Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Guarulhos

For one person, living is cheaper in Guarulhos: $964 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Guarulhos
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Guarulhos Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Guarulhos

🇧🇷 Brazil

$964

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Guarulhos

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $964 in Guarulhos.

Barcelona $2,381
Guarulhos $964

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,764 in Guarulhos.

Barcelona $3,406
Guarulhos $1,764

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $2,565 in Guarulhos.

Barcelona $4,431
Guarulhos $2,565

Living in Barcelona is roughly 147% more expensive than in Guarulhos, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Guarulhos is 29% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$8.69 R$44.06

105.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$40.01 R$203

65.36%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$9.00 R$45.61

52.11%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.46 R$12.50

24.39%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.35 R$6.82

127.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.86 R$4.37

125.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$2.44 R$12.39

58.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$3.88 R$19.65

18.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.05 R$5.32

23.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.88 R$9.52

11.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.33 R$6.76

37.59%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$2.46 R$12.47

87.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.61 R$63.9

37.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$4.79 R$24.27

93.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$10.70 R$54.3

85.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.38 R$12.07

26.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.72 R$8.71

18.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.53 R$7.74

73.20%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.53 R$7.76

87.58%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.26 R$6.40

71.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.18 R$6.00

82.20%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.98 R$4.97

50.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.85 R$4.32

3.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.49 R$12.65

178.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$9.88 R$50.1

-20.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.50 R$7.62

-7.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.49 R$12.64

5.62%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.24 R$6.30

134.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$105 R$532

-75.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.17 R$5.94

156.41%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.72 R$3.64

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$8.49 R$43.03

291.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.28 R$6.50

45.31%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$23.6K R$119.5K

37.14%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$34.2K R$173.5K

-7.34%

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

$183 €163

$91.6 R$465

99.43%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$14.98 R$75.9

-9.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$22.33 R$113

47.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$28.22 R$143

93.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$10.05 R$50.9

11.74%

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

$954 €849

$429 R$2,173

122.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$11.0K R$56.0K

50.27%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$65.1 R$330

32.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$57.1 R$289

-31.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$92.2 R$467

12.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$79.5 R$403

49.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$349 R$1,770

385.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$158 R$801

707.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$995 R$5,042

158.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$768 R$3,895

150.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,944 R$9,855

274.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,480 R$7,502

238.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$378 R$1,914

489.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

11.25

-70.84%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Guarulhos: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Guarulhos

$158 16.4% 87.6% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Guarulhos

$227 23.5% 30.2% $98

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Guarulhos

$155 16.1% 42.5% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Guarulhos

$129 13.4% 43.8% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Guarulhos

$132 13.7% 15.4% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Guarulhos

$48 5% 37.4% $29

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Guarulhos

$115 11.9% 142% $67

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $349 in Guarulhos. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 490% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $40.00 in Guarulhos for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $227 per month, with Guarulhos cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇧🇷 Guarulhos

🕒 Local time

16:18 4:18 PM

11:18 11:18 AM

5 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,291,771

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Guarulhos 8,780 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Guarulhos

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 Guarulhos: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Guarulhos differ by about 147% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $964 including rent). Guarulhos is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 490% 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $349 in Guarulhos. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $429 in Guarulhos. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 43% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $964 in Guarulhos versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Guarulhos but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Guarulhos 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 Guarulhos 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 Guarulhos gentler on the wallet – expenses run 147% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.