Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Ashgabat

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $3,367 in Ashgabat, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
164

Cost of Living Index in Ashgabat
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Ashgabat Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Ashgabat

🇹🇲 Turkmenistan

$3,367

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Ashgabat

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 Ashgabat actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $3,367 in Ashgabat.

Barcelona $2,381
Ashgabat $3,367

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $5,093 in Ashgabat.

Barcelona $3,406
Ashgabat $5,093

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $6,820 in Ashgabat.

Barcelona $4,431
Ashgabat $6,820

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 29% less than in Ashgabat, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Ashgabat 148% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$30.92 TMT 104

-42.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$86.5 TMT 290

-23.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$13.08 TMT 43.94

4.66%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$6.94 TMT 23.33

-55.91%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.58 TMT 5.32

94.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.84 TMT 2.83

130.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$5.78 TMT 19.42

-33.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$13.40 TMT 45.02

-65.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$4.41 TMT 14.82

-70.52%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.05 TMT 6.90

2.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$5.99 TMT 20.12

-69.45%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$5.85 TMT 19.65

-21.03%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$37.82 TMT 127

-54.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$19.59 TMT 65.8

-52.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$23.05 TMT 77.4

-13.97%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$5.19 TMT 17.45

-42.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$8.41 TMT 28.24

-75.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$7.69 TMT 25.83

-65.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$3.57 TMT 11.99

-19.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$2.31 TMT 7.74

-6.49%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.42 TMT 4.76

51.41%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$2.72 TMT 9.15

-45.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.10 TMT 3.69

-20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$25.46 TMT 85.6

-72.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$41.36 TMT 139

-81.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$5.16 TMT 17.35

-73.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.91 TMT 9.77

-9.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.14 TMT 0.47

1978.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$10.01 TMT 33.62

154.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$2.83 TMT 9.50

6.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.84 TMT 2.84

71.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$8.49 TMT 28.54

291.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.44 TMT 1.50

322.73%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$44.2K TMT 148.4K

-26.78%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$56.7K TMT 190.4K

-44.06%

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

$183 €163

$567 TMT 1,905

-67.77%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$56.8 TMT 191

-76.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$103 TMT 345

-67.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$192 TMT 645

-71.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$43.98 TMT 148

-62.44%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$8.78 TMT 29.50

27.90%

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

$954 €849

$23.20 TMT 77.9

4012.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$24.9K TMT 83.6K

-33.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$56.1 TMT 189

53.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$115 TMT 385

-65.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$368 TMT 1,238

-71.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$195 TMT 655

-39.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,412 TMT 4,745

20.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$982 TMT 3,298

30.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$2,273 TMT 7,636

13.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,959 TMT 6,582

-1.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,585 TMT 12.0K

103.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,851 TMT 9,580

75.71%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$738 TMT 2,478

201.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

9.5

-65.47%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Ashgabat: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Ashgabat

$982 29.2% 23.1% $295

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Ashgabat

$666 19.8% 105% $341

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Ashgabat

$435 12.9% 61.5% $166

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Ashgabat

$727 21.6% 217% $497

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Ashgabat

$330 9.8% 111% $174

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Ashgabat

$210 6.2% 172% $132

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Ashgabat

$18 0.5% 62.8% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,412 in Ashgabat. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 202% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $86.0 in Ashgabat for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $666 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇹🇲 Ashgabat

🕒 Local time

16:20 4:20 PM

19:20 7:20 PM

3 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

909,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Turkmenistani Manat TMT m

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 TMT = 0.298 USD

1 TMT = 0.265 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TMT, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Turkmenistani Manat exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 3.36 TMT (1 TMT = 0.298 USD). 1 EUR = 3.78 TMT (1 TMT = 0.265 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Ashgabat 4,740 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Ashgabat

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 Ashgabat: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Ashgabat differ by about 41% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $3,367 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 202% higher in Barcelona, 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,412 in Ashgabat. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $23.20 in Ashgabat. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 105% higher in Ashgabat. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Barcelona 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, Barcelona and Ashgabat are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Ashgabat. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.