Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Benidorm

For one person, living is cheaper in Benidorm: $1,707 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 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
82

Cost of Living Index in Benidorm
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Benidorm Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Benidorm

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,707

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Benidorm

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,707 in Benidorm.

Barcelona $2,453
Benidorm $1,707

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,498 in Benidorm.

Barcelona $3,509
Benidorm $2,498

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,290 in Benidorm.

Barcelona $4,564
Benidorm $3,290

Living in Barcelona is roughly 44% more expensive than in Benidorm, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Benidorm 25% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$17.28 €15.49

1.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$52.9 €47.44

27.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$12.28 €11.00

10.18%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.32 €2.08

37.50%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.29 €2.05

27.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.18 €1.06

60.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$3.41 €3.06

17.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$3.67 €3.29

23.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.14 €1.02

14.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.30 €1.16

55.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.41 €1.26

31.21%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.50 €3.14

38.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$10.98 €9.84

52.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$8.10 €7.26

12.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$15.68 €14.05

25.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.10 €1.88

41.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.83 €1.64

10.38%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.92 €1.72

40.63%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$2.66 €2.38

5.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.72 €1.54

21.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.77 €1.59

16.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.10 €0.99

32.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.44 €0.39

113.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$5.96 €5.34

15.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$5.73 €5.13

37.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.87 €0.78

62.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$0.94 €0.84

170.21%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$4.50 €4.03

-33.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.35 €1.21

10.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$24.26 €21.74

37.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.72 €1.54

4.65%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$34.2K €30.6K

-2.90%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$29.3K €26.3K

8.17%

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

$180 €162

$157 €141

14.82%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$16.38 €14.67

-15.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$22.55 €20.21

49.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$10.78 €9.66

1.95%

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

$917 €821

$575 €515

59.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$9,688 €8,682

70.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$91.2 €81.7

-4.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$42.40 €37.99

-9.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$96.1 €86.2

10.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$119 €106

1.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$1,002 €898

69.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$838 €751

61.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,766 €1,582

47.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,324 €1,186

55.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$5,197 €4,657

33.04%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$2,542 €2,278

101.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,785 €1,599

23.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.3

-0.61%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Benidorm: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Benidorm

$838 49.1% 38.2% $518

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Benidorm

$243 14.2% 24.5% $79

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Benidorm

$241 14.1% 10% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Benidorm

$196 11.5% 14% $32

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Benidorm

$157 9.2% 0.8% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Benidorm

$22 * 1.3% 70.7% $52

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Benidorm

$11 * 0.7% 76.9% $37

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 $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,002 in Benidorm. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 24% 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 $53 in Benidorm for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $243 per month, with Benidorm cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇸 Benidorm

🕒 Local time

06:26 6:26 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

72,342

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Benidorm 370 km

From you

Barcelona
Benidorm

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 Benidorm: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,707 in Benidorm, so Benidorm is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 24% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $1,002 in Benidorm. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $575 in Benidorm. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Benidorm – a meal for two runs $53 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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

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