Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Chungju

For one person, living is cheaper in Chungju: $1,450 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $12,000 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
70

Cost of Living Index in Chungju
Learn more

Chungju Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Chungju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,450

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Chungju

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,450 in Chungju.

Barcelona $2,453
Chungju $1,450

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,312 in Chungju.

Barcelona $3,509
Chungju $2,312

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,173 in Chungju.

Barcelona $4,564
Chungju $3,173

Living in Barcelona is roughly 69% more expensive than in Chungju, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Chungju 7% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$7.70 ₩10.3K

128.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$49.08 ₩65.9K

37.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$6.74 ₩9,052

100.74%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$3.62 ₩4,859

-11.88%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$1.78 ₩2,394

63.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.45 ₩1,953

30.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$3.72 ₩5,000

7.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$4.34 ₩5,822

4.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.32 ₩3,112

-43.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.95 ₩3,964

-31.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.09 ₩4,150

-40.13%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$2.66 ₩3,576

81.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$11.14 ₩15.0K

50.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$7.59 ₩10.2K

20.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$24.68 ₩33.1K

-20.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$8.96 ₩12.0K

-66.74%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.69 ₩4,954

-45.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$7.96 ₩10.7K

-66.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$5.79 ₩7,778

-51.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$6.09 ₩8,176

-65.68%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$3.39 ₩4,550

-38.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.74 ₩3,684

-46.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.30 ₩1,743

-27.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$3.29 ₩4,418

108.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$18.95 ₩25.4K

-58.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.42 ₩3,248

-41.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$2.96 ₩3,980

-14.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.10 ₩1,483

185.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$3.62 ₩4,855

-17.40%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.72 ₩968

106.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$16.99 ₩22.8K

96.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.43 ₩1,918

25.87%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$39.4K ₩53.0M

-15.84%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$34.5K ₩46.3M

-8.03%

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

$180 €162

$198 ₩265.6K

-8.81%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$27.49 ₩36.9K

-49.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$27.04 ₩36.3K

24.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$54.3 ₩72.9K

-5.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$14.29 ₩19.2K

11.69%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$11.89 ₩16.0K

-7.57%

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

$917 €823

$629 ₩844.7K

45.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$22.1K ₩29.7M

-25.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$76.1 ₩102.1K

14.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$37.91 ₩50.9K

1.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$73.6 ₩98.9K

43.72%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$113 ₩151.6K

6.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$483 ₩649.1K

251.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$351 ₩471.3K

286.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$1,189 ₩1.6M

118.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$761 ₩1.0M

170.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$7,118 ₩9.6M

-2.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$5,478 ₩7.4M

-6.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$1,672 ₩2.2M

32.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.22

-22.27%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Chungju: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Chungju

$351 24.2% 74.1% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Chungju

$456 31.5% 41.8% $135

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Chungju

$165 11.4% 38.2% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Chungju

$252 17.4% 10.7% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Chungju

$135 9.3% 14.4% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Chungju

$78 5.4% 6.2% $4.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Chungju

$12 * 0.8% 76% $37

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 $1,699 in Barcelona and $483 in Chungju. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 32% 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $49 in Chungju. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $456, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇰🇷 Chungju

🕒 Local time

20:02 8:02 PM

04:02 4:02 AM

8 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

208,529

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

South Korean Won KRW ₩

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KRW, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 1,343 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.45 USD). 1 EUR = 1,495 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.69 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Chungju 9,700 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Chungju

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 Chungju: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Chungju differ by about 69% in total monthly costs ($2,453 vs $1,450 including rent). Chungju is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 32% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $483 in Chungju. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $629 in Chungju. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Chungju – a meal for two runs $49 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Chungju is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Chungju are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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