Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Guangzhou (Canton)

For one person, living is cheaper in Guangzhou (Canton): $903 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,500 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
43

Cost of Living Index in Guangzhou (Canton)
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Guangzhou (Canton) Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Guangzhou (Canton)

🇨🇳 China

$903

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Guangzhou (Canton)

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 Guangzhou (Canton) actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $903 in Guangzhou (Canton).

Barcelona $2,443
Guangzhou (Canton) $903

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $1,434 in Guangzhou (Canton).

Barcelona $3,519
Guangzhou (Canton) $1,434

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $1,965 in Guangzhou (Canton).

Barcelona $4,595
Guangzhou (Canton) $1,965

Living in Barcelona is roughly 171% more expensive than in Guangzhou (Canton), and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 81% above, Guangzhou (Canton) is 33% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.72

$2.99 ¥19.89

490.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.1

$30.32 ¥202

122.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.12

$5.29 ¥35.21

157.28%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$3.08 ¥20.48

0.65%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$0.53 ¥3.55

466.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$0.33 ¥2.22

484.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$1.37 ¥9.13

180.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$2.67 ¥17.81

63.30%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.87 ¥12.45

-33.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.91 ¥12.72

10.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.07 ¥7.10

84.11%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$1.48 ¥9.88

221.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.20

$16.68 ¥111

2.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.97

$5.14 ¥34.19

74.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.39

$12.15 ¥80.9

69.96%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$2.28 ¥15.16

38.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.29 ¥8.60

52.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.45 ¥9.66

82.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$1.71 ¥11.40

68.42%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.96 ¥6.38

114.58%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.19 ¥7.94

83.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$0.83 ¥5.51

84.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$0.66 ¥4.38

46.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.20

$3.78 ¥25.19

84.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.02

$10.65 ¥70.9

-25.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$1.08 ¥7.20

31.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.00 ¥13.29

34.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$0.47 ¥3.14

604.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.80

$17.78 ¥118

44.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.75

$1.85 ¥12.34

66.49%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$0.41 ¥2.71

260.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.27

$6.65 ¥44.27

394.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.39 ¥9.23

34.53%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$19.8K ¥131.9K

66.45%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$17.7K ¥117.6K

80.84%

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

$183 €163

$61.6 ¥410

197.08%

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

$14.24 €12.68

$17.56 ¥117

-18.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.78

$15.20 ¥101

127.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.79

$62.5 ¥416

-17.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.59

$12.19 ¥81.2

34.37%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.85

$6.59 ¥43.86

67.83%

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

$944 €840

$1,612 ¥10.7K

-41.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$42.9K ¥285.7K

-48.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.1

$46.81 ¥312

87.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.52

$38.50 ¥256

0.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.1

$84.1 ¥560

24.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$71.9 ¥478

63.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,511

$524 ¥3,486

224.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,190

$267 ¥1,780

400.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,397

$1,229 ¥8,184

119.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,849

$512 ¥3,406

306.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,371

$8,514 ¥56.7K

-15.97%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,522

$3,695 ¥24.6K

37.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,996

$1,386 ¥9,227

61.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

3.38

-5.62%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Guangzhou (Canton): October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$267 29.6% 80% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$241 26.7% 26.5% $87

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$92 10.2% 65.4% $175

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$94 10.5% 59.3% $137

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$109 12% 30.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$76 8.4% 2.9% $2.1

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Guangzhou (Canton)

$24 2.6% 52.2% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $524 in Guangzhou (Canton). Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 62% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $30 in Guangzhou (Canton) for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $241 per month, with Guangzhou (Canton) cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Guangzhou (Canton)

🕒 Local time

13:26 1:26 PM

20:26 8:26 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

14,043,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Guangzhou (Canton) 9,930 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Guangzhou (Canton)

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 Guangzhou (Canton): Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $903 in Guangzhou (Canton), so Guangzhou (Canton) is about 63% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 62% higher in Barcelona, 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $524 in Guangzhou (Canton). Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $1,612 in Guangzhou (Canton). Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 36% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $903 in Guangzhou (Canton) versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Guangzhou (Canton) but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Guangzhou (Canton) 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.

Expats usually find Guangzhou (Canton) gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.