Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Lelystad

For one person, living is cheaper in Lelystad: $1,710 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Lelystad
Learn more

Lelystad Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Lelystad

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$1,710

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Lelystad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,710 in Lelystad.

Barcelona $2,453
Lelystad $1,710

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,651 in Lelystad.

Barcelona $3,509
Lelystad $2,651

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,592 in Lelystad.

Barcelona $4,564
Lelystad $3,592

Living in Barcelona is roughly 43% more expensive than in Lelystad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Lelystad 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$22.27 €20.00

-21.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$82.4 €74.0

-18.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$13.37 €12.01

1.20%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$4.10 €3.69

-22.20%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$2.60 €2.34

11.92%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$2.33 €2.10

-18.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$5.20 €4.67

-22.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$4.51 €4.05

0.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.26 €1.13

3.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.63 €1.46

23.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.40 €2.15

-22.92%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$4.60 €4.13

5.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$6.80 €6.11

146.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$14.20 €12.75

-35.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$16.57 €14.89

18.53%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$2.11 €1.89

41.23%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.46 €2.21

-17.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$1.83 €1.65

47.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$3.53 €3.17

-20.68%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.74 €1.56

20.11%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$1.74 €1.56

18.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.28 €1.15

14.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.81 €0.73

16.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$9.44 €8.48

-27.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$6.85 €6.15

15.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.28 €1.15

10.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$2.42 €2.18

4.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$111 €99.4

-77.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$3.72 €3.34

-19.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.63 €2.36

-43.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$26.07 €23.42

28.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.18 €1.95

-17.43%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$33.6K €30.1K

-1.08%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$39.4K €35.4K

-19.47%

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

$180 €162

$242 €217

-25.35%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$14.72 €13.22

-5.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$32.30 €29.01

4.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$42.75 €38.40

20.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$13.62 €12.24

-19.31%

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

$917 €823

$2,725 €2,448

-66.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$8,152 €7,323

102.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$92.9 €83.5

-6.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$48.39 €43.47

-20.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$93.7 €84.2

12.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$115 €103

3.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$668 €600

154.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$447 €402

202.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$1,330 €1,195

95.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$770 €692

167.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$2,420 €2,173

-8.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.23

1.55%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lelystad: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Lelystad

$447 26.2% 67% $908

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Lelystad

$297 17.4% 7.8% $25

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Lelystad

$322 18.8% 20.3% $54

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Lelystad

$289 16.9% 26.6% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Lelystad

$158 9.2% 0.2% $0.4

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Lelystad

$70 4.1% 4.8% $3.5

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Lelystad

$128 * 7.5% 163% $79

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 $1,699 in Barcelona and $668 in Lelystad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lelystad pays 9% 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 $82 in Lelystad. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $297, with Lelystad cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇳🇱 Lelystad

🕒 Local time

23:05 11:05 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

78,598

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Lelystad 1,260 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Lelystad

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 Lelystad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,710 in Lelystad, so Lelystad is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 9% 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 $668 in Lelystad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $2,725 in Lelystad. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,710 in Lelystad versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lelystad but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Lelystad 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 Lelystad are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.