Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Dhahran

For one person, living is cheaper in Dhahran: $1,373 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,000 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
66

Cost of Living Index in Dhahran
Learn more

Dhahran Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Dhahran

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,373

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Dhahran

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,373 in Dhahran.

Barcelona $2,453
Dhahran $1,373

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,761 in Dhahran.

Barcelona $3,509
Dhahran $1,761

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,149 in Dhahran.

Barcelona $4,564
Dhahran $2,149

Living in Barcelona is roughly 79% more expensive than in Dhahran, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$5.41 SAR 20.31

225.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$39.83 SAR 149

69.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$6.46 SAR 24.24

109.44%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.92 SAR 7.19

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 SAR 6.09

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.82 SAR 14.35

-16.49%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.69 SAR 2.57

321.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.20 SAR 0.75

845.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.56 SAR 5.86

-16.03%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.94 SAR 3.51

114.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.99 SAR 7.47

-7.04%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.91 SAR 14.67

23.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$8.66 SAR 32.51

93.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$11.22 SAR 42.12

-18.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$13.79 SAR 51.7

42.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.09 SAR 7.83

42.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.44 SAR 5.40

40.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.81 SAR 6.81

49.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.75 SAR 6.58

60.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.47 SAR 5.53

42.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.97 SAR 3.63

113.40%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.98 SAR 7.45

-26.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.85 SAR 3.17

10.59%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$4.72 SAR 17.70

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 SAR 6.13

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 SAR 9.03

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$5.51 SAR 20.68

24.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.90 SAR 3.37

248.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$55.6 SAR 209

-54.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.37 SAR 5.15

118.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$3.30 SAR 12.38

-54.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$9.26 SAR 34.75

260.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.63 SAR 2.38

185.71%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$36.3K SAR 136.4K

-8.68%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$21.6K SAR 81.1K

46.68%

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

$180 €162

$61.2 SAR 230

194.69%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$43.31 SAR 163

-68.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$65.9 SAR 247

-48.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$195 SAR 733

-73.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$95.1 SAR 357

-83.22%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$10.51 SAR 39.44

4.57%

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

$917 €821

$66.2 SAR 248

1285.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$13.6K SAR 51.0K

21.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$50.7 SAR 190

71.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$42.77 SAR 161

-9.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$77.0 SAR 289

37.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$90.4 SAR 339

32.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$366 SAR 1,375

363.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$449 SAR 1,683

202.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,804 SAR 10.5K

-21.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.5

-27.11%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Dhahran: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Dhahran

$449 32.7% 66.9% $907

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Dhahran

$232 16.9% 28% $90

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Dhahran

$112 8.2% 58.2% $156

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Dhahran

$170 12.4% 25.2% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Dhahran

$117 8.6% 25.7% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Dhahran

$216 15.8% 194% $143

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Dhahran

$77 5.6% 58.9% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $366 in Dhahran. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dhahran pays 27% 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 $40 in Dhahran for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $232 per month, with Dhahran cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇦 Dhahran

🕒 Local time

10:50 10:50 AM

12:50 12:50 PM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

120,521

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Dhahran 4,670 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Dhahran

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 Dhahran: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,373 in Dhahran, so Dhahran is about 44% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 21% 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 $366 in Dhahran. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $66 in Dhahran. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 39% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Dhahran 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 Dhahran are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.