Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Ballerup

For one person, living is cheaper in Ballerup: $2,202 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
106

Cost of Living Index in Ballerup
Learn more

Ballerup Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Ballerup

🇩🇰 Denmark

$2,202

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Ballerup

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,202 in Ballerup.

Barcelona $2,453
Ballerup $2,202

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,495 in Ballerup.

Barcelona $3,509
Ballerup $3,495

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,788 in Ballerup.

Barcelona $4,564
Ballerup $4,788

Living in Barcelona is roughly 11% more expensive than in Ballerup.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Ballerup 62% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$22.20 DKK 149

-20.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$120 DKK 802

-43.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$14.84 DKK 99.4

-8.83%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$7.18 DKK 48.09

-55.57%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$4.18 DKK 27.98

-30.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$3.42 DKK 22.94

-44.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$9.19 DKK 61.5

-56.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$7.49 DKK 50.2

-39.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.06 DKK 13.80

-36.41%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.80 DKK 25.44

-46.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.28 DKK 15.29

-18.86%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$4.86 DKK 32.58

-0.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$15.42 DKK 103

8.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$11.32 DKK 75.8

-19.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$18.11 DKK 121

8.45%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.19 DKK 21.38

-6.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.01 DKK 20.18

-32.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$3.82 DKK 25.56

-29.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$5.14 DKK 34.42

-45.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.31 DKK 15.46

-9.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.09 DKK 13.99

-0.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.12 DKK 14.20

-31.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.31 DKK 8.76

-28.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$9.66 DKK 64.7

-28.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$10.08 DKK 67.6

-21.73%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.85 DKK 12.37

-23.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.46 DKK 16.48

3.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$3.56 DKK 23.83

-11.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$86.2 DKK 577

-70.48%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$5.91 DKK 39.58

-49.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.62 DKK 10.85

-8.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$63.0 DKK 422

-47.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.58 DKK 17.30

-30.23%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$51.4K DKK 344.3K

-35.42%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$52.8K DKK 353.5K

-39.93%

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

$180 €162

$183 DKK 1,226

-1.47%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$11.39 DKK 76.3

21.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$37.57 DKK 252

-10.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$41.79 DKK 280

23.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$24.41 DKK 164

-34.62%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$19.58 DKK 131

-43.87%

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

$917 €821

$741 DKK 4,965

23.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$5,934 DKK 39.8K

177.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$108 DKK 726

-19.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$46.28 DKK 310

-16.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$127 DKK 851

-16.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$187 DKK 1,255

-36.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$914 DKK 6,123

85.91%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$775 DKK 5,188

74.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,650 DKK 11.1K

57.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,346 DKK 9,018

53.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$4,984 DKK 33.4K

38.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$3,793 DKK 25.4K

35.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$5,906 DKK 39.6K

-62.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.67

-10.63%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ballerup: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Ballerup

$775 35.2% 42.8% $581

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Ballerup

$389 17.7% 20.8% $67

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Ballerup

$400 18.2% 49.1% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Ballerup

$232 10.5% 1.8% $4.1

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Ballerup

$211 9.6% 33.6% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Ballerup

$81 3.7% 10.1% $7.5

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Ballerup

$114 5.2% 136% $66

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $914 in Ballerup. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ballerup pays about 2.7 times 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 Barcelona vs $120 in Ballerup for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $389 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇩🇰 Ballerup

🕒 Local time

13:27 1:27 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

39,087

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Danish Krone DKK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 DKK = 0.149 USD

1 DKK = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Ballerup 1,760 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Ballerup

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 Ballerup: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

On paper, salaries run 63% lower in Barcelona. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $914 in Ballerup. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $741 in Ballerup. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 17% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

For families, Ballerup 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 Ballerup are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.