Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Harare

For one person, living is cheaper in Harare: $1,018 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,400 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Harare
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Harare Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Harare

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

$1,018

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Harare

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $1,018 in Harare.

Barcelona $2,381
Harare $1,018

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,696 in Harare.

Barcelona $3,406
Harare $1,696

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $2,375 in Harare.

Barcelona $4,431
Harare $2,375

Living in Barcelona is roughly 134% more expensive than in Harare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Harare is 25% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$9.95 ZWL 265

79.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$45.58 ZWL 1,213

45.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$5.63 ZWL 150

143.16%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.98 ZWL 79.3

2.68%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.94 ZWL 24.95

226.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.45 ZWL 11.98

331.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$0.99 ZWL 26.31

290.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$1.95 ZWL 51.8

136.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.53 ZWL 40.78

-15.03%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.02 ZWL 27.05

105.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.66 ZWL 44.16

10.24%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.98 ZWL 52.7

133.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$11.37 ZWL 303

52.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$5.40 ZWL 144

71.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$6.79 ZWL 181

192.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.06 ZWL 81.4

-1.63%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.63 ZWL 43.25

24.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.05 ZWL 54.6

29.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.52 ZWL 40.50

88.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.73 ZWL 46.09

24.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.80 ZWL 47.94

19.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.29 ZWL 34.35

13.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.00 ZWL 26.67

-12.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$1.95 ZWL 51.8

255.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$8.33 ZWL 222

-6.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.38 ZWL 36.62

0.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.97 ZWL 52.4

33.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.98 ZWL 26.02

196.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$60.8 ZWL 1,618

-58.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$3.88 ZWL 103

-22.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.05 ZWL 54.6

-29.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$5.12 ZWL 136

548.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.79 ZWL 47.75

3.91%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$21.9K ZWL 582.6K

47.72%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$27.2K ZWL 722.7K

16.74%

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

$183 €163

$50.7 ZWL 1,348

260.83%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$21.89 ZWL 583

-37.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$69.5 ZWL 1,849

-52.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$47.15 ZWL 1,255

15.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$22.40 ZWL 596

-26.25%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$10.18 ZWL 271

10.31%

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

$954 €849

$467 ZWL 12.4K

104.44%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$8,608 ZWL 229.1K

92.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$23.43 ZWL 623

267.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$21.48 ZWL 572

82.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$38.24 ZWL 1,018

171.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$40.39 ZWL 1,075

193.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$384 ZWL 10.2K

341.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$311 ZWL 8,284

309.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$835 ZWL 22.2K

208.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$743 ZWL 19.8K

158.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$939 ZWL 25.0K

675.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$393 ZWL 10.4K

1176.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$419 ZWL 11.2K

431.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

13.69

-76.04%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Harare: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Harare

$311 30.6% 75.6% $965

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Harare

$216 21.2% 33.6% $109

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Harare

$147 14.4% 45.6% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Harare

$142 14% 38.1% $87

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Harare

$56 5.5% 64.4% $101

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Harare

$68 6.6% 12.5% $9.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Harare

$79 7.8% 66.7% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $384 in Harare. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 431% 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 $46.00 in Harare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $216 per month, with Harare cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇿🇼 Harare

🕒 Local time

15:19 3:19 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,606,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Zimbabwean Dollar ZWL $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ZWL = 3.76 USD

100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 26.61 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.76 USD). 1 EUR = 29.92 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Harare 7,220 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Harare

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 Harare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Harare differ by about 134% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $1,018 including rent). Harare is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 431% 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 $384 in Harare. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $467 in Harare. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 51% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,018 in Harare versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Harare but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Harare 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 Harare 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 Harare gentler on the wallet – expenses run 134% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.