Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Cancun

For one person, living is cheaper in Cancun: $1,625 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,900 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
79

Cost of Living Index in Cancun
Learn more

Cancun Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Cancun

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,625

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Cancun

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,625 in Cancun.

Barcelona $2,453
Cancun $1,625

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,440 in Cancun.

Barcelona $3,509
Cancun $2,440

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,255 in Cancun.

Barcelona $4,564
Cancun $3,255

Living in Barcelona is roughly 51% more expensive than in Cancun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Cancun 19% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$10.72 MX$201

64.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$53.7 MX$1,006

25.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$11.51 MX$216

17.55%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$3.71 MX$69.5

-14.02%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$1.34 MX$25.03

117.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.79 MX$14.79

139.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$3.18 MX$59.5

26.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$4.10 MX$76.9

10.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.68 MX$31.52

-22.02%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.56 MX$47.99

-21.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.62 MX$30.37

14.20%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.76 MX$51.7

75.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$9.72 MX$182

72.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$8.90 MX$167

2.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$14.23 MX$267

38.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$2.86 MX$53.5

4.20%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.63 MX$30.63

23.93%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$2.99 MX$56.1

-9.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$2.15 MX$40.35

30.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.00 MX$37.52

4.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.88 MX$35.29

10.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.18 MX$22.13

23.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.20 MX$22.42

-21.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$4.29 MX$80.5

60.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$9.90 MX$186

-20.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.54 MX$28.83

-8.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.66 MX$49.83

-4.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$0.62 MX$11.64

406.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$38.69 MX$725

-34.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$4.20 MX$78.8

-28.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$2.88 MX$54.0

-48.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$13.30 MX$249

150.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.44 MX$27.07

25.00%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$23.9K MX$448.8K

38.60%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$22.8K MX$428.0K

38.79%

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

$180 €161

$164 MX$3,074

9.99%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$22.97 MX$430

-39.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$37.61 MX$705

-10.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$26.91 MX$504

91.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$13.08 MX$245

22.02%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$7.08 MX$133

55.23%

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

$917 €818

$204 MX$3,827

348.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$5,365 MX$100.5K

207.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$54.1 MX$1,015

60.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$54.9 MX$1,029

-29.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$73.0 MX$1,368

44.93%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$92.4 MX$1,732

29.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$956 MX$17.9K

77.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$694 MX$13.0K

95.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$1,718 MX$32.2K

51.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$1,192 MX$22.3K

73.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$1,218 MX$22.8K

467.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$1,905 MX$35.7K

169.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$806 MX$15.1K

174.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

11.45

-71.35%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Cancun: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Cancun

$694 42.7% 48.8% $661

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Cancun

$285 17.5% 11.5% $37

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Cancun

$197 12.1% 26.3% $71

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Cancun

$225 13.8% 1.5% $3.3

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Cancun

$124 7.6% 21.8% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Cancun

$41 2.5% 44.1% $32

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Cancun

$60 3.7% 23.4% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $956 in Cancun. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $54 in Cancun for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $285 per month, with Cancun cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇲🇽 Cancun

🕒 Local time

22:29 10:29 PM

16:29 4:29 PM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

888,797

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.76 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Cancun 8,390 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Cancun

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 Cancun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,625 in Cancun, so Cancun is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2.7 times higher, 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 $956 in Cancun. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $204 in Cancun. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 13% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Cancun gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

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