Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Imperia

For one person, living is cheaper in Imperia: $1,701 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Imperia
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Imperia Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Imperia

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,701

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Imperia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $1,701 in Imperia.

Barcelona $2,381
Imperia $1,701

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $2,550 in Imperia.

Barcelona $3,406
Imperia $2,550

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $3,400 in Imperia.

Barcelona $4,431
Imperia $3,400

Living in Barcelona is roughly 40% more expensive than in Imperia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Imperia 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$13.58 €12.08

31.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$62.6 €55.7

5.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$11.08 €9.85

23.56%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$1.67 €1.49

83.23%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$3.66 €3.26

-16.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.44 €1.28

34.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$5.78 €5.14

-33.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$5.39 €4.79

-14.47%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.75 €1.55

-25.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.12 €1.89

-0.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$3.52 €3.13

-48.01%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.14 €3.68

11.59%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.50 €11.12

38.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$12.12 €10.78

-23.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$22.74 €20.23

-12.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.38 €2.12

26.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$2.31 €2.05

-12.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.30 €2.94

-19.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$4.17 €3.71

-31.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$2.40 €2.13

-10.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.72 €1.53

25.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.25 €1.11

17.60%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.53 €0.47

66.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$7.38 €6.56

-6.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$4.65 €4.14

68.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.14 €1.02

21.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.52 €2.24

4.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.89 €1.68

53.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$55.8 €49.60

-54.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$7.80 €6.94

-61.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.18 €1.94

-33.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$64.9 €57.7

-48.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.20 €1.96

-15.45%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$37.0K €32.9K

-12.60%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$37.0K €32.9K

-14.31%

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

$183 €163

$136 €121

34.88%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$10.10 €8.98

34.75%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$29.96 €26.65

9.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$70.5 €62.7

-22.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$25.55 €22.73

-35.34%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

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

$954 €849

$836 €744

14.13%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$18.5K €16.5K

-10.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$91.1 €81.1

-5.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$39.73 €35.34

-1.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$105 €93.0

-0.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$128 €114

-7.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$790 €702

114.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$627 €558

103.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,690 €1,503

52.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$910 €809

111.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$2,799 €2,490

160.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,030 €1,806

146.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,753 €1,559

27.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.18

3.14%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Imperia: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Imperia

$627 36.9% 50.8% $649

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Imperia

$337 19.8% 3.8% $12

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Imperia

$222 13.1% 17.6% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Imperia

$176 10.3% 23.4% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Imperia

$163 9.6% 4.5% $7

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Imperia

$93 5.5% 20.4% $16

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Imperia

$82 4.8% 73.3% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $790 in Imperia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 27% 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 $63.0 in Imperia. Groceries flip the comparison at $325 vs $337, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇹 Imperia

🕒 Local time

14:30 2:30 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

41,999

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Imperia 550 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Imperia

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 Imperia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Imperia differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $1,701 including rent). Imperia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 27% 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 $790 in Imperia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $836 in Imperia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,701 in Imperia versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Imperia but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Imperia 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 Imperia 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 Imperia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.