Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Cortona

For one person, living is cheaper in Cortona: $1,433 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $12,200 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
69

Cost of Living Index in Cortona
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Cortona Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Cortona

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,433

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Cortona

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,433 in Cortona.

Barcelona $2,453
Cortona $1,433

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,197 in Cortona.

Barcelona $3,509
Cortona $2,197

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,961 in Cortona.

Barcelona $4,564
Cortona $2,961

Living in Barcelona is roughly 71% more expensive than in Cortona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Cortona 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$16.79 €14.98

4.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$67.6 €60.3

-0.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$11.36 €10.14

19.10%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$2.12 €1.89

50.47%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$2.84 €2.54

2.46%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.48 €1.32

27.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$5.47 €4.88

-26.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$6.78 €6.05

-33.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.73 €1.54

-24.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.20 €1.96

-8.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$2.97 €2.65

-37.71%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$4.74 €4.23

1.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$14.81 €13.21

13.03%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$12.15 €10.84

-24.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$19.44 €17.34

1.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$2.55 €2.27

16.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.29 €2.05

-11.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$2.36 €2.11

14.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$2.39 €2.14

17.15%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.41 €1.26

48.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.61 €1.43

28.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.38 €1.23

5.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.55 €0.50

70.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$6.94 €6.19

-1.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$5.69 €5.08

38.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.59 €1.42

-11.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.53 €2.26

0.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$6.61 €5.90

-54.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.63 €1.45

-8.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$33.47 €29.86

-0.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$2.16 €1.93

-16.67%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$35.4K €31.6K

-6.24%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$36.3K €32.3K

-12.57%

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

$180 €161

$202 €181

-10.90%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$11.25 €10.03

23.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$32.35 €28.86

4.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$28.04 €25.02

83.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$11.04 €9.85

44.57%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$11.25 €10.04

-2.31%

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

$917 €818

$478 €426

91.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$16.7K €14.9K

-1.36%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$72.0 €64.2

20.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$36.82 €32.85

4.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$85.7 €76.5

23.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$126 €113

-5.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$864 €771

96.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$400 €357

238.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$1,493 €1,332

74.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$621 €554

232.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$2,315 €2,065

198.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$2,804 €2,502

82.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$3,067 €2,737

-27.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.52

-6.82%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Cortona: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Cortona

$400 27.9% 70.5% $955

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Cortona

$326 22.7% 1.2% $3.7

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Cortona

$252 17.6% 5.9% $16

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Cortona

$246 17.2% 7.9% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Cortona

$144 10.1% 8.6% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Cortona

$51 3.5% 31.2% $23

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Cortona

$15 * 1% 69.5% $34

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 $864 in Cortona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cortona pays 39% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $68 in Cortona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $326 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇹 Cortona

🕒 Local time

00:04 12:04 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

22,450

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Cortona 830 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Cortona

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 Cortona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,433 in Cortona, so Cortona is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 28% lower in Barcelona. 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $864 in Cortona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $478 in Cortona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,453 per month in Barcelona versus $1,433 in Cortona – Cortona is about 42% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $1,433 in Cortona versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Cortona but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Cortona 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.