Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Beijing (Pekin)

For one person, living is cheaper in Beijing (Pekin): $1,190 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 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
57

Cost of Living Index in Beijing (Pekin)
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Beijing (Pekin) Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Beijing (Pekin)

🇨🇳 China

$1,190

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Beijing (Pekin)

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 Beijing (Pekin) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $1,190 in Beijing (Pekin).

Barcelona $2,443
Beijing (Pekin) $1,190

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $1,889 in Beijing (Pekin).

Barcelona $3,519
Beijing (Pekin) $1,889

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $2,588 in Beijing (Pekin).

Barcelona $4,595
Beijing (Pekin) $2,588

Living in Barcelona is roughly 105% more expensive than in Beijing (Pekin), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 81% above, Beijing (Pekin) is 12% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.79

$4.54 ¥30.23

288.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.3

$29.58 ¥197

128.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.17

$5.22 ¥34.77

160.73%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.77

$3.73 ¥24.87

-16.89%

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

$3.00 €2.68

$0.53 ¥3.53

466.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$0.29 ¥1.94

565.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.44

$1.17 ¥7.80

228.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.90

$1.70 ¥11.30

156.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.69 ¥11.28

-26.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.90

$1.70 ¥11.29

24.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.30 ¥8.67

51.54%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.26

$1.99 ¥13.25

139.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.26

$14.82 ¥98.7

15.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €8.01

$3.29 ¥21.90

172.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.46

$10.93 ¥72.8

88.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.83

$2.09 ¥13.94

51.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.71 ¥11.41

15.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

$2.05 ¥13.65

29.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.58

$1.56 ¥10.38

84.62%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$0.74 ¥4.92

178.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$0.84 ¥5.57

159.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$0.74 ¥4.91

106.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$0.57 ¥3.82

70.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.23

$4.25 ¥28.33

64.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.05

$14.22 ¥94.7

-44.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.27

$0.98 ¥6.50

44.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.40

$1.88 ¥12.55

43.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.96

$0.57 ¥3.82

480.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.90

$29.59 ¥197

-13.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.76

$1.94 ¥12.89

58.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.33

$0.33 ¥2.22

348.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.40

$7.08 ¥47.18

364.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.37 ¥9.12

36.50%

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

$33.0K €29.5K

$19.8K ¥132.0K

66.38%

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

$31.9K €28.6K

$17.9K ¥119.2K

78.49%

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

$183 €164

$59.7 ¥398

206.33%

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

$14.24 €12.73

$8.90 ¥59.3

60.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.91

$14.41 ¥96.0

139.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.98

$46.85 ¥312

9.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.65

$24.86 ¥166

-34.11%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.89

$7.50 ¥49.98

47.47%

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

$944 €844

$968 ¥6,447

-2.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.9K

$44.5K ¥296.7K

-50.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.4

$72.2 ¥481

21.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.67

$40.00 ¥266

-3.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.5

$89.3 ¥595

17.08%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$125 ¥830

-5.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,517

$942 ¥6,277

80.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,195

$525 ¥3,496

154.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,407

$2,250 ¥15.0K

19.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,857

$1,061 ¥7,069

95.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,398

$12.2K ¥80.9K

-41.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,542

$6,534 ¥43.5K

-22.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €2,004

$1,688 ¥11.2K

32.75%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

3.12

2.24%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Beijing (Pekin): November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Beijing (Pekin)

$525 44.1% 60.7% $812

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Beijing (Pekin)

$228 19.2% 30.3% $99

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Beijing (Pekin)

$109 9.2% 59.1% $158

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Beijing (Pekin)

$83 7% 64.2% $149

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Beijing (Pekin)

$147 12.3% 6.4% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Beijing (Pekin)

$62 5.2% 15.9% $12

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Beijing (Pekin)

$35 3% 28.1% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $942 in Beijing (Pekin). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 33% 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 in Barcelona vs $30 in Beijing (Pekin) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $228 per month, with Beijing (Pekin) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Beijing (Pekin)

🕒 Local time

21:03 9:03 PM

04:03 4:03 AM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

21,893,095 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Beijing (Pekin) 8,800 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Beijing (Pekin)

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 Beijing (Pekin): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $1,190 in Beijing (Pekin), so Beijing (Pekin) is about 51% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 33% 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $942 in Beijing (Pekin). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $968 in Beijing (Pekin). Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,190 in Beijing (Pekin) versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Beijing (Pekin) but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Beijing (Pekin) 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.

It comes down to priorities – Beijing (Pekin) wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.