Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Mersa Matruh

For one person, living is cheaper in Mersa Matruh: $457 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $23,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
22

Cost of Living Index in Mersa Matruh
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Mersa Matruh Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Mersa Matruh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$457

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Mersa Matruh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $457 in Mersa Matruh.

Barcelona $2,381
Mersa Matruh $457

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $749 in Mersa Matruh.

Barcelona $3,406
Mersa Matruh $749

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,040 in Mersa Matruh.

Barcelona $4,431
Mersa Matruh $1,040

Living in Barcelona is roughly 421% more expensive than in Mersa Matruh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Mersa Matruh is 66% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.95

$4.20 E£234

325.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €59.0

$19.05 E£1,062

247.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.20

$4.72 E£264

190.04%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.73

$1.27 E£70.6

140.94%

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

$3.07 €2.74

$0.33 E£18.14

830.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.11 E£6.01

1663.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.45

$1.36 E£75.8

184.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.11

$2.79 E£156

65.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.87 E£48.65

49.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.66 E£37.07

218.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.63

$0.65 E£36.07

181.54%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.12

$1.19 E£66.1

288.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.47

$3.80 E£212

356.84%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.27

$4.24 E£237

118.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.68

$9.23 E£515

114.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.69

$1.54 E£86.1

95.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$0.75 E£41.82

170.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$0.55 E£30.85

381.82%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.56

$0.35 E£19.76

720.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.26 E£14.59

730.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.30 E£16.70

616.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.27 E£15.19

444.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.22 E£11.99

300.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.17

$1.85 E£103

274.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.98

$5.67 E£316

38.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.25 E£69.6

11.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.35

$2.28 E£127

15.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.21 E£11.72

1285.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.69

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.67

$0.56 E£31.13

435.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.29

$0.17 E£9.23

747.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.59

$1.20 E£67.1

2666.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.43 E£24.06

332.56%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$32.5K E£1.8M

-0.43%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$27.1K E£1.5M

17.10%

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

$183 €163

$14.05 E£784

1200.78%

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

$13.61 €12.13

$6.68 E£373

103.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.35

$13.50 E£753

143.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.75

$15.88 E£885

244.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.73

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €10.01

$2.91 E£162

285.91%

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

$954 €850

$85.0 E£4,740

1022.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$2,090 E£116.6K

694.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.7

$33.72 E£1,881

155.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.86

$45.91 E£2,560

-14.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.4

$128 E£7,112

-18.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$57.4 E£3,202

106.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,511

$128 E£7,152

1221.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,137

$76.7 E£4,278

1563.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,296

$256 E£14.3K

907.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,713

$144 E£8,048

1232.03%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,490

$772 E£43.0K

843.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,465

$354 E£19.7K

1316.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,985

$94.2 E£5,253

2264.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

21.33

-84.62%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Mersa Matruh: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.8% 94% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Mersa Matruh

$126 27.6% 61.1% $199

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Mersa Matruh

$77 16.9% 71.4% $192

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Mersa Matruh

$34 7.5% 85.1% $195

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Mersa Matruh

$119 26% 23.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Mersa Matruh

$22 4.7% 71.9% $55

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Mersa Matruh

$2.2 * 0.5% 95.3% $45

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $128 in Mersa Matruh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 24 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $66 in Barcelona vs $19 in Mersa Matruh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $126 per month, with Mersa Matruh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇬 Mersa Matruh

🕒 Local time

03:38 3:38 AM

05:38 5:38 AM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

140,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.6 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 26, 2026: 1 USD = 55.77 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.49 EGP (100 EGP = 1.6 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Mersa Matruh 2,490 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Mersa Matruh

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 Mersa Matruh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Mersa Matruh differ by about 421% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $457 including rent). Mersa Matruh is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 24 times higher, 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $128 in Mersa Matruh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $85 in Mersa Matruh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Mersa Matruh – a meal for two runs $19 versus $66 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $457 in Mersa Matruh versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $800 budget is realistic in Mersa Matruh but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Mersa Matruh the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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.

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