Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Besancon

For one person, living is cheaper in Besancon: $1,754 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 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
85

Cost of Living Index in Besancon
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Besancon Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Besancon

🇫🇷 France

$1,754

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Besancon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,754 in Besancon.

Barcelona $2,453
Besancon $1,754

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,541 in Besancon.

Barcelona $3,509
Besancon $2,541

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,328 in Besancon.

Barcelona $4,564
Besancon $3,328

Living in Barcelona is roughly 40% more expensive than in Besancon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Besancon 29% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$16.79 €15.04

4.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$54.9 €49.15

23.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$11.06 €9.91

22.33%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.00 €2.69

6.33%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.32 €2.08

25.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.58 €1.41

19.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$6.60 €5.92

-39.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$5.72 €5.13

-20.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.27 €1.14

3.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.64 €1.47

23.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.14 €1.91

-13.55%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$4.54 €4.07

6.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$20.49 €18.36

-18.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$11.11 €9.96

-17.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$18.32 €16.42

7.21%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.67 €2.39

11.61%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.19 €1.96

-7.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.84 €2.55

-4.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$2.48 €2.22

12.90%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.44 €2.18

-14.34%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.42 €2.17

-14.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.38 €1.23

5.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.12 €1.00

-16.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$14.18 €12.71

-51.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$9.47 €8.49

-16.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$4.76 €4.27

-70.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.25 €2.91

-21.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.75 €1.57

79.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$43.76 €39.21

-41.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$3.12 €2.79

-4.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.09 €1.87

-28.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$30.39 €27.23

9.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.08 €1.87

-13.46%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$35.3K €31.6K

-5.93%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$38.5K €34.5K

-17.64%

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

$180 €162

$228 €204

-20.78%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$14.33 €12.84

-3.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$34.37 €30.80

-1.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$26.49 €23.74

94.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$19.74 €17.69

-19.15%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$10.97 €9.83

0.18%

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

$917 €821

$333 €298

175.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$7,365 €6,600

123.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$96.6 €86.5

-9.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$38.88 €34.84

-0.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$93.0 €83.3

13.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$123 €110

-2.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$658 €590

158.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$585 €524

131.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$982 €880

164.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$807 €723

155.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$2,858 €2,561

141.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$2,234 €2,002

129.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,139 €1,917

3.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.62

-9.39%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Besancon: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Besancon

$585 33.4% 56.8% $770

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Besancon

$358 20.4% 11.4% $37

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Besancon

$264 15% 1.6% $4.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Besancon

$276 15.8% 21.3% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Besancon

$158 9% 0.1% $0.1

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Besancon

$48 2.8% 34.1% $25

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Besancon

$64 3.7% 32.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $658 in Besancon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 3% 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 $55 in Besancon. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $358, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇫🇷 Besancon

🕒 Local time

11:40 11:40 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

119,198

💱 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 Besancon 720 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Besancon

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 Besancon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,754 in Besancon, so Besancon is about 28% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 3% 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 $658 in Besancon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $333 in Besancon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,754 in Besancon versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Besancon but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Besancon 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 Besancon are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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