Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Basra

For one person, living is cheaper in Basra: $750 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,900 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
37

Cost of Living Index in Basra
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Basra Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Basra

🇮🇶 Iraq

$750

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Basra

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,405 in Barcelona versus $750 in Basra.

Barcelona $2,405
Basra $750

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,477 in Barcelona versus $1,357 in Basra.

Barcelona $3,477
Basra $1,357

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,550 in Barcelona versus $1,964 in Basra.

Barcelona $4,550
Basra $1,964

Living in Barcelona is roughly 221% more expensive than in Basra, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 79% above, Basra is 44% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.98 €16.05

$4.46 IQD 6,745

303.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 €60.2

$30.01 IQD 45.3K

124.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.37 €11.93

$7.50 IQD 11.3K

78.27%

Cappuccino

$3.34 €2.98

$2.64 IQD 3,982

26.52%

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

$2.95 €2.64

$0.43 IQD 650

586.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$0.32 IQD 483

493.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.88 €3.46

$3.71 IQD 5,603

4.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 €4.08

$4.27 IQD 6,450

7.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.11 IQD 1,679

14.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 €1.75

$0.68 IQD 1,034

188.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.40 IQD 2,120

25.00%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.36

$1.81 IQD 2,732

170.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.47 €15.59

$7.57 IQD 11.4K

130.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.06 €8.09

$6.27 IQD 9,479

44.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.18 €18.01

$13.99 IQD 21.1K

44.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 €2.75

$1.03 IQD 1,551

199.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.31 IQD 1,981

54.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$1.03 IQD 1,553

152.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$0.64 IQD 973

323.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

$0.72 IQD 1,094

198.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$0.67 IQD 1,009

229.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.38

$0.93 IQD 1,404

65.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$0.41 IQD 624

126.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.09 €6.32

$2.12 IQD 3,204

234.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.63 €6.81

$12.11 IQD 18.3K

-36.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.62 IQD 2,453

-8.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 €2.43

$1.96 IQD 2,960

39.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.95 €2.63

$0.55 IQD 830

436.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.91 €23.13

$19.42 IQD 29.3K

33.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 €2.80

$2.24 IQD 3,384

39.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.45 €1.29

$2.33 IQD 3,518

-37.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.17 €30.49

$7.46 IQD 11.3K

358.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$0.61 IQD 917

193.44%

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

$34.7K €31.0K

$13.2K IQD 20.0M

162.06%

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

$30.3K €27.0K

$22.5K IQD 34.0M

34.63%

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

$181 €161

$50.3 IQD 76.1K

258.92%

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

$13.56 €12.10

$25.65 IQD 38.8K

-47.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.34

$38.51 IQD 58.2K

-8.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.2 €47.44

$36.03 IQD 54.4K

47.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.33

$13.80 IQD 20.9K

16.30%

Cinema Ticket

$11.37 €10.14

$7.61 IQD 11.5K

49.41%

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

$939 €838

$128 IQD 192.9K

635.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$3,814 IQD 5.8M

333.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.7

$49.10 IQD 74.2K

79.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.77 €35.49

$20.77 IQD 31.4K

91.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.3

$77.6 IQD 117.3K

33.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €107

$42.13 IQD 63.7K

183.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,513

$462 IQD 698.8K

266.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,301 €1,161

$151 IQD 227.9K

762.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,299

$848 IQD 1.3M

203.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 €1,732

$623 IQD 941.2K

211.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,470 €6,666

$1,615 IQD 2.4M

362.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,195 €4,636

$800 IQD 1.2M

549.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,299 €2,052

$749 IQD 1.1M

206.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.33

-1.50%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Last update for Basra: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54%

Basra

$151 20% 88.4% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.5%

Basra

$196 26% 39.8% $129

Eating Out

Barcelona

$272 11.3%

Basra

$120 15.9% 55.9% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.5%

Basra

$115 15.2% 50.1% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Basra

$85 11.3% 45.9% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$76 3.2%

Basra

$51 6.8% 32.5% $25

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Basra

$35 4.7% 26.2% $13

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $462 in Basra. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 207% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $67.0 in Barcelona vs $30.00 in Basra for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $196 per month, with Basra cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇶 Basra

🕒 Local time

08:42 8:42 AM

09:42 9:42 AM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

2,150,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Iraqi Dinar IQD ع.د

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD

10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

IQD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Iraqi Dinar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,511 IQD (10,000 IQD = 6.62 USD). 1 EUR = 1,695 IQD (10,000 IQD = 5.9 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Basra 4,230 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Basra

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 Basra: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Basra differ by about 221% in total monthly costs ($2,405 vs $750 including rent). Basra is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 207% 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 $462 in Basra. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $939 in Barcelona versus $128 in Basra. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $750 in Basra versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Basra but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Basra the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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 Basra 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 Basra gentler on the wallet – expenses run 221% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.