Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Essen Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Essen

🙂 Solo nomad: Barcelona is 13.6% cheaper than Essen without rent, and 16.3% more expensive with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Barcelona is 12.8% cheaper than Essen without rent, and 7.8% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.22 €14.83

$18.26 €15.72

-5.70%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.2 €58.7

$69.8 €60.1

-2.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.72 €11.82

$13.81 €11.89

-0.65%

Cappuccino

$2.84 €2.45

$3.58 €3.08

-20.67%

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

$2.81 €2.42

$2.45 €2.11

14.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 €1.76

$2.44 €2.10

-16.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.58 €3.95

$4.70 €4.05

-2.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €3.97

$4.57 €3.93

0.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 €1.10

$1.31 €1.13

-2.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.83

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 €1.72

$3.28 €2.82

-39.02%

Eggs

$3.48 €3.00

$3.80 €3.27

-8.42%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.68 €16.08

$14.69 €12.65

27.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.42 €8.11

$14.58 €12.55

-35.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.68 €16.08

$22.34 €19.24

-16.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.61 €2.24

$3.31 €2.85

-21.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.39 €2.06

$1.88 €1.62

27.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.09 €1.80

$2.21 €1.91

-5.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.73 €2.35

$4.71 €4.06

-42.04%

Potato (1kg)

$1.96 €1.69

$1.63 €1.40

20.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.87 €1.61

$1.63 €1.41

14.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.48 €1.27

$1.88 €1.62

-21.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 €0.79

$1.12 €0.96

-17.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €5.92

$9.44 €8.13

-27.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.12 €6.13

$7.16 €6.17

-0.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 €1.19

$1.06 €0.91

30.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 €2.08

$1.66 €1.43

45.18%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.97 €2.56

$4.03 €3.47

-26.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.77 €24.77

$61.4 €52.9

-53.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.57 €3.93

$5.14 €4.43

-11.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.10 €1.81

$2.74 €2.36

-23.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.85 €24.84

$41.07 €35.36

-29.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.63

$1.98 €1.71

-4.04%

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

$38.7K €33.3K

$31.9K €27.5K

21.15%

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

$32.3K €27.8K

$39.0K €33.6K

-17.24%

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

$183 €158

$383 €330

-52.15%

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

$22.62 €19.48

$34.07 €29.33

-33.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.50 €31.43

$53.1 €45.68

-31.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.7 €50.6

$38.19 €32.88

53.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.82 €17.93

$34.51 €29.72

-39.67%

Cinema Ticket

$11.10 €9.56

$17.50 €15.07

-36.57%

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

$726 €625

$467 €402

55.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.3K €13.1K

$9,824 €8,458

55.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.2 €74.3

$94.9 €81.7

-9.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.48 €32.27

$73.7 €63.5

-49.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €91.0

$102 €88.1

3.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €102

$141 €122

-16.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,568 €1,350

$731 €630

114.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,236 €1,064

$602 €519

105.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,752 €2,370

$1,509 €1,299

82.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,981 €1,705

$1,071 €922

84.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,921 €5,959

$4,903 €4,221

41.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,760 €4,099

$3,077 €2,650

54.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,498 €2,150

$3,423 €2,947

-27.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.39

3.97

-14.61%

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

Last update for Barcelona: March 3, 2026

Last update for Essen: March 1, 2026

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated December 2025)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

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