Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Kempton Park

For one person, living is cheaper in Kempton Park: $1,231 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $14,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Barcelona, Spain
Kempton Park, South Africa
Barcelona
🇪🇸 Spain
$2,453
/mo nomad
Kempton Park
🇿🇦 South Africa
$1,231
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Kempton Park

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,231 in Kempton Park.

  • Barcelona $2,453
  • Kempton Park $1,231

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,889 in Kempton Park.

  • Barcelona $3,509
  • Kempton Park $1,889

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,547 in Kempton Park.

  • Barcelona $4,564
  • Kempton Park $2,547

Living in Barcelona is roughly 99% more expensive than in Kempton Park, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Kempton Park is 10% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.59 €15.75
$9.01 R 151
95.23%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$67.5 €60.5
$37.26 R 623
81.13%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.53 €12.12
$5.98 R 100.0
126.25%
Cappuccino
$3.19 €2.86
$2.42 R 40.46
31.82%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.91 €2.61
$1.04 R 17.30
179.81%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.89 €1.70
$0.81 R 13.61
133.33%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.01 €3.59
$2.47 R 41.24
62.35%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.53 €4.06
$2.82 R 47.14
60.64%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.31 €1.17
$1.36 R 22.79
-3.68%
White Bread (500g)
$2.02 €1.81
$1.10 R 18.30
83.64%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.85 €1.66
$1.82 R 30.46
1.65%
Eggs
$4.83 €4.33
$2.53 R 42.25
90.91%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$16.74 €14.99
$8.51 R 142
96.71%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.12 €8.17
$5.30 R 88.5
72.08%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$19.64 €17.59
$9.17 R 153
114.18%
Apples (1kg)
$2.98 €2.67
$1.87 R 31.31
59.36%
Banana (1kg)
$2.02 €1.81
$1.73 R 28.98
16.76%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.70 €2.42
$1.77 R 29.54
52.54%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.80 €2.51
$1.98 R 33.08
41.41%
Potato (1kg)
$2.09 €1.87
$1.74 R 29.03
20.11%
Onion (1kg)
$2.07 €1.85
$1.76 R 29.39
17.61%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.46 €1.31
$1.24 R 20.64
17.74%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.94 €0.84
$1.29 R 21.54
-27.13%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$6.87 €6.15
$3.38 R 56.4
103.25%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.89 €7.06
$5.30 R 88.6
48.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.41 €1.26
$1.66 R 27.71
-15.06%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.54 €2.27
$2.42 R 40.41
4.96%
🚌 Getting Around
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.14 €2.82
$1.56 R 26.11
101.28%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$25.45 €22.79
$61.1 R 1,020
-58.31%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.99 €2.68
$0.31 R 5.19
864.52%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.49 €1.34
$0.82 R 13.71
81.71%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$33.37 €29.89
$14.51 R 242
129.98%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.80 €1.61
$1.55 R 25.91
16.13%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.2K €29.7K
$36.3K R 606.5K
-8.56%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$31.7K €28.4K
$34.1K R 570.2K
-7.11%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$180 €162
$182 R 3,040
-0.86%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.84 €12.39
$39.32 R 657
-64.80%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$33.70 €30.18
$38.46 R 643
-12.38%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$51.5 €46.13
$38.63 R 645
33.34%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.96 €14.29
$11.06 R 185
44.30%
Cinema Ticket
$10.99 €9.85
$8.46 R 141
29.91%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$917 €821
$263 R 4,396
248.40%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.5K €14.8K
$5,524 R 92.3K
198.32%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$87.0 €77.9
$53.5 R 893
62.83%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$38.51 €34.49
$33.01 R 552
16.66%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$106 €94.8
$91.9 R 1,535
15.20%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$120 €107
$84.1 R 1,406
42.26%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,699 €1,522
$306 R 5,118
454.77%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,355 €1,214
$370 R 6,189
265.87%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,603 €2,331
$750 R 12.5K
247.05%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,062 €1,847
$750 R 12.5K
174.97%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,915 €6,193
$862 R 14.4K
701.90%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,128 €4,592
$690 R 11.5K
643.54%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Barcelona
Kempton Park
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,211 €1,980
$630 R 10.5K
250.89%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.28
11.25
-70.84%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Kempton Park: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Barcelona
$1.4K
Kempton Park
$370 72.7% $985
Groceries & Markets
Barcelona
$322
Kempton Park
$211 34.4% $111
Eating Out
Barcelona
$268
Kempton Park
$144 46.1% $123
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Barcelona
$228
Kempton Park
$260 14% $32
Clothing & Footwear
Barcelona
$158
Kempton Park
$118 25.2% $40
Sport & Entertainment
Barcelona
$74
Kempton Park
$56 24.4% $18
Getting Around
Barcelona
$48
Kempton Park
$72 47.9% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $306 in Kempton Park. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 3.5 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $37 in Kempton Park for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $211 per month, with Kempton Park cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇪🇸 Barcelona
🇿🇦 Kempton Park
🕒 Local time
21:20 9:20 PM
22:20 10:20 PM
1 h ahead of Barcelona
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,660,122
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

South African Rand exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 16.71 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.99 USD). 1 EUR = 18.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.36 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Barcelona Kempton Park 7,970 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Barcelona
  • Kempton Park

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 Kempton Park: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Barcelona and in Kempton Park?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,231 in Kempton Park, so Kempton Park is about 50% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
Which city pays better: Barcelona or Kempton Park?
Average pay in Barcelona is about 3.5 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How do apartment prices compare in Barcelona and in Kempton Park?
Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $306 in Kempton Park. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Barcelona and Kempton Park?
Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $263 in Kempton Park. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Supermarket bills run roughly 52% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.
Which city is feasible on a $1,000 budget?
Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Kempton Park is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.
How does quality of life compare between Barcelona and Kempton Park?
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.
Is Barcelona or Kempton Park safer for residents?
Safety-wise, Barcelona and Kempton Park are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.
How do I decide between Barcelona and Kempton Park?
It comes down to priorities – Kempton Park wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.

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