Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Medina

For one person, living is cheaper in Medina: $1,351 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,200 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
65

Cost of Living Index in Medina
Learn more

Medina Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Medina

🇸🇦 Saudi Arabia

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Medina

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,351 in Medina.

Barcelona $2,453
Medina $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,806 in Medina.

Barcelona $3,509
Medina $1,806

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,261 in Medina.

Barcelona $4,564
Medina $2,261

Living in Barcelona is roughly 82% more expensive than in Medina, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$5.63 SAR 21.14

212.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$31.66 SAR 119

113.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$7.98 SAR 29.93

69.55%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.58 SAR 5.93

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.76 SAR 6.59

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.61 SAR 9.78

22.22%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.78 SAR 2.94

273.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.23 SAR 0.86

721.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.49 SAR 5.61

-12.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.97 SAR 3.66

108.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.30 SAR 8.61

-19.57%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$2.12 SAR 7.95

127.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$5.38 SAR 20.20

211.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$7.26 SAR 27.25

25.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$12.83 SAR 48.16

53.08%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.46 SAR 9.25

21.14%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.93 SAR 7.25

4.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.34 SAR 8.78

15.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.55 SAR 5.80

80.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.41 SAR 5.30

48.23%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.32 SAR 4.96

56.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.90 SAR 3.38

62.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.69 SAR 2.61

36.23%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$1.36 SAR 5.11

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 SAR 5.56

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 SAR 6.17

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$7.36 SAR 27.62

-6.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.05 SAR 3.94

199.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$37.74 SAR 142

-32.56%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.31 SAR 4.90

128.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.65 SAR 6.21

-9.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$5.71 SAR 21.42

484.41%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.63 SAR 2.38

185.71%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$42.7K SAR 160.4K

-22.33%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$20.9K SAR 78.3K

52.02%

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

$180 €162

$148 SAR 555

21.99%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$27.56 SAR 103

-49.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$89.2 SAR 335

-62.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$77.9 SAR 293

-33.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$8.84 SAR 33.19

80.54%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$13.17 SAR 49.42

-16.55%

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

$917 €821

$293 SAR 1,101

212.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$5,518 SAR 20.7K

198.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$37.11 SAR 139

134.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$52.8 SAR 198

-27.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$65.9 SAR 247

60.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$68.1 SAR 256

75.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$550 SAR 2,065

208.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$533 SAR 1,999

154.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$779 SAR 2,922

234.28%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$581 SAR 2,179

255.11%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$2,256 SAR 8,466

206.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$1,362 SAR 5,112

276.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,257 SAR 4,718

75.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.17

-21.34%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Medina: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Medina

$533 39.4% 60.7% $823

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Medina

$193 14.3% 40% $129

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Medina

$104 7.7% 61.1% $164

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Medina

$265 19.6% 16.1% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Medina

$101 7.5% 36.2% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Medina

$104 7.7% 41.9% $31

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Medina

$52 3.8% 6.3% $3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $550 in Medina. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 76% 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 $32 in Medina for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $193 per month, with Medina cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇦 Medina

🕒 Local time

03:34 3:34 AM

05:34 5:34 AM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,100,093

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Saudi Riyal SAR ر.س

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 SAR = 0.266 USD

1 SAR = 0.239 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Medina 3,930 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Medina

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 Medina: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,351 in Medina, so Medina is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 76% 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 $550 in Medina. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $293 in Medina. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

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