Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Kosice

For one person, living is cheaper in Kosice: $1,751 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
85

Cost of Living Index in Kosice
Learn more

Kosice Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Kosice

🇸🇰 Slovakia

$1,751

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Kosice

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,751 in Kosice.

Barcelona $2,399
Kosice $1,751

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $2,537 in Kosice.

Barcelona $3,410
Kosice $2,537

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $3,323 in Kosice.

Barcelona $4,421
Kosice $3,323

Living in Barcelona is roughly 37% more expensive than in Kosice, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Kosice 30% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$9.84 €8.75

82.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$55.1 €49.00

23.54%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$8.89 €7.91

49.38%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$3.44 €3.06

-5.52%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.05 €1.82

46.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.46 €1.30

28.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$2.83 €2.52

36.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$2.17 €1.93

106.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.08 €0.96

19.44%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.53 €1.36

33.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$2.05 €1.83

-16.10%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$3.81 €3.39

25.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$12.62 €11.23

32.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$7.68 €6.83

16.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$12.77 €11.36

55.68%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$1.72 €1.53

73.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$2.14 €1.90

-5.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.38 €2.12

14.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$4.54 €4.04

-40.97%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.36 €1.21

54.41%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.50 €1.33

38.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.66 €1.48

-12.65%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$0.81 €0.72

9.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$6.49 €5.77

6.93%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$5.64 €5.02

37.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.01 €0.90

43.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$1.81 €1.61

41.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$1.20 €1.06

149.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$33.57 €29.86

-24.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$1.71 €1.52

82.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.26 €1.12

14.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$22.43 €19.95

49.35%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.90 €1.69

-5.79%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$26.4K €23.5K

31.26%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$23.7K €21.0K

27.13%

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

$178 €158

$337 €300

-47.21%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$19.12 €17.01

-30.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$20.34 €18.10

71.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$50.2 €44.64

6.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$16.58 €14.75

-3.44%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$9.53 €8.47

16.05%

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

$957 €851

$414 €368

131.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$10.4K €9,269

58.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$68.8 €61.2

28.19%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$30.04 €26.72

31.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$82.3 €73.2

25.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$93.0 €82.7

30.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$905 €805

82.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$696 €619

87.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$1,627 €1,447

57.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$1,153 €1,026

65.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$3,955 €3,518

84.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$2,833 €2,520

79.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$1,502 €1,336

51.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.79

-13.46%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Kosice: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Kosice

$696 39.7% 46.6% $606

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Kosice

$261 14.9% 18.4% $59

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Kosice

$179 10.2% 33.6% $91

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Kosice

$376 21.5% 66.5% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Kosice

$123 7% 22.1% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Kosice

$69 4% 8.1% $6.1

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Kosice

$46 2.7% 2.4% $1.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $905 in Kosice. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 52% 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: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $55.0 in Kosice for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $261 per month, with Kosice cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇰 Kosice

🕒 Local time

07:41 7:41 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

238,593

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Kosice 1,700 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Kosice

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 Kosice: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Kosice differ by about 37% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,751 including rent). Kosice is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 52% 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $905 in Kosice. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $414 in Kosice. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,751 in Kosice versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Kosice but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Kosice 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 Kosice 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 Kosice gentler on the wallet – expenses run 37% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.