Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Motherwell

For one person, living is cheaper in Motherwell: $2,306 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 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
111

Cost of Living Index in Motherwell
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Motherwell Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Motherwell

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,306

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Motherwell

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $2,306 in Motherwell.

Barcelona $2,443
Motherwell $2,306

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $3,342 in Motherwell.

Barcelona $3,519
Motherwell $3,342

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $4,377 in Motherwell.

Barcelona $4,595
Motherwell $4,377

Living in Barcelona is roughly 6% more expensive than in Motherwell, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Motherwell 71% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.80

$19.71 £14.71

-10.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.4

$66.6 £49.73

1.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.18

$10.52 £7.85

29.37%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.77

$4.83 £3.61

-35.82%

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

$3.00 €2.69

$2.36 £1.76

27.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.89 £1.41

2.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.44

$5.46 £4.07

-29.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.90

$6.81 £5.09

-35.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.12

$1.47 £1.10

-14.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.90

$1.63 £1.22

30.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.77

$2.23 £1.66

-11.66%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.26

$4.06 £3.03

17.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.27

$9.25 £6.90

84.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €8.01

$9.29 £6.93

-3.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.48

$17.02 £12.71

21.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.83

$2.96 £2.21

6.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.50 £1.12

31.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

$2.80 £2.09

-5.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.58

$3.16 £2.36

-8.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$2.00 £1.49

3.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$1.37 £1.02

59.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.14 £0.85

34.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$1.66 £1.24

-41.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.23

$22.09 £16.49

-68.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$10.53 £7.86

-25.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.27

$3.27 £2.44

-56.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.40

$3.34 £2.49

-19.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.96

$3.99 £2.98

-17.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.91

$98.6 £73.6

-74.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.76

$5.85 £4.37

-47.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.33

$1.87 £1.40

-20.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.42

$23.71 £17.70

38.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.67

$2.19 £1.63

-14.61%

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

$33.0K €29.5K

$39.4K £29.4K

-16.36%

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

$31.9K €28.6K

$41.1K £30.6K

-22.19%

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

$183 €164

$236 £176

-22.66%

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

$14.24 €12.74

$20.05 £14.96

-28.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.93

$43.38 £32.38

-20.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €46.01

$44.11 £32.93

16.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.66

$6.62 £4.94

147.43%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.90

$12.09 £9.03

-8.52%

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

$944 €844

$1,128 £842

-16.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.9K

$22.8K £17.0K

-2.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.5

$120 £89.9

-27.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.70

$47.45 £35.42

-18.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.6

$103 £77.2

1.09%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$92.1 £68.7

27.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,518

$1,268 £947

33.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,196

$1,030 £769

29.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,409

$2,090 £1,560

28.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,858

$1,620 £1,209

28.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,402

$5,310 £3,964

34.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,545

$3,380 £2,523

50.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €2,006

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

-36.20%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Motherwell: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Motherwell

$1K 44.7% 22.9% $307

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Motherwell

$310 13.4% 5.5% $18

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Motherwell

$305 13.2% 14.3% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Motherwell

$300 13% 29.4% $68

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Motherwell

$164 7.1% 4.2% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Motherwell

$68 3% 7.1% $5.3

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Motherwell

$130 5.6% 163% $80

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,268 in Motherwell. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $67 in Motherwell. Groceries flip the comparison at $328 vs $310, with Motherwell cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Motherwell

🕒 Local time

17:49 5:49 PM

16:49 4:49 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

32,120

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Motherwell 1,660 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Motherwell

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 Motherwell: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $2,306 in Motherwell, so Motherwell is about 6% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $3,459 in Motherwell 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $1,268 in Motherwell. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $1,128 in Motherwell. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Barcelona runs roughly 74% less than in Motherwell. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your 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.