Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Huaibei

For one person, living is cheaper in Huaibei: $713 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Huaibei
Learn more

Huaibei Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Huaibei

🇨🇳 China

$713

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Huaibei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $713 in Huaibei.

Barcelona $2,399
Huaibei $713

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $1,130 in Huaibei.

Barcelona $3,410
Huaibei $1,130

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $1,547 in Huaibei.

Barcelona $4,421
Huaibei $1,547

Living in Barcelona is roughly 236% more expensive than in Huaibei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 78% above, Huaibei is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$2.85 ¥19.03

527.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$21.17 ¥142

212.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$4.98 ¥33.33

174.90%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.98 ¥19.94

2.68%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.43 ¥2.90

613.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.29 ¥1.95

568.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$0.95 ¥6.32

307.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.12 ¥14.18

117.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.84 ¥12.30

-29.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.54 ¥10.27

36.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$0.95 ¥6.35

92.63%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.55 ¥10.35

198.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.90 ¥86.2

34.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$3.17 ¥21.20

192.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$10.15 ¥67.9

95.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.88 ¥12.56

60.11%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.21 ¥8.06

67.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.54 ¥10.31

72.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.15 ¥7.67

149.57%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.73 ¥4.91

195.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.97 ¥6.47

121.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.55 ¥3.71

167.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.51 ¥3.41

72.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$3.07 ¥20.54

125.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$10.52 ¥70.3

-25.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.74 ¥4.92

87.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.58 ¥10.57

66.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.29 ¥1.96

903.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$16.95 ¥113

50.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.36 ¥9.07

120.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.36 ¥2.38

300.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$6.78 ¥45.34

389.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.17 ¥7.82

58.97%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$19.5K ¥130.7K

65.49%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$17.3K ¥115.5K

83.54%

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

$183 €163

$44.77 ¥299

308.22%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$9.75 ¥65.2

39.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$11.75 ¥78.6

180.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$41.87 ¥280

30.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$13.69 ¥91.5

20.67%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$5.80 ¥38.79

93.62%

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

$954 €849

$340 ¥2,272

180.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$17.0K ¥113.4K

-2.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$42.90 ¥287

100.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$30.24 ¥202

29.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$70.9 ¥474

46.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$72.9 ¥488

62.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$284 ¥1,897

497.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$191 ¥1,280

566.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$592 ¥3,961

334.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$359 ¥2,402

435.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,024 ¥20.2K

140.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,056 ¥13.7K

143.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.89

-15.68%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Huaibei: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Huaibei

$191 26.9% 85% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Huaibei

$198 27.7% 39.2% $127

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Huaibei

$85 12% 68.3% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Huaibei

$66 9.3% 71.1% $163

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Huaibei

$98 13.7% 37.6% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Huaibei

$53 7.5% 30.7% $24

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Huaibei

$21 3% 55% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $284 in Huaibei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $21.00 in Huaibei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $198 per month, with Huaibei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Huaibei

🕒 Local time

11:59 11:59 AM

17:59 5:59 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,970,265

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Huaibei 9,310 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Huaibei

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 Huaibei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Huaibei differ by about 236% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $713 including rent). Huaibei 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 $1,070 in Huaibei 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 $284 in Huaibei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $340 in Huaibei. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 62% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $713 in Huaibei versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Huaibei but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Huaibei 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 Huaibei 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 Huaibei gentler on the wallet – expenses run 236% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.