Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Changchun

For one person, living is cheaper in Changchun: $904 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,700 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
44

Cost of Living Index in Changchun
Learn more

Changchun Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Changchun

🇨🇳 China

$904

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Changchun

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $904 in Changchun.

Barcelona $2,381
Changchun $904

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,324 in Changchun.

Barcelona $3,406
Changchun $1,324

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,743 in Changchun.

Barcelona $4,431
Changchun $1,743

Living in Barcelona is roughly 163% more expensive than in Changchun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Changchun is 33% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.97

$3.02 ¥20.17

492.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €59.1

$22.15 ¥148

198.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.22

$5.19 ¥34.59

163.78%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.73

$2.40 ¥15.98

27.50%

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

$3.07 €2.74

$0.47 ¥3.14

553.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.31 ¥2.09

525.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.45

$1.21 ¥8.10

219.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.11

$1.91 ¥12.71

141.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.90 ¥12.67

-31.58%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.22 ¥8.14

72.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.63

$1.44 ¥9.63

27.08%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.13

$1.81 ¥12.09

155.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.49

$34.55 ¥230

-49.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.28

$5.71 ¥38.06

62.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.70

$10.36 ¥69.1

91.41%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.69

$1.72 ¥11.48

75.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.45 ¥9.69

40.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

$1.80 ¥12.02

47.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.56

$1.89 ¥12.63

51.85%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.89 ¥5.94

142.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.58 ¥3.88

153.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.47 ¥9.77

-40.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.18

$3.78 ¥25.21

83.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.98

$21.06 ¥140

-62.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.92 ¥6.11

51.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.35

$1.10 ¥7.35

139.09%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.60

$0.44 ¥2.91

561.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.72

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.67

$1.24 ¥8.24

141.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.29

$0.31 ¥2.08

364.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.63

$3.02 ¥20.13

999.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.28 ¥8.56

45.31%

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

$32.3K €28.9K

$19.3K ¥129.0K

67.21%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$17.8K ¥118.6K

78.29%

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

$183 €163

$76.7 ¥511

138.37%

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

$13.61 €12.15

$4.43 ¥29.56

207.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.39

$14.76 ¥98.4

123.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.81

$37.44 ¥250

46.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.75

$4.13 ¥27.52

300.00%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €10.02

$6.64 ¥44.31

69.13%

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

$954 €852

$553 ¥3,692

72.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$21.9K ¥145.8K

-24.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.8

$73.7 ¥492

16.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.90

$44.44 ¥296

-11.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.5

$60.2 ¥401

72.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$69.7 ¥465

70.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,513

$216 ¥1,443

683.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,139

$246 ¥1,644

417.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,299

$576 ¥3,839

347.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,716

$308 ¥2,052

524.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,499

$1,668 ¥11.1K

336.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,471

$1,006 ¥6,711

397.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,987

$961 ¥6,408

131.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.37

-24.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Changchun: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Changchun

$246 27.3% 80.7% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Changchun

$313 * 34.6% 3.7% $12

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Changchun

$82 9% 69.8% $188

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Changchun

$96 10.6% 58.2% $133

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Changchun

$112 12.4% 28.6% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Changchun

$51 5.6% 34.3% $26

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Changchun

$4.5 * 0.5% 90.4% $43

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $216 in Changchun. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 132% 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 $22.00 in Changchun for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $313 per month, with Changchun cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Changchun

🕒 Local time

16:44 4:44 PM

23:44 11:44 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

9,066,906

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Changchun 8,970 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

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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 Changchun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Changchun differ by about 163% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $904 including rent). Changchun is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 132% 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 $216 in Changchun. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $553 in Changchun. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Changchun – a meal for two runs $22.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $904 in Changchun versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Changchun but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Changchun 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 Changchun 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 Changchun gentler on the wallet – expenses run 163% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.