Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Longyearbyen

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $2,753 in Longyearbyen, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. The total is higher in Longyearbyen despite lower rent and utilities.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
133

Cost of Living Index in Longyearbyen
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Longyearbyen Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,753

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Longyearbyen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,753 in Longyearbyen.

Barcelona $2,381
Longyearbyen $2,753

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $4,188 in Longyearbyen.

Barcelona $3,406
Longyearbyen $4,188

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $5,624 in Longyearbyen.

Barcelona $4,431
Longyearbyen $5,624

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 14% less than in Longyearbyen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Longyearbyen 103% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$20.60 NOK 194

-13.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$104 NOK 980

-36.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$18.21 NOK 171

-24.82%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$6.99 NOK 65.8

-56.22%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$6.02 NOK 56.7

-49.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$5.54 NOK 52.1

-64.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$7.36 NOK 69.2

-47.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$9.23 NOK 86.9

-50.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$2.39 NOK 22.48

-45.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$3.59 NOK 33.84

-41.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$4.37 NOK 41.13

-58.12%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.89 NOK 46.05

-5.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$14.26 NOK 134

21.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$20.14 NOK 190

-53.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$31.12 NOK 293

-36.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$6.72 NOK 63.2

-55.21%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$2.67 NOK 25.14

-23.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$6.80 NOK 64.0

-61.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$6.57 NOK 61.9

-56.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$5.46 NOK 51.4

-60.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$4.47 NOK 42.05

-51.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$4.37 NOK 41.12

-66.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$3.54 NOK 33.36

-75.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$17.10 NOK 161

-59.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$14.34 NOK 135

-45.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$3.40 NOK 32.01

-59.12%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$4.20 NOK 39.52

-37.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$4.68 NOK 44.07

-37.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$83.2 NOK 783

-69.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$9.19 NOK 86.5

-67.36%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.88 NOK 17.73

-23.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$70.8 NOK 667

-53.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.20 NOK 20.73

-15.45%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$47.2K NOK 444.5K

-31.51%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$43.0K NOK 404.9K

-26.29%

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

$183 €163

$266 NOK 2,501

-31.21%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$33.76 NOK 318

-59.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$52.8 NOK 497

-37.68%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$49.32 NOK 464

10.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$37.00 NOK 348

-55.35%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$17.11 NOK 161

-34.37%

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

$954 €849

$234 NOK 2,201

308.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$13.2K NOK 124.2K

25.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$98.3 NOK 925

-12.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$56.6 NOK 533

-30.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$127 NOK 1,198

-18.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$157 NOK 1,482

-24.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,107 NOK 10.4K

53.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$1,011 NOK 9,518

26.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,947 NOK 18.3K

32.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,675 NOK 15.8K

14.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$6,182 NOK 58.2K

17.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$4,028 NOK 37.9K

24.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$2,904 NOK 27.3K

-23.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.94

-33.60%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Longyearbyen: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Longyearbyen

$1K 36.7% 20.8% $265

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Longyearbyen

$583 21.2% 79.3% $258

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Longyearbyen

$405 14.7% 50.2% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Longyearbyen

$352 12.8% 53.6% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Longyearbyen

$198 7.2% 26.5% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Longyearbyen

$84 3% 8.3% $6.4

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Longyearbyen

$121 4.4% 155% $73

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,107 in Longyearbyen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Longyearbyen pays 30% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $104 in Longyearbyen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $583 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇳🇴 Longyearbyen

🕒 Local time

14:31 2:31 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

2,400

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Longyearbyen 4,140 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Longyearbyen

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 Longyearbyen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Longyearbyen differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,753 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 30% lower in Longyearbyen. 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,107 in Longyearbyen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $234 in Longyearbyen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 79% higher in Longyearbyen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Barcelona 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.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Longyearbyen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Longyearbyen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.