Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Liestal

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $3,252 in Liestal, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
157

Cost of Living Index in Liestal
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Liestal Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Liestal

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,252

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Liestal

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,252 in Liestal.

Barcelona $2,453
Liestal $3,252

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $5,162 in Liestal.

Barcelona $3,509
Liestal $5,162

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $7,071 in Liestal.

Barcelona $4,564
Liestal $7,071

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 25% less than in Liestal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Liestal 139% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$29.22 CHF 24.10

-39.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$120 CHF 99.1

-43.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$18.51 CHF 15.27

-26.90%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$6.26 CHF 5.16

-49.04%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$6.18 CHF 5.10

-52.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$5.88 CHF 4.85

-67.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$8.97 CHF 7.40

-55.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$7.93 CHF 6.54

-42.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.22 CHF 1.83

-40.99%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.10 CHF 2.56

-34.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.35 CHF 2.76

-44.78%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$7.70 CHF 6.35

-37.27%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$24.34 CHF 20.07

-31.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$27.80 CHF 22.93

-67.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$39.05 CHF 32.20

-49.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.85 CHF 3.17

-22.60%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.26 CHF 1.86

-10.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.81 CHF 2.32

-3.91%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$4.69 CHF 3.87

-40.30%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.68 CHF 1.39

24.40%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.99 CHF 1.64

4.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.30 CHF 1.89

-36.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.35 CHF 1.11

-30.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$11.48 CHF 9.47

-40.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$11.87 CHF 9.79

-33.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.26 CHF 1.86

-37.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.02 CHF 2.49

-15.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$4.32 CHF 3.56

-27.31%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$103 CHF 85.1

-75.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$8.44 CHF 6.96

-64.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$4.68 CHF 3.86

-68.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$108 CHF 88.7

-68.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.39 CHF 1.97

-24.69%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$38.5K CHF 31.8K

-13.87%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$39.0K CHF 32.2K

-18.72%

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

$180 €162

$293 CHF 242

-38.41%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$28.40 CHF 23.42

-51.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$63.2 CHF 52.1

-46.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$85.3 CHF 70.3

-39.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$45.92 CHF 37.87

-65.24%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$24.00 CHF 19.79

-54.21%

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

$917 €821

$2,980 CHF 2,458

-69.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$30.6K CHF 25.2K

-46.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$140 CHF 115

-37.79%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$61.7 CHF 50.9

-37.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$159 CHF 131

-33.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$201 CHF 166

-40.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$1,759 CHF 1,451

-3.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$1,287 CHF 1,061

5.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$2,960 CHF 2,441

-12.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$2,567 CHF 2,117

-19.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$16.3K CHF 13.5K

-57.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$12.3K CHF 10.1K

-58.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$9,109 CHF 7,513

-75.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

2.42

35.54%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Liestal: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Liestal

$1.3K 39.6% 5.1% $69

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Liestal

$570 17.5% 77% $248

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Liestal

$473 14.6% 76.7% $205

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Liestal

$385 11.8% 68.7% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Liestal

$253 7.8% 59.9% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Liestal

$133 4.1% 81.3% $60

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Liestal

$152 4.7% 214% $104

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,759 in Liestal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Liestal pays about 4.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $120 in Liestal for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $570 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇭 Liestal

🕒 Local time

05:46 5:46 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

13,807

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Liestal 810 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Liestal

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 Liestal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $3,252 in Liestal, so Barcelona is about 25% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 76% 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 $1,759 in Liestal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $2,980 in Liestal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Liestal. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,252 in Liestal, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Liestal. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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 Liestal are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Liestal. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.