Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Cartago, Colombia

Name: Cartago
Address: Cartago, CO

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartago: $1,322 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 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
63

Cost of Living Index in Cartago
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Cartago Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Cartago

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,322

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Cartago

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $1,322 in Cartago.

Barcelona $2,443
Cartago $1,322

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $2,013 in Cartago.

Barcelona $3,519
Cartago $2,013

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $2,703 in Cartago.

Barcelona $4,595
Cartago $2,703

Living in Barcelona is roughly 85% more expensive than in Cartago, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 81% above, Cartago is 2% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.79

$5.22 COP 16.8K

238.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.3

$57.1 COP 184.3K

18.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.17

$6.37 COP 20.6K

113.66%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.77

$3.05 COP 9,836

1.64%

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

$3.00 €2.68

$2.45 COP 7,906

22.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$2.27 COP 7,338

-14.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.44

$3.55 COP 11.4K

8.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.90

$3.63 COP 11.7K

20.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.67 COP 5,407

-25.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.90

$1.80 COP 5,798

17.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.74 COP 5,618

13.22%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.26

$3.16 COP 10.2K

50.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.26

$9.12 COP 29.5K

87.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €8.01

$9.32 COP 30.1K

-3.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.46

$11.27 COP 36.4K

83.23%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.83

$3.76 COP 12.1K

-15.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.24 COP 4,010

58.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

$1.38 COP 4,444

92.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.58

$1.91 COP 6,169

50.79%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$1.67 COP 5,404

23.35%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$1.64 COP 5,291

32.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$0.96 COP 3,084

59.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$0.92 COP 2,968

5.43%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.23

$4.36 COP 14.1K

59.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.05

$16.90 COP 54.6K

-53.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.52 COP 4,895

-6.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.40

$1.91 COP 6,161

40.84%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.96

$1.11 COP 3,596

198.20%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.90

$65.8 COP 212.3K

-61.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.76

$1.14 COP 3,673

170.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.33

$0.57 COP 1,826

159.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.40

$3.33 COP 10.7K

887.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.36 COP 4,376

37.50%

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

$33.0K €29.5K

$34.7K COP 112.1M

-5.07%

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

$31.9K €28.6K

$34.9K COP 112.8M

-8.58%

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

$183 €164

$101 COP 326.0K

81.09%

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

$14.24 €12.73

$15.19 COP 49.1K

-6.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.91

$27.03 COP 87.3K

27.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.98

$37.99 COP 122.7K

35.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.65

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.89

$5.18 COP 16.7K

113.51%

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

$944 €844

$416 COP 1.3M

126.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.9K

$11.6K COP 37.3M

92.76%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.4

$82.1 COP 264.9K

6.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.67

$43.82 COP 141.5K

-11.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.5

$115 COP 372.3K

-9.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$101 COP 325.2K

16.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,517

$718 COP 2.3M

136.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,195

$490 COP 1.6M

173.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,407

$1,427 COP 4.6M

88.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,857

$780 COP 2.5M

166.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,398

$2,259 COP 7.3M

216.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,542

$1,786 COP 5.8M

184.35%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €2,004

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

13.88

-77.02%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Cartago: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Cartago

$490 37% 63.4% $847

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Cartago

$272 20.6% 17.1% $56

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Cartago

$141 10.7% 47.1% $126

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Cartago

$143 10.8% 38.2% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Cartago

$154 11.6% 1.9% $3

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Cartago

$48 3.7% 34.3% $25

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Cartago

$74 5.6% 50.3% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $718 in Cartago. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $57 in Cartago for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $272 per month, with Cartago cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇴 Cartago

🕒 Local time

21:16 9:16 PM

15:16 3:16 PM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

135,365

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Colombian Peso COP $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

COP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,610 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Cartago 8,670 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Cartago

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 Cartago: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $1,322 in Cartago, so Cartago is about 46% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $1,983 in Cartago to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $718 in Cartago. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $416 in Cartago. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,322 in Cartago versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cartago but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Cartago 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 Cartago are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.