Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Lulea

For one person, living is cheaper in Lulea: $1,850 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 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
88

Cost of Living Index in Lulea
Learn more

Lulea Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Lulea

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,850

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Lulea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,850 in Lulea.

Barcelona $2,453
Lulea $1,850

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $3,016 in Lulea.

Barcelona $3,509
Lulea $3,016

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $4,181 in Lulea.

Barcelona $4,564
Lulea $4,181

Living in Barcelona is roughly 33% more expensive than in Lulea.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Lulea 36% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$12.19 SEK 120

44.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$110 SEK 1,081

-38.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$11.37 SEK 112

19.00%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$4.55 SEK 44.71

-29.89%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.83 SEK 27.75

2.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$2.34 SEK 22.94

-19.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$9.60 SEK 94.3

-58.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$9.40 SEK 92.3

-51.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.94 SEK 19.09

-32.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.43 SEK 33.69

-41.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$4.94 SEK 48.50

-62.55%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$4.62 SEK 45.32

4.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$12.57 SEK 123

33.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$13.45 SEK 132

-32.19%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$24.18 SEK 237

-18.78%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.00 SEK 29.42

-0.67%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.62 SEK 25.72

-22.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.46 SEK 24.19

9.76%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$4.12 SEK 40.49

-32.04%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.05 SEK 20.16

1.95%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.57 SEK 15.39

31.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$3.38 SEK 33.17

-56.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.23 SEK 12.11

-23.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$6.84 SEK 67.2

0.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$11.99 SEK 118

-34.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.68 SEK 16.46

-16.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.81 SEK 17.80

40.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$3.26 SEK 32.06

-3.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$55.6 SEK 546

-54.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$8.97 SEK 88.1

-66.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.12 SEK 20.85

-29.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$70.3 SEK 690

-52.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.73 SEK 16.97

4.05%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$32.7K SEK 320.8K

1.59%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$34.3K SEK 336.4K

-7.48%

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

$180 €162

$166 SEK 1,635

8.36%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$31.95 SEK 314

-56.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$26.95 SEK 265

25.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$47.34 SEK 465

8.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$35.22 SEK 346

-54.68%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$12.98 SEK 127

-15.33%

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

$917 €821

$152 SEK 1,496

501.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$5,415 SEK 53.2K

204.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$119 SEK 1,173

-27.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$32.92 SEK 323

16.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$124 SEK 1,221

-14.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$162 SEK 1,594

-26.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$774 SEK 7,601

119.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$587 SEK 5,768

130.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,462 SEK 14.4K

77.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,097 SEK 10.8K

87.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$3,125 SEK 30.7K

121.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$2,206 SEK 21.7K

132.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,607 SEK 25.6K

-15.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.85

-14.81%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Lulea: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Lulea

$587 31.8% 56.7% $768

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Lulea

$404 21.9% 25.6% $82

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Lulea

$274 14.8% 2.2% $5.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Lulea

$225 12.2% 1.1% $2.5

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Lulea

$198 10.7% 25.1% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Lulea

$73 4% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Lulea

$88 4.8% 82% $40

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $774 in Lulea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Lulea pays 18% 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 $110 in Lulea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $404 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇪 Lulea

🕒 Local time

02:45 2:45 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

73,864

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SEK = 10.18 USD

100 SEK = 9.12 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Lulea 2,970 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Lulea

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 Lulea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,850 in Lulea, so Lulea is about 25% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 15% 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 $774 in Lulea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $152 in Lulea. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 20% 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 Lulea are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.