Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Hasselt

For one person, living is cheaper in Hasselt: $2,021 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 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
98

Cost of Living Index in Hasselt
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Hasselt Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Hasselt

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,021

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Hasselt

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,021 in Hasselt.

Barcelona $2,453
Hasselt $2,021

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,042 in Hasselt.

Barcelona $3,509
Hasselt $3,042

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,063 in Hasselt.

Barcelona $4,564
Hasselt $4,063

Living in Barcelona is roughly 21% more expensive than in Hasselt, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Hasselt 49% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$22.32 €20.05

-21.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$97.7 €87.8

-30.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$13.60 €12.22

-0.51%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$3.80 €3.41

-16.05%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$3.51 €3.16

-17.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$3.25 €2.92

-41.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$5.43 €4.87

-26.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$5.16 €4.63

-12.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.34 €1.21

-2.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.42 €2.17

-16.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.28 €2.04

-18.86%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$3.23 €2.91

49.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$8.01 €7.19

108.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$11.71 €10.52

-22.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$22.25 €19.98

-11.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$2.03 €1.82

46.80%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.66 €1.49

21.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$2.61 €2.35

3.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$2.69 €2.42

4.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.85 €1.66

12.97%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$1.37 €1.23

51.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.00 €0.90

46.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.08 €0.97

-12.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$12.64 €11.36

-45.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$8.84 €7.94

-10.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.62 €1.45

-12.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$2.05 €1.84

23.90%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$3.15 €2.83

-0.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$32.27 €28.99

-21.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$5.71 €5.13

-47.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.62 €2.35

-43.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$36.45 €32.74

-8.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.98 €1.77

-9.09%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$34.9K €31.4K

-5.00%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$33.8K €30.4K

-6.20%

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

$180 €162

$212 €191

-14.95%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$19.34 €17.37

-28.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$47.00 €42.22

-28.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$27.97 €25.12

84.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$9.18 €8.25

73.86%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$15.00 €13.47

-26.73%

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

$917 €823

$1,664 €1,494

-44.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$33.0K €29.7K

-50.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$115 €104

-24.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$53.3 €47.87

-27.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$106 €95.3

-0.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$134 €120

-10.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$906 €814

87.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$800 €719

69.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$1,457 €1,308

78.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$1,218 €1,095

69.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$4,588 €4,122

50.70%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$2,398 €2,154

113.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$3,045 €2,735

-27.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.53

-7.08%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Hasselt: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Hasselt

$800 39.6% 41% $555

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Hasselt

$308 15.2% 4.3% $14

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Hasselt

$329 16.3% 23% $62

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Hasselt

$278 13.8% 22.1% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Hasselt

$184 9.1% 16.4% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Hasselt

$58 2.9% 21.1% $16

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Hasselt

$64 3.2% 31.3% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $906 in Hasselt. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hasselt pays 38% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $98 in Hasselt. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $308, with Hasselt cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇧🇪 Hasselt

🕒 Local time

23:06 11:06 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

74,694

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Hasselt 1,090 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Hasselt

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 Hasselt: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,021 in Hasselt, so Hasselt is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 27% lower in Barcelona. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $906 in Hasselt. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $1,664 in Hasselt. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Hasselt gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Hasselt are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.