Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Castanhal

For one person, living is cheaper in Castanhal: $879 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Castanhal
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Castanhal Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Castanhal

🇧🇷 Brazil

$879

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Castanhal

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $879 in Castanhal.

Barcelona $2,381
Castanhal $879

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,407 in Castanhal.

Barcelona $3,406
Castanhal $1,407

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,936 in Castanhal.

Barcelona $4,431
Castanhal $1,936

Living in Barcelona is roughly 171% more expensive than in Castanhal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Castanhal is 35% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$6.18 R$31.34

189.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$32.20 R$163

105.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$7.74 R$39.25

76.87%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.09 R$10.59

46.41%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.34 R$6.79

129.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.81 R$4.12

139.51%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$2.01 R$10.21

92.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.94 R$14.88

56.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.01 R$5.13

28.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.71 R$8.67

22.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.30 R$6.60

40.77%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$2.16 R$10.95

113.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$9.34 R$47.34

85.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$4.18 R$21.20

122.01%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$8.34 R$42.29

137.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.22 R$11.26

35.59%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.27 R$6.43

59.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.23 R$6.24

115.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.61 R$8.14

78.26%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.23 R$6.21

75.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.12 R$5.69

91.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.83 R$4.21

77.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.81 R$4.11

8.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.47 R$12.53

180.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$8.14 R$41.24

-3.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.28 R$6.48

8.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.08 R$10.54

26.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.00 R$5.08

191.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$43.66 R$221

-41.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.28 R$6.48

134.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.92 R$4.66

56.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$7.96 R$40.34

317.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.26 R$6.41

47.62%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$24.0K R$121.8K

34.57%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$33.3K R$168.6K

-4.67%

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

$183 €163

$77.1 R$391

136.98%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$12.19 R$61.8

11.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$20.78 R$105

58.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$26.24 R$133

108.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$28.03 R$142

-41.06%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$7.37 R$37.38

52.37%

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

$954 €849

$285 R$1,445

234.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$7,284 R$36.9K

127.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$55.1 R$279

56.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$50.8 R$258

-23.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$91.3 R$463

13.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$73.0 R$370

62.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$358 R$1,817

372.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$238 R$1,206

436.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$685 R$3,475

275.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$481 R$2,437

299.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,704 R$8,639

327.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,188 R$6,021

321.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

-70.18%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Castanhal: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Castanhal

$238 27.1% 81.4% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Castanhal

$192 21.9% 40.8% $133

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Castanhal

$122 13.9% 54.6% $147

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Castanhal

$110 12.5% 52% $119

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Castanhal

$122 13.8% 22.2% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Castanhal

$41 4.7% 46.9% $36

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Castanhal

$54 6.1% 13.2% $6.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $358 in Castanhal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $32.00 in Castanhal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $192 per month, with Castanhal cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇧🇷 Castanhal

🕒 Local time

22:16 10:16 PM

17:16 5:16 PM

5 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

192,256

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Castanhal 6,920 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Castanhal

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 Castanhal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Castanhal differ by about 171% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $879 including rent). Castanhal is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,571 in Barcelona and $1,318 in Castanhal 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $358 in Castanhal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $285 in Castanhal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 69% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $879 in Castanhal versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Castanhal but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Castanhal 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 Castanhal 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 Castanhal gentler on the wallet – expenses run 171% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.