Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Datong

For one person, living is cheaper in Datong: $713 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,800 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
34

Cost of Living Index in Datong
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Datong Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Datong

🇨🇳 China

$713

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Datong

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $713 in Datong.

Barcelona $2,443
Datong $713

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $1,133 in Datong.

Barcelona $3,519
Datong $1,133

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $1,553 in Datong.

Barcelona $4,595
Datong $1,553

Living in Barcelona is roughly 242% more expensive than in Datong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 81% above, Datong is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.71

$2.75 ¥18.30

542.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.0

$21.93 ¥146

207.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.12

$4.79 ¥31.95

184.13%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$3.09 ¥20.58

0.32%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$0.43 ¥2.90

597.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.71

$0.29 ¥1.95

565.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$0.90 ¥5.97

326.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$2.05 ¥13.64

112.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.80 ¥12.03

-30.56%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.54 ¥10.26

37.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$0.98 ¥6.50

101.02%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$1.56 ¥10.38

205.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.19

$12.86 ¥85.7

32.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.97

$3.23 ¥21.51

177.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.38

$10.09 ¥67.3

104.66%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$1.89 ¥12.59

67.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.21 ¥8.09

62.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.55 ¥10.30

70.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$1.15 ¥7.64

150.43%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.75 ¥5.03

174.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$0.90 ¥5.99

142.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$0.56 ¥3.76

173.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$0.54 ¥3.62

79.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.20

$3.10 ¥20.63

124.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.02

$10.70 ¥71.3

-26.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$0.78 ¥5.22

82.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$1.58 ¥10.56

70.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.94

$0.29 ¥1.95

1041.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.79

$17.04 ¥114

50.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.74

$1.37 ¥9.16

124.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$0.36 ¥2.38

311.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.25

$6.78 ¥45.21

384.81%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.18 ¥7.89

58.47%

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

$33.0K €29.3K

$19.1K ¥127.0K

72.95%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$17.1K ¥114.0K

86.66%

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

$183 €163

$44.32 ¥295

312.57%

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

$14.24 €12.67

$9.82 ¥65.4

45.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.76

$11.70 ¥78.0

195.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.76

$42.16 ¥281

21.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.58

$13.77 ¥91.7

18.95%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.85

$5.99 ¥39.89

84.64%

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

$944 €840

$338 ¥2,252

179.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$16.9K ¥112.8K

31.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.0

$44.48 ¥296

97.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.51

$30.37 ¥202

27.66%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.0

$71.4 ¥476

46.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$71.3 ¥475

65.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,510

$276 ¥1,836

515.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,190

$191 ¥1,271

600.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,396

$603 ¥4,018

346.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,848

$360 ¥2,398

477.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,367

$3,037 ¥20.2K

135.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,520

$2,026 ¥13.5K

150.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,995

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

3.89

-17.99%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Datong: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Datong

$191 26.7% 85.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Datong

$199 27.8% 39.4% $129

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Datong

$85 11.9% 68.2% $182

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Datong

$66 9.2% 71.6% $166

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Datong

$98 13.7% 37.6% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Datong

$54 7.6% 26.4% $19

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Datong

$21 3% 56.7% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $276 in Datong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $22 in Datong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $199 per month, with Datong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Datong

🕒 Local time

06:25 6:25 AM

13:25 1:25 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

3,318,057

💱 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

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Datong 8,600 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Datong

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 Datong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $713 in Datong, so Datong is about 71% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $1,070 in Datong to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $276 in Datong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $338 in Datong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 65% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $713 in Datong versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $800 budget is realistic in Datong but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Datong 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.

Expats usually find Datong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.