Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and London, Canada

Name: London
Address: London, CA

For one person, living is cheaper in London: $2,342 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 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
112

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

London

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,342

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in London

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,342 in London.

Barcelona $2,453
London $2,342

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,356 in London.

Barcelona $3,509
London $3,356

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,370 in London.

Barcelona $4,564
London $4,370

Living in Barcelona is roughly 5% more expensive than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, London 72% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.75

$21.44 CA$29.96

-17.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$64.9 CA$90.6

4.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$12.45 CA$17.40

8.67%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.75 CA$5.24

-14.93%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.21 CA$3.09

31.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$2.13 CA$2.98

-11.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$6.26 CA$8.74

-35.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$6.40 CA$8.94

-29.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.89 CA$2.64

-30.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.67 CA$3.73

-24.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$4.07 CA$5.68

-54.55%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.69 CA$5.15

30.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.99

$10.02 CA$14.00

67.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$11.75 CA$16.41

-22.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.59

$14.92 CA$20.85

31.64%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$4.38 CA$6.11

-31.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.21 CA$1.68

66.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$3.79 CA$5.29

-28.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$4.21 CA$5.88

-33.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$3.20 CA$4.47

-34.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$3.07 CA$4.30

-32.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.52 CA$3.53

-42.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.54 CA$2.16

-38.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$12.01 CA$16.78

-42.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$12.68 CA$17.72

-37.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.55 CA$3.57

-44.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.91 CA$4.07

-12.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.55 CA$3.56

23.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.79

$80.3 CA$112

-68.30%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$2.45 CA$3.42

22.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.64 CA$2.29

-9.15%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.89

$22.15 CA$30.95

50.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.25 CA$1.74

44.00%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$26.8K CA$37.5K

23.82%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$23.2K CA$32.4K

36.85%

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

$180 €162

$139 CA$194

29.87%

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

$13.84 €12.39

$39.22 CA$54.8

-64.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.18

$56.6 CA$79.1

-40.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.13

$35.95 CA$50.2

43.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.29

$28.81 CA$40.25

-44.60%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$10.83 CA$15.14

1.48%

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

$917 €821

$419 CA$586

118.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$20.8K CA$29.1K

-20.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.9

$54.2 CA$75.7

60.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.49

$38.94 CA$54.4

-1.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$81.1 CA$113

30.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$91.4 CA$128

30.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,522

$1,323 CA$1,849

28.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$1,149 CA$1,606

17.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,331

$2,099 CA$2,932

24.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,847

$1,681 CA$2,349

22.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,193

$4,124 CA$5,762

67.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,592

$3,452 CA$4,823

48.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,980

$3,052 CA$4,265

-27.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.72

-30.51%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for London: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

London

$1.1K 49.1% 15.2% $206

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

London

$364 15.5% 13% $42

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

London

$315 13.5% 17.7% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

London

$235 10% 3% $6.8

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

London

$119 5.1% 24.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

London

$58 2.5% 21.6% $16

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

London

$101 4.3% 109% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,323 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 38% 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 $65 in London. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $364, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇦 London

🕒 Local time

17:43 5:43 PM

11:43 11:43 AM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

383,822

💱 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 London 6,570 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
London

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 London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,342 in London, so London is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 28% 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 $1,323 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $419 in London. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 12% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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