Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Laval

For one person, living is cheaper in Laval: $2,283 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 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
109

Cost of Living Index in Laval
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Laval Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Laval

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,283

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Laval

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,283 in Laval.

Barcelona $2,453
Laval $2,283

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,368 in Laval.

Barcelona $3,509
Laval $3,368

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,454 in Laval.

Barcelona $4,564
Laval $4,454

Living in Barcelona is roughly 7% more expensive than in Laval, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Laval 68% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$17.73 CA$24.77

-0.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$77.6 CA$108

-12.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$10.77 CA$15.04

25.63%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.87 CA$5.41

-17.57%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.09 CA$2.93

39.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.59 CA$2.23

18.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$5.57 CA$7.79

-28.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$7.20 CA$10.05

-37.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.32 CA$3.24

-43.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.05 CA$4.25

-33.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.02 CA$4.22

-38.74%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.24 CA$4.53

49.07%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$11.69 CA$16.34

43.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$11.76 CA$16.43

-22.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$14.18 CA$19.81

38.50%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.65 CA$5.09

-18.36%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.52 CA$2.12

32.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$3.86 CA$5.39

-30.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$3.63 CA$5.07

-22.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.64 CA$3.69

-20.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.97 CA$2.75

5.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.55 CA$3.56

-42.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.49 CA$2.08

-36.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$11.34 CA$15.84

-39.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$12.42 CA$17.36

-36.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.23 CA$3.12

-36.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.89 CA$4.04

-12.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.79 CA$3.90

12.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$79.9 CA$112

-68.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$2.80 CA$3.91

6.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.44 CA$2.01

3.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$19.58 CA$27.36

70.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.22 CA$1.70

47.54%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$28.4K CA$39.7K

16.70%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$21.6K CA$30.2K

46.66%

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

$180 €162

$88.3 CA$123

104.31%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$37.26 CA$52.1

-62.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$46.30 CA$64.7

-27.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$30.54 CA$42.67

68.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$11.37 CA$15.88

-3.34%

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

$917 €821

$831 CA$1,161

10.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$15.9K CA$22.2K

3.70%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$56.8 CA$79.4

53.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$39.27 CA$54.9

-1.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$99.3 CA$139

6.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$110 CA$154

8.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$1,254 CA$1,752

35.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$1,183 CA$1,653

14.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,934 CA$2,702

34.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,855 CA$2,592

11.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$3,102 CA$4,334

122.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,669 CA$3,729

-17.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.48

-26.79%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Laval: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Laval

$1.2K 51.9% 12.7% $172

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Laval

$358 15.7% 11.2% $36

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Laval

$278 12.2% 3.6% $9.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Laval

$172 7.5% 24.6% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Laval

$138 6% 12.9% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Laval

$53 2.3% 27.5% $20

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Laval

$101 4.4% 109% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,254 in Laval. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Laval pays 21% 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 $78 in Laval for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $358 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇦 Laval

🕒 Local time

16:55 4:55 PM

10:55 10:55 AM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

438,366

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Laval 5,910 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Laval

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 Laval: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,283 in Laval, so Laval is about 7% 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 $1,254 in Laval. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $831 in Laval. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Laval 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.