Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Boracay

For one person, living is cheaper in Boracay: $767 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Boracay
Learn more

Boracay Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Boracay

🇵🇭 Philippines

$767

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Boracay

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $767 in Boracay.

Barcelona $2,381
Boracay $767

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,309 in Boracay.

Barcelona $3,406
Boracay $1,309

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,852 in Boracay.

Barcelona $4,431
Boracay $1,852

Living in Barcelona is roughly 211% more expensive than in Boracay, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Boracay is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$5.41 ₱341

230.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$19.31 ₱1,216

242.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$5.92 ₱373

131.25%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.34 ₱147

30.77%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.65 ₱41.15

372.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.23 ₱14.45

743.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.16 ₱73.1

233.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$1.88 ₱118

145.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$2.84 ₱179

-54.23%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.21 ₱76.3

73.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$0.91 ₱57.4

101.10%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.89 ₱119

144.44%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$5.35 ₱337

224.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$4.69 ₱295

97.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$7.68 ₱484

158.20%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.64 ₱166

14.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.56 ₱98.0

30.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.62 ₱165

1.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.27 ₱79.7

125.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.83 ₱115

18.03%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.72 ₱108

25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.89 ₱56.3

65.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.51 ₱31.88

72.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.28 ₱144

203.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$7.74 ₱487

1.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.05 ₱66.0

32.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.05 ₱129

28.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.26 ₱16.36

1019.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$11.28 ₱710

125.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$0.77 ₱48.21

289.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.19 ₱11.90

657.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$1.82 ₱114

1724.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.12 ₱70.5

66.07%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$20.5K ₱1.3M

57.62%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$17.4K ₱1.1M

82.08%

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

$183 €163

$109 ₱6,893

66.95%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$14.77 ₱930

-7.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$34.01 ₱2,141

-3.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$35.58 ₱2,240

53.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$5.31 ₱334

211.11%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$5.03 ₱317

123.26%

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

$954 €849

$113 ₱7,126

742.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$7,986 ₱502.8K

107.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$32.97 ₱2,076

160.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$20.20 ₱1,272

93.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$64.0 ₱4,031

61.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$53.1 ₱3,345

123.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$263 ₱16.6K

543.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$173 ₱10.9K

638.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$520 ₱32.7K

395.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$619 ₱39.0K

210.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$2,427 ₱152.8K

200.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$996 ₱62.7K

402.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$226 ₱14.2K

886.39%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.79

-51.69%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Boracay: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Boracay

$173 22.5% 86.5% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Boracay

$197 25.7% 39.4% $128

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Boracay

$102 13.3% 62.1% $167

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Boracay

$158 20.6% 31% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Boracay

$77 10% 51% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Boracay

$46 6% 40.9% $32

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Boracay

$14 1.8% 70.3% $33

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $263 in Boracay. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 886% 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 $19.00 in Boracay for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $197 per month, with Boracay cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇵🇭 Boracay

🕒 Local time

14:30 2:30 PM

20:30 8:30 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

12,296

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Boracay 11,470 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Boracay

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 Boracay: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Boracay differ by about 211% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $767 including rent). Boracay is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 886% 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 $263 in Boracay. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $113 in Boracay. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 65% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $767 in Boracay versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Boracay but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Boracay 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 Boracay 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 Boracay gentler on the wallet – expenses run 211% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.