Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Kecskemet

For one person, living is cheaper in Kecskemet: $1,171 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
56

Cost of Living Index in Kecskemet
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Kecskemet Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Kecskemet

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,171

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Kecskemet

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,171 in Kecskemet.

Barcelona $2,453
Kecskemet $1,171

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,730 in Kecskemet.

Barcelona $3,509
Kecskemet $1,730

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,289 in Kecskemet.

Barcelona $4,564
Kecskemet $2,289

Living in Barcelona is roughly 109% more expensive than in Kecskemet, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Kecskemet is 14% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$9.30 Ft 3,065

89.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$31.01 Ft 10.2K

117.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$7.46 Ft 2,458

81.37%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$1.55 Ft 509

105.81%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$1.57 Ft 519

85.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.25 Ft 413

51.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$2.30 Ft 758

74.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$2.22 Ft 732

104.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.14 Ft 375

14.91%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.28 Ft 422

57.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.52 Ft 832

-26.59%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$3.66 Ft 1,208

31.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$10.60 Ft 3,495

57.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$6.38 Ft 2,103

42.95%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$13.73 Ft 4,527

43.04%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$1.81 Ft 596

64.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.69 Ft 556

19.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$1.84 Ft 607

46.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$3.09 Ft 1,020

-9.39%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.97 Ft 320

115.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$1.10 Ft 361

88.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.20 Ft 396

21.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.51 Ft 168

84.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$6.82 Ft 2,247

0.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$3.74 Ft 1,232

110.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.23 Ft 405

14.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$1.97 Ft 650

28.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.11 Ft 367

182.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$18.31 Ft 6,036

39.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$1.24 Ft 407

141.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.63 Ft 538

-8.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$18.23 Ft 6,009

83.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.82 Ft 600

-1.10%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$27.3K Ft 9.0M

21.58%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$32.9K Ft 10.9M

-3.73%

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

$180 €162

$127 Ft 41.8K

42.21%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$32.09 Ft 10.6K

-56.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$19.40 Ft 6,395

73.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$61.0 Ft 20.1K

-15.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$27.90 Ft 9,198

-42.80%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$7.71 Ft 2,542

42.54%

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

$917 €823

$245 Ft 80.9K

273.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$6,732 Ft 2.2M

144.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$112 Ft 36.8K

-22.04%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$15.02 Ft 4,951

156.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$46.49 Ft 15.3K

127.60%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$77.2 Ft 25.4K

55.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$496 Ft 163.6K

242.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$400 Ft 131.8K

239.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$691 Ft 227.8K

276.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$594 Ft 196.0K

246.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$2,336 Ft 770.2K

196.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$2,013 Ft 663.5K

154.78%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$1,065 Ft 351.3K

107.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.67

-50.82%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kecskemet: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Kecskemet

$400 34.1% 70.5% $955

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Kecskemet

$229 19.6% 28.7% $92

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Kecskemet

$143 12.2% 46.8% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Kecskemet

$178 15.2% 21.8% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Kecskemet

$113 9.6% 28.7% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Kecskemet

$76 6.5% 4% $3

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Kecskemet

$32 2.7% 33.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $496 in Kecskemet. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.1 times 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $31 in Kecskemet for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $229 per month, with Kecskemet cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇭🇺 Kecskemet

🕒 Local time

22:20 10:20 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

109,450

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.72 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HUF, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 330 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD). 1 EUR = 367 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.72 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Kecskemet 1,520 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Kecskemet

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 Kecskemet: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,171 in Kecskemet, so Kecskemet is about 52% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2.1 times higher, 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $496 in Kecskemet. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $245 in Kecskemet. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 40% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,171 in Kecskemet versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Kecskemet but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Kecskemet 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 Kecskemet are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Kecskemet gentler on the wallet – expenses run 52% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.