Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Gharb

For one person, living is cheaper in Gharb: $2,217 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $2,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Gharb
Learn more

Gharb Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Gharb

🇲🇹 Malta

$2,217

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Gharb

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,217 in Gharb.

Barcelona $2,453
Gharb $2,217

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,242 in Gharb.

Barcelona $3,509
Gharb $3,242

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,267 in Gharb.

Barcelona $4,564
Gharb $4,267

Living in Barcelona is roughly 11% more expensive than in Gharb, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Gharb 63% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$22.16 €19.77

-20.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$89.5 €79.9

-24.60%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$13.17 €11.75

2.73%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$3.26 €2.91

-2.15%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$2.34 €2.09

24.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.92 €1.72

-1.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$5.55 €4.95

-27.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$6.59 €5.88

-31.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.32 €1.17

-0.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.41 €1.26

43.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$3.51 €3.13

-47.29%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$4.38 €3.90

10.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$10.14 €9.04

65.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$12.11 €10.80

-24.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$18.36 €16.38

6.97%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$3.68 €3.28

-19.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.73 €2.43

-26.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$3.79 €3.38

-28.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$3.81 €3.40

-26.51%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.83 €1.64

14.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$3.33 €2.97

-37.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$2.28 €2.04

-35.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.48 €1.32

-36.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$6.29 €5.61

9.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$6.05 €5.40

30.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$2.43 €2.16

-41.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.38 €2.13

6.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$2.21 €1.97

42.08%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$3.82 €3.41

-21.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.81 €1.62

-17.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$32.93 €29.38

1.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.52 €1.36

18.42%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$27.6K €24.6K

20.37%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$38.7K €34.5K

-18.12%

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

$180 €161

$154 €137

17.30%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$30.85 €27.53

-55.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$29.18 €26.03

15.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$69.5 €62.0

-25.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$11.14 €9.94

-1.35%

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

$917 €818

$283 €252

224.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$12.4K €11.1K

33.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$56.4 €50.3

54.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$69.1 €61.7

-44.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$112 €99.7

-5.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$128 €115

-6.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$975 €870

74.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$1,070 €954

26.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$1,644 €1,467

58.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$1,532 €1,367

34.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$4,033 €3,598

71.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$3,039 €2,711

68.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.05

-19.01%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Gharb: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Gharb

$1.1K 48.2% 21.1% $286

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Gharb

$342 15.4% 6.2% $20

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Gharb

$314 14.2% 17.2% $46

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Gharb

$214 9.6% 6.2% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Gharb

$165 7.4% 4.2% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Gharb

$92 4.1% 24.8% $18

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Gharb

$22 * 1% 55.2% $27

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $975 in Gharb. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $90 in Gharb for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $342 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇲🇹 Gharb

🕒 Local time

15:13 3:13 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Gharb 1,200 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Gharb

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 Gharb: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,217 in Gharb, so Gharb is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,679 in Barcelona and $3,326 in Gharb 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $975 in Gharb. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $283 in Gharb. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Barcelona – a meal for two runs $67 versus $90 in Gharb. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Gharb 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.