Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Montclair, NJ

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $2,899 in Montclair, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
140

Cost of Living Index in Montclair, NJ
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Montclair, NJ Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Montclair, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$2,899

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Montclair, NJ

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $2,899 in Montclair, NJ.

Barcelona $2,453
Montclair, NJ $2,899

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $4,264 in Montclair, NJ.

Barcelona $3,509
Montclair, NJ $4,264

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $5,629 in Montclair, NJ.

Barcelona $4,564
Montclair, NJ $5,629

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 15% less than in Montclair, NJ, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Montclair, NJ 113% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$20.04 $20.04

-12.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$80.7 $80.7

-16.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$13.14 $13.14

2.97%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$6.35 $6.35

-49.76%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$2.45 $2.45

18.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.46 $1.46

29.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$8.14 $8.14

-50.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$7.17 $7.17

-36.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.27 $1.27

3.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$4.48 $4.48

-54.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$6.05 $6.05

-69.42%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$6.13 $6.13

-21.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$13.76 $13.76

21.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$10.20 $10.20

-10.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$19.41 $19.41

1.18%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$6.04 $6.04

-50.66%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.26 $2.26

-10.62%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$4.22 $4.22

-36.02%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$5.44 $5.44

-48.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$3.14 $3.14

-33.44%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$3.00 $3.00

-31.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.90 $2.90

-49.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$2.71 $2.71

-65.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$14.55 $14.55

-52.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$15.14 $15.14

-47.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.86 $1.86

-24.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$3.57 $3.57

-28.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$3.06 $3.06

-2.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.19 $2.19

-31.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$42.69 $42.69

-21.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.13 $1.13

59.29%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$27.6K $27.6K

20.32%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$25.4K $25.4K

24.61%

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

$180 €162

$170 $170

5.87%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$51.6 $51.6

-73.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$50.5 $50.5

-33.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$80.8 $80.8

-36.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$20.23 $20.23

-45.67%

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

$917 €823

$1,998 $1,998

-54.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$16.2K $16.2K

1.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$70.1 $70.1

24.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$51.0 $51.0

-24.49%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$101 $101

5.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$120 $120

-0.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$2,261 $2,261

-24.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$1,540 $1,540

-11.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$3,631 $3,631

-28.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$2,557 $2,557

-19.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.8

-51.76%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Montclair, NJ: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Montclair, NJ

$1.5K 53.1% 13.6% $185

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Montclair, NJ

$451 15.6% 40% $129

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Montclair, NJ

$347 12% 29.4% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Montclair, NJ

$273 9.4% 19.6% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Montclair, NJ

$154 5.3% 2.6% $4.1

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Montclair, NJ

$121 4.2% 64.9% $48

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Montclair, NJ

$14 * 0.5% 71.1% $34

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 $1,699 in Barcelona and $2,261 in Montclair, NJ. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $81 in Montclair, NJ for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $451 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇺🇸 Montclair, NJ

🕒 Local time

23:10 11:10 PM

18:10 6:10 PM

5 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

37,669

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

United States Dollar USD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Montclair, NJ 6,180 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Montclair, NJ

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 Montclair, NJ: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $2,899 in Montclair, NJ, so Barcelona is about 15% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,679 in Barcelona and $4,348 in Montclair, NJ to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $2,261 in Montclair, NJ. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $1,998 in Montclair, NJ. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Barcelona – a meal for two runs $67 versus $81 in Montclair, NJ. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 Montclair, NJ are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.