Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Kanazawa

For one person, living is cheaper in Kanazawa: $1,277 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 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
62

Cost of Living Index in Kanazawa
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Kanazawa Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Kanazawa

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,277

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Kanazawa

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $1,277 in Kanazawa.

Barcelona $2,381
Kanazawa $1,277

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $2,031 in Kanazawa.

Barcelona $3,406
Kanazawa $2,031

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $2,786 in Kanazawa.

Barcelona $4,431
Kanazawa $2,786

Living in Barcelona is roughly 86% more expensive than in Kanazawa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Kanazawa is 6% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$7.64 ¥1,206

134.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$31.61 ¥4,994

109.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$4.73 ¥747

189.43%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.26 ¥358

35.40%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.14 ¥180

169.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.58 ¥91.2

234.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$2.03 ¥320

90.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.33 ¥368

97.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.55 ¥245

-16.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.32 ¥208

59.09%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$5.30 ¥837

-65.47%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$2.07 ¥327

123.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$12.52 ¥1,978

38.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$9.41 ¥1,487

-1.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$31.96 ¥5,049

-37.95%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.62 ¥572

-16.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$2.28 ¥360

-10.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$6.48 ¥1,024

-59.10%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$4.14 ¥655

-30.68%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$3.73 ¥589

-42.09%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$3.42 ¥540

-37.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.28 ¥201

14.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.03 ¥163

-14.56%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$3.55 ¥561

95.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$8.40 ¥1,327

-6.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.96 ¥310

-29.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.52 ¥239

73.03%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.49 ¥236

95.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$54.4 ¥8,598

-53.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$3.11 ¥491

-3.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$3.22 ¥508

-55.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$26.21 ¥4,140

26.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.11 ¥175

67.57%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$20.3K ¥3.2M

59.20%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$16.4K ¥2.6M

93.08%

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

$183 €163

$148 ¥23.3K

23.71%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$24.34 ¥3,845

-44.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$43.30 ¥6,840

-23.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$42.68 ¥6,743

28.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$11.47 ¥1,812

-2.09%

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

$954 €849

$320 ¥50.6K

198.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$6,140 ¥970.0K

170.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$49.59 ¥7,834

73.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$25.27 ¥3,993

54.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$45.94 ¥7,258

125.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$64.9 ¥10.3K

82.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$539 ¥85.1K

214.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$327 ¥51.6K

290.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,100 ¥173.7K

134.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$749 ¥118.3K

156.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$4,294 ¥678.4K

69.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,742 ¥275.3K

187.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,857 ¥293.4K

19.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

2.28

43.86%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Kanazawa: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Kanazawa

$327 25.6% 74.4% $950

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Kanazawa

$382 29.9% 17.6% $57

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Kanazawa

$124 9.7% 54% $145

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Kanazawa

$215 16.9% 6.1% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Kanazawa

$84 6.5% 46.6% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Kanazawa

$66 5.1% 15% $12

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Kanazawa

$80 6.2% 68.2% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $539 in Kanazawa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 20% 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 $32.00 in Kanazawa. Groceries flip the comparison at $325 vs $382, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇯🇵 Kanazawa

🕒 Local time

05:52 5:52 AM

12:52 12:52 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

465,699

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 178 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Kanazawa 10,190 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Kanazawa

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 Kanazawa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Kanazawa differ by about 86% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $1,277 including rent). Kanazawa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 20% 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 $539 in Kanazawa. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $320 in Kanazawa. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 18% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,277 in Kanazawa versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kanazawa but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Kanazawa 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 Kanazawa 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 Kanazawa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 86% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.