Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Cheltenham

For one person, living costs are similar in Barcelona and in Cheltenham: $2,399 and $2,327 a month, rent and utilities included.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Cheltenham
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Cheltenham Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Cheltenham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,327

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Cheltenham

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $2,327 in Cheltenham.

Barcelona $2,399
Cheltenham $2,327

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $3,528 in Cheltenham.

Barcelona $3,410
Cheltenham $3,528

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $4,729 in Cheltenham.

Barcelona $4,421
Cheltenham $4,729

Living in Barcelona is roughly 3% more expensive than in Cheltenham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Cheltenham 72% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$23.67 £17.75

-24.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$105 £79.1

-35.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$11.03 £8.28

20.40%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$4.89 £3.67

-33.54%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.56 £1.92

17.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.74 £1.31

7.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$7.76 £5.82

-50.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$6.54 £4.91

-31.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.73 £1.30

-25.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.71 £1.29

19.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.99 £1.49

-13.57%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$4.43 £3.33

7.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$8.19 £6.15

104.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$9.59 £7.19

-6.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$13.09 £9.82

51.87%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$3.10 £2.32

-3.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.43 £1.07

41.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$1.93 £1.45

41.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$3.49 £2.62

-23.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.52 £1.14

38.16%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.51 £1.13

37.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.21 £0.91

19.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$1.42 £1.07

-37.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$23.12 £17.35

-69.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$10.63 £7.98

-26.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$2.86 £2.15

-49.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.93 £2.20

-12.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$3.44 £2.58

-13.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$92.5 £69.4

-72.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$3.53 £2.65

-11.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.64 £1.23

-12.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$26.85 £20.14

24.77%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.87 £1.40

-4.28%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$37.1K £27.8K

-6.61%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$41.2K £30.9K

-26.99%

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

$178 €158

$341 £256

-47.80%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$17.10 £12.83

-22.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$51.0 £38.24

-31.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$44.28 £33.22

20.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$39.01 £29.27

-58.96%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$14.00 £10.50

-21.00%

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

$957 €851

$2,020 £1,516

-52.64%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$25.2K £18.9K

-34.25%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$98.2 £73.7

-10.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$48.22 £36.18

-18.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$106 £79.4

-2.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$96.9 £72.7

25.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$1,161 £871

42.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$929 £697

40.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$2,149 £1,613

18.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$1,617 £1,213

18.43%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$5,704 £4,279

27.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$5,676 £4,258

-10.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$4,753 £3,566

-52.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.54

-40.79%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Cheltenham: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Cheltenham

$929 39.9% 28.7% $373

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Cheltenham

$292 12.6% 8.8% $28

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Cheltenham

$350 15.1% 29.7% $80

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Cheltenham

$409 17.6% 80.8% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Cheltenham

$157 6.8% 0.8% $1.3

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Cheltenham

$72 3.1% 4.1% $3.1

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Cheltenham

$118 5.1% 149% $71

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $1,161 in Cheltenham. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cheltenham pays 108% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $105 in Cheltenham. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $292, with Cheltenham cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Cheltenham

🕒 Local time

18:19 6:19 PM

17:19 5:19 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

115,300

💱 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

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Between locations

Barcelona Cheltenham 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Cheltenham

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 Cheltenham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Cheltenham differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $2,327 including rent). Cheltenham is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 108% lower in Cheltenham. 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $1,161 in Cheltenham. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $2,020 in Cheltenham. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 10% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,327 in Cheltenham versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Cheltenham but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Cheltenham 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 Cheltenham 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 Cheltenham gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.