Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Krems

For one person, living is cheaper in Krems: $2,172 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
105

Cost of Living Index in Krems
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Krems Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Krems

🇦🇹 Austria

$2,172

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Krems

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,172 in Krems.

Barcelona $2,453
Krems $2,172

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,204 in Krems.

Barcelona $3,509
Krems $3,204

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,237 in Krems.

Barcelona $4,564
Krems $4,237

Living in Barcelona is roughly 13% more expensive than in Krems, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Krems 60% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$16.62 €14.90

5.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$76.8 €68.9

-12.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$12.40 €11.11

9.11%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$4.47 €4.01

-28.64%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$3.89 €3.49

-25.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$2.86 €2.56

-33.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$5.98 €5.36

-32.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$5.48 €4.91

-17.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.47 €1.32

-10.88%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.26 €2.03

-10.62%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.69 €1.52

9.47%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.71 €3.32

30.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$19.42 €17.40

-13.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$8.75 €7.84

4.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$21.13 €18.93

-7.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.77 €2.48

7.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.35 €2.11

-14.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.81 €2.52

-3.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$5.33 €4.78

-47.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.70 €1.52

22.94%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.37 €2.13

-12.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.90 €1.70

-23.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.75 €0.67

25.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$7.00 €6.27

-1.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$6.71 €6.01

17.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.68 €0.61

107.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.77 €1.59

43.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.42 €2.17

29.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$51.1 €45.81

-50.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$7.03 €6.30

-57.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.15 €1.03

29.57%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$27.38 €24.54

21.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.88 €1.69

-4.26%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$30.2K €27.0K

10.07%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$33.6K €30.1K

-5.52%

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

$180 €162

$291 €261

-38.06%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$9.83 €8.80

40.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$39.58 €35.47

-14.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$40.17 €36.00

28.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$19.77 €17.71

-19.27%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$13.21 €11.83

-16.81%

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

$917 €821

$447 €401

104.91%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$13.7K €12.3K

20.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$102 €91.0

-14.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$40.44 €36.24

-4.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$128 €115

-17.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$125 €112

-4.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$990 €887

71.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$885 €793

53.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,579 €1,415

64.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,416 €1,269

45.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$6,767 €6,064

2.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$5,559 €4,982

-7.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,661 €2,384

-16.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.66

-10.38%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Krems: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Krems

$885 40.7% 34.7% $471

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Krems

$337 15.5% 4.7% $15

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Krems

$292 13.4% 8.9% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Krems

$341 15.7% 49.4% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Krems

$178 8.2% 12.5% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Krems

$67 3.1% 9.4% $6.9

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Krems

$74 3.4% 51.9% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $990 in Krems. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Krems pays 20% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $77 in Krems for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $337 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇦🇹 Krems

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

12,500

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Krems 1,310 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Krems

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 Krems: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,172 in Krems, so Krems is about 11% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Barcelona. 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $990 in Krems. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $447 in Krems. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 4% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Krems is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Krems are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.