Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Ipswich

For one person, living costs are similar in Barcelona and in Ipswich: $2,381 and $2,348 a month, rent and utilities included.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Ipswich
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Ipswich Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Ipswich

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,348

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Ipswich

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,348 in Ipswich.

Barcelona $2,381
Ipswich $2,348

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $3,450 in Ipswich.

Barcelona $3,406
Ipswich $3,450

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $4,551 in Ipswich.

Barcelona $4,431
Ipswich $4,551

Living in Barcelona is roughly 1% more expensive than in Ipswich, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Ipswich 73% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$20.87 £15.66

-14.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$106 £79.2

-37.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$10.54 £7.91

29.89%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$5.50 £4.12

-44.36%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.68 £1.26

82.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.84 £1.38

5.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$6.83 £5.12

-43.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$6.95 £5.22

-33.67%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.76 £1.32

-26.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.69 £1.27

24.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.65 £1.24

10.91%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.31 £3.24

7.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.57 £9.43

38.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$8.81 £6.61

5.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$15.47 £11.61

28.18%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.08 £2.31

-2.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.47 £1.10

38.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.78 £2.09

-4.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$3.23 £2.42

-11.15%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.69 £1.27

27.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.43 £1.07

50.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.46 £1.10

0.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.46 £1.10

-39.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$23.41 £17.56

-70.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$10.87 £8.15

-27.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$2.68 £2.01

-48.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$3.68 £2.76

-28.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$2.81 £2.11

3.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$87.7 £65.8

-70.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$5.61 £4.21

-46.52%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.96 £1.47

-26.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$33.41 £25.06

-0.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.96 £1.47

-5.10%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$39.3K £29.5K

-17.65%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$41.3K £31.0K

-23.23%

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

$183 €163

$375 £281

-51.28%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$15.89 £11.92

-14.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$40.34 £30.26

-18.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$33.29 £24.97

64.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$7.97 £5.98

107.28%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$17.76 £13.32

-36.77%

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

$954 €849

$1,076 £807

-11.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$20.2K £15.1K

-17.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$68.5 £51.4

25.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$55.2 £41.39

-29.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$80.1 £60.1

29.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$69.2 £51.9

71.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,096 £822

54.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$972 £729

31.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,410 £1,058

82.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,540 £1,155

24.85%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$5,009 £3,758

45.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$4,015 £3,012

24.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$2,990 £2,243

-25.52%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.74

-30.80%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Ipswich: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Ipswich

$972 41.4% 23.8% $304

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Ipswich

$312 13.3% 4.1% $13

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Ipswich

$327 13.9% 21.2% $57

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Ipswich

$431 18.4% 88.1% $202

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Ipswich

$123 5.2% 21.4% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Ipswich

$69 2.9% 10.8% $8.4

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Ipswich

$114 4.9% 142% $67

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,096 in Ipswich. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ipswich pays 34% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $106 in Ipswich. Groceries flip the comparison at $325 vs $312, with Ipswich cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Ipswich

🕒 Local time

07:41 7:41 AM

06:41 6:41 AM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

120,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Ipswich 1,190 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Ipswich

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 Ipswich: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Ipswich differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,348 including rent). Ipswich is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 34% lower in Ipswich. 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,096 in Ipswich. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,076 in Ipswich. 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.

At $2,348 in Ipswich versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Ipswich but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Ipswich 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 Ipswich 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 Ipswich gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.