Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Croydon

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $2,919 in Croydon, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 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
140

Cost of Living Index in Croydon
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Croydon Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Croydon

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,919

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Croydon

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $2,919 in Croydon.

Barcelona $2,443
Croydon $2,919

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $4,036 in Croydon.

Barcelona $3,519
Croydon $4,036

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $5,153 in Croydon.

Barcelona $4,595
Croydon $5,153

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 16% less than in Croydon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Croydon 116% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.73

$20.42 £15.18

-13.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.1

$74.9 £55.7

-9.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.13

$9.58 £7.12

42.07%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$5.00 £3.71

-38.00%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$2.76 £2.05

8.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.44 £1.07

34.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$6.08 £4.52

-36.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$5.86 £4.35

-25.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.63 £1.21

-23.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.49 £1.11

42.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.73 £2.03

-27.84%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$4.02 £2.99

18.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.20

$10.67 £7.93

59.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.98

$8.27 £6.15

8.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.39

$13.19 £9.80

56.56%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.82

$2.94 £2.18

7.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.24 £0.92

58.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.10 £1.56

26.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$1.95 £1.45

47.69%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$3.04 £2.26

-32.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.90 £1.41

14.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.57 £1.17

-2.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$1.24 £0.92

-21.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.21

$23.62 £17.55

-70.49%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.03

$13.18 £9.80

-40.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$2.87 £2.13

-50.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.18 £1.62

23.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$2.30 £1.71

43.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.81

$134 £99.7

-80.91%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.75

$5.98 £4.44

-48.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$3.42 £2.54

-56.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.28

$58.1 £43.17

-43.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.97 £1.46

-5.08%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$38.2K £28.4K

-13.67%

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

$31.9K €28.5K

$40.3K £30.0K

-20.81%

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

$183 €163

$306 £228

-40.28%

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

$14.24 €12.69

$30.02 £22.31

-52.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.79

$41.20 £30.62

-16.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.81

$37.18 £27.63

38.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.60

$20.06 £14.91

-18.34%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.86

$12.16 £9.03

-9.05%

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

$944 €841

$1,674 £1,244

-43.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$26.8K £20.0K

-17.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.1

$65.8 £48.90

33.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.54

$49.67 £36.92

-21.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.1

$93.9 £69.8

11.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$160 £119

-26.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,512

$2,047 £1,521

-17.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,191

$1,546 £1,149

-13.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,398

$2,809 £2,088

-4.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,850

$2,228 £1,656

-6.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,373

$8,125 £6,039

-11.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,524

$5,836 £4,338

-12.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,997

$4,414 £3,280

-49.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

5.06

-36.96%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Croydon: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Croydon

$1.5K 53% 15.6% $209

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Croydon

$291 10% 11.3% $37

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Croydon

$311 10.7% 16.5% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Croydon

$377 12.9% 62.9% $146

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Croydon

$166 5.7% 5.8% $9.2

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Croydon

$61 2.1% 16.4% $12

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Croydon

$166 5.7% 237% $117

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $2,047 in Croydon. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Croydon pays 97% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $75 in Croydon. Groceries flip the comparison at $328 vs $291, with Croydon cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Croydon

🕒 Local time

23:26 11:26 PM

22:26 10:26 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

173,314

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Croydon 1,120 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Croydon

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 Croydon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $2,919 in Croydon, so Barcelona is about 16% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 49% 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $2,047 in Croydon. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $1,674 in Croydon. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Croydon pay roughly 11% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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.

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