4,555

33.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$2.45 IQD 3,705

84.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$0.99 IQD 1,494

32.32%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.67 IQD 1,014

201.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.38 IQD 2,090

34.06%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.59 IQD 2,409

203.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.99

$3.88 IQD 5,856

331.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$3.44 IQD 5,192

165.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.59

$13.32 IQD 20.1K

47.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$0.95 IQD 1,440

213.68%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.98 IQD 1,474

106.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$0.91 IQD 1,368

196.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$0.63 IQD 951

344.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.55 IQD 836

280.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.63 IQD 950

228.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.56 IQD 848

160.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.47 IQD 715

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$1.48 IQD 2,231

364.19%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$12.09 IQD 18.3K

-34.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.68 IQD 2,545

-16.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.85 IQD 2,798

37.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.29 IQD 438

982.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.79

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.79 IQD 2,712

67.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.17 IQD 1,766

27.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.89

$5.46 IQD 8,252

511.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.58 IQD 878

210.34%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$17.6K IQD 26.6M

88.49%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$14.7K IQD 22.2M

116.13%

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

$180 €162

$97.8 IQD 147.8K

84.45%

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

$13.84 €12.39

$14.57 IQD 22.0K

-5.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.18

$28.47 IQD 43.0K

18.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.13

$36.45 IQD 55.1K

41.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.29

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$9.04 IQD 13.7K

21.57%

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

$917 €821

$143 IQD 216.2K

540.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$2,964 IQD 4.5M

455.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.9

$23.18 IQD 35.0K

275.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.49

$22.01 IQD 33.3K

74.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$68.2 IQD 103.0K

55.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$32.78 IQD 49.5K

265.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,522

$204 IQD 308.8K

731.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$140 IQD 211.8K

866.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,331

$368 IQD 555.9K

607.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,847

$287 IQD 433.4K

619.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,193

$863 IQD 1.3M

700.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,592

$486 IQD 733.7K

955.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,980

$434 IQD 655.1K

409.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.12

-20.39%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Al-'amarah: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Al-'amarah

$140 20.9% 89.7% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Al-'amarah

$162 24.1% 49.7% $160

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Al-'amarah

$101 15% 62.5% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Al-'amarah

$141 21% 38.2% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Al-'amarah

$66 9.8% 58.4% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Al-'amarah

$55 8.1% 25.8% $19

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Al-'amarah

$8.8 * 1.3% 81.8% $40

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 $204 in Al-’amarah. 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 5.1 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67 in Barcelona versus $19 in Al-’amarah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $322 vs $162 – making Al-’amarah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇶 Al-'amarah

🕒 Local time

00:15 12:15 AM

02:15 2:15 AM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

511,542

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

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

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,687 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.93 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Al-'amarah 4,100 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Al-'amarah

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 Al-'amarah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Barcelona is pricier by about 265%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,679 per month in Barcelona and $1,009 in Al-’amarah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Al-’amarah, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $204 there versus $1,699 in Barcelona.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $67 in Barcelona and $19 in Al-’amarah. That’s a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 99% more in Barcelona, though the gap depends on what you buy.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Al-’amarah, where all-in costs run around $672, than in Barcelona at $2,453. In Al-’amarah it covers expenses comfortably, while in Barcelona it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

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

Both cities have a reputation for safety. In either place, the choice of neighborhood matters more than the choice between the two cities.

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