Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Kettering

For one person, living is cheaper in Kettering: $1,921 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $5,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
94

Cost of Living Index in Kettering
Learn more

Kettering Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Kettering

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,921

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Kettering

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,921 in Kettering.

Barcelona $2,399
Kettering $1,921

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $2,555 in Kettering.

Barcelona $3,410
Kettering $2,555

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $3,189 in Kettering.

Barcelona $4,421
Kettering $3,189

Living in Barcelona is roughly 25% more expensive than in Kettering, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Kettering 42% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$19.80 £14.86

-9.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$80.4 £60.3

-15.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$10.75 £8.07

23.53%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$4.59 £3.44

-29.19%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.10 £1.58

43.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.53 £1.15

22.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$5.75 £4.31

-33.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$5.35 £4.01

-16.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.44 £1.08

-10.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.76 £1.32

15.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$2.71 £2.03

-36.53%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$3.98 £2.99

19.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$9.01 £6.76

86.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$7.54 £5.66

18.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$16.40 £12.30

21.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$3.30 £2.48

-9.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.54 £1.15

31.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.67 £2.01

2.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$3.16 £2.37

-15.19%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.21 £0.91

73.55%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.71 £1.28

21.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.21 £0.91

19.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$1.24 £0.93

-28.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$23.65 £17.74

-70.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$9.70 £7.28

-19.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$3.28 £2.46

-55.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.39 £1.79

7.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.59 £1.94

15.44%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$4.09 £3.07

-23.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.59 £1.19

-9.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$31.82 £23.87

5.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$2.00 £1.50

-10.50%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$37.6K £28.2K

-7.77%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$41.0K £30.7K

-26.62%

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

$178 €158

$200 £150

-11.11%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$16.23 £12.17

-17.93%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$43.94 £32.96

-20.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$39.72 £29.80

34.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$12.96 £9.73

-14.66%

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

$957 €851

$1,503 £1,128

-36.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$22.3K £16.7K

-25.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$86.4 £64.8

2.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$31.23 £23.43

26.45%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$73.9 £55.4

39.21%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$97.2 £72.9

25.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$1,053 £790

56.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$851 £638

53.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$1,071 £804

138.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$758 £569

152.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$4,330 £3,248

-47.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.06

-35.18%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kettering: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Kettering

$851 44.3% 34.7% $451

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Kettering

$292 15.2% 8.7% $28

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Kettering

$300 15.6% 11% $30

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Kettering

$260 13.6% 15.1% $34

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Kettering

$130 6.8% 18% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Kettering

$66 3.4% 12.9% $9.7

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Kettering

$22 * 1.2% 52.8% $25

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $1,053 in Kettering. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Kettering pays 90% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $80.0 in Kettering. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $292, with Kettering cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Kettering

🕒 Local time

18:52 6:52 PM

17:52 5:52 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

56,676

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Kettering 1,240 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Kettering

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 Kettering: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Kettering differ by about 25% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,921 including rent). Kettering is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 90% lower in Kettering. 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $1,053 in Kettering. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $1,503 in Kettering. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Kettering – a meal for two runs $80.0 versus $68.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,921 in Kettering versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Kettering but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Kettering 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 Kettering 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 Kettering gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.