Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Leuven Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Leuven

🙂 Solo nomad: Barcelona is 4.7% cheaper than Leuven without rent, and 5.4% more expensive with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Barcelona is 7.6% cheaper than Leuven without rent, and 0.4% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.41 €15.03
$17.2 €14.85
1.22%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$68.7 €59.3
$93.5 €80.7
-26.48%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.71 €11.84
$11.78 €10.17
16.38%
Cappuccino
$2.78 €2.4
$4.29 €3.71
-35.20%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.8 €2.42
$3.59 €3.1
-22.01%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.98 €1.71
$3.44 €2.97
-42.44%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$4.43 €3.83
$4.99 €4.31
-11.22%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.53 €3.91
$3.73 €3.22
21.45%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.24 €1.07
$1.34 €1.15
-7.46%
White Bread (500g)
$2.03 €1.75
$2.07 €1.79
-1.93%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.98 €1.71
$3.03 €2.62
-34.65%
Eggs
$3.46 €2.99
$3.55 €3.07
-2.54%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$18.32 €15.82
$11.84 €10.22
54.73%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.82 €8.47
$13.31 €11.49
-26.22%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$19.24 €16.61
$17.65 €15.24
9.01%
Apples (1kg)
$2.61 €2.25
$2.64 €2.28
-1.14%
Banana (1kg)
$2.34 €2.02
$2.37 €2.04
-1.27%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.11 €1.82
$2.12 €1.83
-0.47%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.77 €2.39
$2.55 €2.2
8.63%
Potato (1kg)
$2.04 €1.76
$2.12 €1.83
-3.77%
Onion (1kg)
$1.77 €1.53
$1.71 €1.47
3.51%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.5 €1.3
$1.59 €1.37
-5.66%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.85 €0.73
$1.26 €1.09
-32.54%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7 €6.04
$12.88 €11.12
-45.65%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.13 €6.16
$7.93 €6.84
-10.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.43 €1.24
$2.44 €2.1
-41.39%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.29 €1.98
$2.2 €1.9
4.09%
🚌 Getting Around
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.02 €2.6
$2.97 €2.56
1.68%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$28.97 €25.01
$37.32 €32.22
-22.37%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$4.59 €3.96
$6.2 €5.36
-25.97%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.02 €1.74
$2.62 €2.26
-22.90%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$29.56 €25.53
$35.09 €30.29
-15.76%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.81 €1.56
$1.84 €1.59
-1.63%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.4K €33.1K
$30.2K €26.1K
27.22%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$32.4K €28K
$27.9K €24.1K
16.12%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$190 €164
$184 €159
3.22%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$22.18 €19.15
$21.72 €18.76
2.12%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$36.37 €31.4
$48.46 €41.84
-24.95%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$57.4 €49.55
$46.14 €39.84
24.38%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$20.95 €18.09
$17.29 €14.92
21.17%
Cinema Ticket
$10.8 €9.33
$14.2 €12.26
-23.94%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$732 €632
$676 €584
8.30%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.1K €13.1K
$13.5K €11.7K
11.85%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$86.8 €74.9
$104 €89.4
-16.18%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$36.78 €31.76
$31.89 €27.53
15.33%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$102 €88.2
$92.5 €79.8
10.51%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$117 €101
$133 €115
-12.00%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,581 €1,365
$1,017 €878
55.51%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,230 €1,062
$1,096 €946
12.21%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,707 €2,337
$2,171 €1,875
24.70%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,028 €1,751
$1,760 €1,519
15.23%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,602 €5,700
$5,873 €5,071
12.40%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,045 €4,356
$3,978 €3,435
26.83%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Barcelona
Leuven
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,198 €1,898
$3,234 €2,792
-32.03%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.39
3.83
-11.49%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 28, 2025

Last update for Leuven: October 29, 2025

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