Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Grays

For one person, living costs are similar in Barcelona and in Grays: $2,399 and $2,369 a month, rent and utilities included.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Grays
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Grays Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Grays

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,369

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Grays

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $2,369 in Grays.

Barcelona $2,399
Grays $2,369

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $3,403 in Grays.

Barcelona $3,410
Grays $3,403

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $4,437 in Grays.

Barcelona $4,421
Grays $4,437

Living in Barcelona is roughly 1% more expensive than in Grays, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Grays 75% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$24.94 £18.71

-28.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$52.3 £39.24

30.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$9.98 £7.49

33.07%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$4.64 £3.48

-29.96%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$3.86 £2.90

-22.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$3.32 £2.49

-43.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$5.40 £4.05

-28.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$7.88 £5.91

-43.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.55 £1.16

-16.77%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.47 £1.10

38.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.64 £1.23

4.88%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$4.41 £3.31

8.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$12.06 £9.05

39.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$9.17 £6.88

-2.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$15.11 £11.33

31.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$2.95 £2.21

1.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.89 £1.42

7.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.82 £2.11

-3.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$3.77 £2.83

-28.91%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.20 £1.65

-4.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.79 £1.35

16.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.18 £0.88

22.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$1.43 £1.07

-37.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$17.07 £12.80

-59.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$10.87 £8.16

-28.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$3.04 £2.28

-52.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$3.23 £2.42

-20.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$3.54 £2.66

-15.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$97.5 £73.1

-74.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$4.88 £3.66

-36.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.69 £2.02

-46.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$39.12 £29.35

-14.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$2.06 £1.54

-13.11%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$38.6K £29.0K

-10.30%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$40.9K £30.7K

-26.51%

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

$178 €158

$280 £210

-36.37%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$16.46 £12.35

-19.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$44.70 £33.53

-21.97%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$46.48 £34.87

14.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$11.16 £8.37

-0.90%

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

$957 €851

$2,079 £1,559

-53.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$30.6K £23.0K

-45.91%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$90.9 £68.2

-2.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$44.44 £33.34

-11.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$105 £78.4

-1.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$88.0 £66.0

38.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$1,235 £926

33.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$1,012 £759

28.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$2,126 £1,595

20.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$1,634 £1,226

17.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$5,052 £3,790

44.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$3,847 £2,886

32.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.12

-35.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Grays: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Grays

$1K 42.7% 22.3% $290

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Grays

$313 13.2% 2.1% $6.8

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Grays

$357 15.1% 32.1% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Grays

$341 14.4% 50.7% $115

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Grays

$148 6.2% 6.9% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Grays

$69 2.9% 8.7% $6.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Grays

$130 5.5% 174% $82

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $1,235 in Grays. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $52.0 in Grays for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $313 per month, with Grays cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Grays

🕒 Local time

10:41 10:41 AM

09:41 9:41 AM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

36,601

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Grays 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Grays

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 Grays: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Grays differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $2,369 including rent). Grays is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,599 in Barcelona and $3,553 in Grays 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $1,235 in Grays. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $2,079 in Grays. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,369 in Grays versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Grays but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Grays 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.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Grays are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Grays gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.