Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Batavia, IL

For one person, living is cheaper in Batavia, IL: $2,260 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
118

Cost of Living Index in Batavia, IL
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Batavia, IL Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Batavia, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,260

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Batavia, IL

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,260 in Batavia, IL.

Barcelona $2,381
Batavia, IL $2,260

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $3,570 in Batavia, IL.

Barcelona $3,406
Batavia, IL $3,570

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $4,881 in Batavia, IL.

Barcelona $4,431
Batavia, IL $4,881

Living in Barcelona is roughly 5% more expensive than in Batavia, IL, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Batavia, IL 67% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$15.42 $15.42

16.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$70.4 $70.4

-6.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$12.73 $12.73

7.54%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$5.89 $5.89

-48.05%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$3.07 $3.07

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$2.25 $2.25

-13.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$6.87 $6.87

-43.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$8.68 $8.68

-46.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.83 $0.83

56.63%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.76 $2.76

-23.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$2.92 $2.92

-37.33%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$3.61 $3.61

27.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$7.78 $7.78

123.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$11.46 $11.46

-19.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$10.32 $10.32

92.15%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$4.73 $4.73

-36.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.57 $1.57

29.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.43 $3.43

-22.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$4.96 $4.96

-42.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.76 $1.76

22.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$2.96 $2.96

-27.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.63 $1.63

-9.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$2.43 $2.43

-63.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$10.83 $10.83

-36.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$8.19 $8.19

-4.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.71 $1.71

-18.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$4.55 $4.55

-42.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.84 $1.84

58.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$3.94 $3.94

-23.86%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.99 $1.99

-27.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$43.91 $43.91

-24.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.03 $1.03

80.58%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$24.6K $24.6K

31.31%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$26.0K $26.0K

21.87%

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

$183 €163

$172 $172

5.98%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$51.0 $51.0

-73.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$51.6 $51.6

-36.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$36.45 $36.45

50.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$11.85 $11.85

-5.23%

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

$954 €849

$1,472 $1,472

-35.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$23.1K $23.1K

-28.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$57.6 $57.6

49.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$50.0 $50.0

-21.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$87.9 $87.9

17.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$124 $124

-4.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,600 $1,600

5.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$1,128 $1,128

13.12%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$2,619 $2,619

-1.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$2,361 $2,361

-18.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$2,917 $2,917

149.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,563 $2,563

95.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,961 $1,961

13.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.43

-48.99%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Batavia, IL: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Batavia, IL

$1.1K 49.9% 11.6% $148

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Batavia, IL

$326 14.4% 0.3% $1.1

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Batavia, IL

$305 13.5% 13.2% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Batavia, IL

$275 12.2% 20% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Batavia, IL

$144 6.4% 8% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Batavia, IL

$60 2.7% 22% $17

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Batavia, IL

$21 * 0.9% 55.1% $26

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,600 in Batavia, IL. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 14% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $70.0 in Batavia, IL for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $326 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇺🇸 Batavia, IL

🕒 Local time

05:16 5:16 AM

22:16 10:16 PM

7 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

15,600

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Batavia, IL 7,130 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Batavia, IL

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 Batavia, IL: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Batavia, IL differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,260 including rent). Batavia, IL is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 14% 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 $1,600 in Batavia, IL. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,472 in Batavia, IL. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Batavia, IL – a meal for two runs $70.0 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Batavia, IL 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 Batavia, IL 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 Batavia, IL gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.