Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Assela

For one person, living is cheaper in Assela: $835 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
41

Cost of Living Index in Assela
Learn more

Assela Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Assela

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$835

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Assela

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $835 in Assela.

Barcelona $2,399
Assela $835

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $1,203 in Assela.

Barcelona $3,410
Assela $1,203

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $1,571 in Assela.

Barcelona $4,421
Assela $1,571

Living in Barcelona is roughly 187% more expensive than in Assela, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 78% above, Assela is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$3.96 ETB 636

353.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$42.32 ETB 6,793

60.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$6.66 ETB 1,069

99.40%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$0.96 ETB 153

238.54%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$0.64 ETB 102

370.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$0.68 ETB 109

175.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$0.83 ETB 133

363.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$2.20 ETB 353

103.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.05 ETB 169

22.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.17 ETB 188

74.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$2.22 ETB 357

-22.52%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$1.78 ETB 286

167.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$7.18 ETB 1,152

133.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$10.17 ETB 1,632

-12.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$9.17 ETB 1,471

116.79%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$5.43 ETB 871

-45.12%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$0.68 ETB 109

198.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.17 ETB 348

25.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$0.66 ETB 106

306.06%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.47 ETB 75.4

346.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.05 ETB 169

98.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.66 ETB 106

119.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$0.60 ETB 96.9

48.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$8.03 ETB 1,290

-13.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$5.49 ETB 881

41.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.66 ETB 106

119.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$1.22 ETB 196

110.66%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$1.29 ETB 207

141.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.29 ETB 46.58

396.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$2.03 ETB 325

1550.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$0.90 ETB 144

98.89%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$54.3K ETB 8.7M

-36.21%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$56.5K ETB 9.1M

-46.75%

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

$178 €158

$201 ETB 32.2K

-11.49%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$7.11 ETB 1,141

87.34%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$209 ETB 33.5K

-83.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$3.83 ETB 614

188.77%

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

$957 €851

$137 ETB 22.1K

595.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$30.2K ETB 4.8M

-45.13%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$33.25 ETB 5,337

165.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$70.9 ETB 11.4K

-44.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$77.7 ETB 12.5K

32.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$82.6 ETB 13.3K

47.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

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 11, 2026

Last update for Assela: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Assela

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Assela

$211 25.3% 33.9% $109

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Assela

$77 9.2% 71.5% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Assela

$417 50% 84.4% $191

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Assela

$119 14.3% 24.9% $39

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Assela

$7.7 * 0.9% 89.9% $68

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Assela

$2.7 * 0.3% 94.2% $45

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $42.00 in Assela for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $211 per month, with Assela cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇹 Assela

🕒 Local time

18:17 6:17 PM

19:17 7:17 PM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

139,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 ETB = 6.23 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 160 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.23 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.54 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Assela 5,200 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Assela

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 Assela: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Assela is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 187% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

You'd need roughly $3,599 in Barcelona and $1,252 in Assela to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $137 in Assela. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Assela – a meal for two runs $42.00 versus $68.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $835 in Assela versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Assela but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Assela the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Assela is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Barcelona, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Assela 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 Assela gentler on the wallet – expenses run 187% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.