Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Matera

For one person, living is cheaper in Matera: $1,484 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $11,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
71

Cost of Living Index in Matera
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Matera Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Matera

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,484

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Matera

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,484 in Matera.

Barcelona $2,453
Matera $1,484

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,356 in Matera.

Barcelona $3,509
Matera $2,356

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,227 in Matera.

Barcelona $4,564
Matera $3,227

Living in Barcelona is roughly 65% more expensive than in Matera, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Matera 9% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$15.29 €13.70

15.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$60.7 €54.4

11.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$11.34 €10.17

19.31%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$1.88 €1.68

69.68%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.27 €2.04

28.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.09 €0.97

73.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$5.74 €5.14

-30.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$3.31 €2.97

36.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.58 €1.41

-17.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.72 €1.54

17.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.28 €2.94

-43.60%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.52 €3.16

37.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$15.39 €13.79

8.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$12.28 €11.01

-25.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$20.84 €18.68

-5.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.63 €2.36

13.31%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.16 €1.94

-6.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.13 €1.01

138.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$3.80 €3.41

-26.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.78 €1.60

17.42%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.64 €1.47

26.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.47 €0.42

100.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$6.75 €6.05

1.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$6.34 €5.68

24.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.84 €1.65

-23.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.11 €2.79

-18.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.72 €1.54

82.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$20.20 €18.10

25.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$4.43 €3.97

-32.51%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.19 €1.07

25.21%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$23.74 €21.28

40.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.02 €1.81

-10.89%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$35.1K €31.5K

-5.49%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$37.3K €33.5K

-15.12%

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

$180 €162

$197 €177

-8.64%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$9.37 €8.39

47.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$30.74 €27.54

9.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$55.3 €49.59

-6.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$23.43 €20.99

-31.88%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$9.94 €8.90

10.56%

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

$917 €821

$448 €402

104.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$7,918 €7,096

108.12%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$67.2 €60.3

29.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$42.87 €38.41

-10.17%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$105 €94.4

0.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$135 €121

-11.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$705 €632

140.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$421 €377

222.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,025 €918

154.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$841 €753

145.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$2,772 €2,484

149.40%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$3,179 €2,849

61.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,750 €1,568

26.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.08

6.49%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Matera: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Matera

$421 28.3% 69% $935

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Matera

$328 22.1% 2% $6.4

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Matera

$228 15.3% 15% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Matera

$238 16% 4.2% $9.6

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Matera

$158 10.6% 0.2% $0.4

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Matera

$75 5.1% 2.3% $1.7

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Matera

$37 2.5% 22.7% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $705 in Matera. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 26% 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $61 in Matera. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $328, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇹 Matera

🕒 Local time

05:42 5:42 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

59,607

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Matera 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Matera

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 Matera: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,484 in Matera, so Matera is about 39% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 26% higher in Barcelona, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $705 in Matera. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $448 in Matera. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Matera – a meal for two runs $61 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Matera 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 Matera are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Matera wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.