Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Brighton

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $2,950 in Brighton, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
143

Cost of Living Index in Brighton
Learn more

Brighton Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Brighton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,950

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Brighton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,950 in Brighton.

Barcelona $2,381
Brighton $2,950

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $4,214 in Brighton.

Barcelona $3,406
Brighton $4,214

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $5,479 in Brighton.

Barcelona $4,431
Brighton $5,479

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 19% less than in Brighton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Brighton 118% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$25.54 £19.16

-29.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$92.8 £69.6

-28.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$9.77 £7.33

40.12%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$5.33 £4.00

-42.59%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$3.93 £2.95

-21.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$3.33 £2.50

-41.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$8.96 £6.72

-56.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$9.49 £7.12

-51.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.95 £1.47

-33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.06 £1.54

1.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$2.12 £1.59

-13.68%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.53 £3.40

1.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.10 £9.08

43.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$9.40 £7.05

-1.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$15.08 £11.31

31.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.95 £2.22

2.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.91 £1.43

6.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.90 £2.17

-8.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$3.76 £2.82

-23.67%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$2.24 £1.68

-3.57%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.80 £1.35

19.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.20 £0.90

22.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.65 £1.24

-46.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$23.98 £17.99

-71.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$11.11 £8.33

-29.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$3.08 £2.31

-54.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$3.24 £2.43

-18.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$3.94 £2.96

-26.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$128 £96.4

-80.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$5.07 £3.81

-40.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.62 £1.96

-45.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$39.62 £29.72

-16.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.09 £1.57

-11.00%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$38.4K £28.8K

-15.79%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$41.1K £30.9K

-22.94%

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

$183 €163

$291 £218

-37.21%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$16.90 £12.68

-19.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$44.87 £33.66

-26.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$51.2 £38.38

6.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$26.89 £20.17

-38.56%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$17.32 £12.99

-35.16%

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

$954 €849

$2,062 £1,547

-53.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$30.8K £23.1K

-46.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$89.9 £67.5

-4.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$45.51 £34.14

-14.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$102 £76.8

1.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$90.7 £68.1

30.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,887 £1,416

-10.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$1,480 £1,110

-13.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$2,833 £2,125

-9.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$2,233 £1,675

-13.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$8,467 £6,352

-14.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$6,148 £4,612

-18.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$3,380 £2,536

-34.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.12

-35.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Brighton: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Brighton

$1.5K 50.2% 15.9% $203

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Brighton

$331 11.2% 1.8% $5.9

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Brighton

$390 13.2% 44.9% $121

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Brighton

$353 12% 53.9% $124

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Brighton

$148 5% 5.4% $8.5

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Brighton

$86 2.9% 11.2% $8.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Brighton

$162 5.5% 243% $115

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,887 in Brighton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Brighton pays 52% 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 $93.0 in Brighton for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $331 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Brighton

🕒 Local time

15:19 3:19 PM

14:19 2:19 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

256,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Brighton 1,060 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Brighton

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 Brighton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Brighton differ by about 24% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,950 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 52% lower in Brighton. 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,887 in Brighton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $2,062 in Brighton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Brighton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Barcelona is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Brighton 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 Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 24% less than in Brighton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.