Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Ecatepec

For one person, living is cheaper in Ecatepec: $941 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,100 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
45

Cost of Living Index in Ecatepec
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Ecatepec Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Ecatepec

🇲🇽 Mexico

$941

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Ecatepec

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $941 in Ecatepec.

Barcelona $2,453
Ecatepec $941

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,634 in Ecatepec.

Barcelona $3,509
Ecatepec $1,634

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,327 in Ecatepec.

Barcelona $4,564
Ecatepec $2,327

Living in Barcelona is roughly 161% more expensive than in Ecatepec, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Ecatepec is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$10.59 MX$199

66.10%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$48.51 MX$909

39.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$9.63 MX$180

40.50%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$3.48 MX$65.2

-8.33%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$1.57 MX$29.34

85.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.02 MX$19.14

85.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$3.19 MX$59.8

25.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$5.44 MX$102

-16.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.78 MX$33.35

-26.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.70 MX$50.5

-25.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.97 MX$36.90

-6.09%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.70 MX$50.5

78.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$8.95 MX$168

87.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$9.01 MX$169

1.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$13.19 MX$247

48.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$3.18 MX$59.7

-6.29%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.59 MX$29.76

27.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$1.97 MX$37.01

37.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$1.90 MX$35.62

47.37%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.81 MX$33.92

15.47%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.72 MX$32.21

20.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.45 MX$27.24

0.69%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.22 MX$22.89

-22.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$4.52 MX$84.8

51.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$16.00 MX$300

-50.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.94 MX$36.40

-27.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$3.84 MX$71.9

-33.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$0.68 MX$12.70

361.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$30.56 MX$573

-16.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$1.92 MX$36.05

55.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.49 MX$9.15

204.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$5.51 MX$103

505.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.43 MX$26.80

25.87%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$21.3K MX$399.4K

55.72%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$23.2K MX$434.2K

36.79%

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

$180 €161

$56.3 MX$1,054

220.61%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$26.84 MX$503

-48.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$23.91 MX$448

40.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$25.75 MX$483

100.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$10.64 MX$199

50.00%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$6.48 MX$121

69.60%

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

$917 €818

$265 MX$4,969

245.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$4,979 MX$93.3K

230.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$58.2 MX$1,090

49.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$44.37 MX$831

-13.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$99.2 MX$1,859

6.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$96.3 MX$1,804

24.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$239 MX$4,479

611.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$134 MX$2,514

910.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$665 MX$12.5K

291.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$430 MX$8,060

379.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$768 MX$14.4K

800.12%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$751 MX$14.1K

583.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$548 MX$10.3K

303.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

11.35

-71.10%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Ecatepec: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Ecatepec

$134 14.3% 90.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Ecatepec

$296 31.5% 7.9% $25

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Ecatepec

$193 20.5% 28.1% $75

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Ecatepec

$107 11.4% 53.1% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Ecatepec

$134 14.3% 15.1% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Ecatepec

$39 4.1% 47.3% $35

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Ecatepec

$38 4% 22.3% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $239 in Ecatepec. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $49 in Ecatepec for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $296 per month, with Ecatepec cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇲🇽 Ecatepec

🕒 Local time

19:39 7:39 PM

12:39 12:39 PM

7 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,645,352

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mexican Peso MXN $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MXN = 5.34 USD

100 MXN = 4.78 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MXN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.74 MXN (100 MXN = 5.34 USD). 1 EUR = 20.91 MXN (100 MXN = 4.78 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Ecatepec 9,470 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Ecatepec

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 Ecatepec: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $941 in Ecatepec, so Ecatepec is about 62% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 4 times higher, 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 $239 in Ecatepec. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $265 in Ecatepec. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $941 in Ecatepec versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Ecatepec but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Ecatepec 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.

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