Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Bolton

For one person, living is cheaper in Bolton: $2,245 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $2,500 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
107

Cost of Living Index in Bolton
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Bolton Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Bolton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,245

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Bolton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,245 in Bolton.

Barcelona $2,453
Bolton $2,245

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,309 in Bolton.

Barcelona $3,509
Bolton $3,309

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,374 in Bolton.

Barcelona $4,564
Bolton $4,374

Living in Barcelona is roughly 9% more expensive than in Bolton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Bolton 65% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.75

$20.30 £15.16

-13.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$88.4 £66.0

-23.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$10.81 £8.07

25.16%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$5.10 £3.81

-37.45%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.44 £1.82

19.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.77 £1.32

6.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$7.45 £5.56

-46.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$6.47 £4.83

-29.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.69 £1.26

-22.49%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.51 £1.13

33.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.88 £1.40

-1.60%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$4.14 £3.09

16.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.99

$9.76 £7.29

71.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$8.98 £6.70

1.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.59

$15.83 £11.82

24.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.11 £2.32

-4.18%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.94 £1.45

4.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$3.07 £2.29

-12.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$3.45 £2.58

-18.84%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.50 £1.12

39.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.68 £1.25

23.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.21 £0.91

20.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.24 £0.93

-24.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$24.01 £17.92

-71.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$10.78 £8.05

-26.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.48 £1.85

-43.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.08 £2.30

-17.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.62 £1.96

19.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.79

$49.24 £36.77

-48.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$3.93 £2.94

-23.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.11 £1.57

-29.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.89

$24.25 £18.11

37.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.15 £1.61

-16.28%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$38.8K £29.0K

-14.52%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$41.1K £30.7K

-22.91%

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

$180 €162

$248 £185

-27.16%

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

$13.84 €12.39

$16.34 £12.20

-15.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.18

$41.34 £30.87

-18.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.13

$78.1 £58.3

-34.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.29

$6.59 £4.92

142.19%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$13.28 £9.91

-17.24%

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

$917 €821

$1,444 £1,078

-36.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$19.9K £14.9K

-17.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.9

$83.8 £62.5

3.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.49

$42.99 £32.10

-10.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$91.5 £68.3

15.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$88.4 £66.0

35.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,522

$1,245 £930

36.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$997 £745

35.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,331

$1,968 £1,470

32.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,847

$1,580 £1,179

30.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,193

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,592

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,980

$4,135 £3,087

-46.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.99

-34.27%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Bolton: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Bolton

$998 44.4% 26.4% $358

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Bolton

$302 13.5% 6.1% $20

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Bolton

$323 14.4% 20.6% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Bolton

$305 13.6% 34% $77

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Bolton

$138 6.2% 12.7% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Bolton

$105 4.7% 42.4% $31

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Bolton

$74 3.3% 53.1% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,245 in Bolton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bolton pays 87% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $88 in Bolton. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $302, with Bolton cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Bolton

🕒 Local time

22:35 10:35 PM

21:35 9:35 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

139,403

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Bolton 1,400 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Bolton

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 Bolton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,245 in Bolton, so Bolton is about 8% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 47% lower in Barcelona. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $1,245 in Bolton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $1,444 in Bolton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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