Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Mudanjiang

For one person, living is cheaper in Mudanjiang: $736 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,700 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Mudanjiang
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Mudanjiang Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Mudanjiang

🇨🇳 China

$736

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Mudanjiang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $736 in Mudanjiang.

Barcelona $2,381
Mudanjiang $736

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,158 in Mudanjiang.

Barcelona $3,406
Mudanjiang $1,158

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,581 in Mudanjiang.

Barcelona $4,431
Mudanjiang $1,581

Living in Barcelona is roughly 224% more expensive than in Mudanjiang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Mudanjiang is 46% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$3.05 ¥20.43

486.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$13.31 ¥89.0

397.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$6.08 ¥40.66

125.16%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.74 ¥18.30

11.68%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.43 ¥2.86

613.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.29 ¥1.91

568.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.05 ¥7.04

268.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.14 ¥14.33

115.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.80 ¥12.03

-27.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.64 ¥10.98

28.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$0.92 ¥6.17

98.91%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.61 ¥10.74

186.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$13.47 ¥90.1

28.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$3.43 ¥22.92

170.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$11.05 ¥73.9

79.46%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.85 ¥12.36

62.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.31 ¥8.79

54.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.50 ¥10.00

76.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.25 ¥8.39

129.60%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.74 ¥4.97

191.89%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.89 ¥5.96

141.57%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.63 ¥4.24

133.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.59 ¥3.97

49.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$3.64 ¥24.34

90.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$11.69 ¥78.2

-33.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.81 ¥5.45

71.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.60 ¥10.70

64.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.31 ¥2.07

838.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$17.77 ¥119

43.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.46 ¥9.78

105.48%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.36 ¥2.39

300.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$7.01 ¥46.88

373.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.30 ¥8.67

43.08%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$19.7K ¥131.6K

64.32%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$17.1K ¥114.4K

85.35%

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

$183 €163

$58.2 ¥389

214.29%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$8.46 ¥56.6

60.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$11.09 ¥74.2

196.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$41.44 ¥277

31.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$14.68 ¥98.1

12.53%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$6.22 ¥41.61

80.55%

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

$954 €849

$416 ¥2,782

129.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$17.8K ¥118.8K

-6.53%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$43.96 ¥294

95.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$33.55 ¥224

16.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$75.6 ¥506

37.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$73.4 ¥491

61.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$303 ¥2,028

458.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$183 ¥1,223

597.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$631 ¥4,218

308.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$381 ¥2,545

405.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,508 ¥23.5K

107.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,975 ¥13.2K

153.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.36

-2.38%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Mudanjiang: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Mudanjiang

$183 24.9% 85.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Mudanjiang

$209 28.4% 35.7% $116

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Mudanjiang

$88 12% 67.4% $182

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Mudanjiang

$78 10.6% 66.1% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Mudanjiang

$102 13.9% 34.8% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Mudanjiang

$54 7.3% 30.2% $23

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Mudanjiang

$22 3% 52.9% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $303 in Mudanjiang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $13.00 in Mudanjiang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $209 per month, with Mudanjiang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Mudanjiang

🕒 Local time

12:01 12:01 PM

18:01 6:01 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

965,154

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Mudanjiang 9,120 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

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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 Mudanjiang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Mudanjiang differ by about 224% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $736 including rent). Mudanjiang is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,571 in Barcelona and $1,103 in Mudanjiang 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $303 in Mudanjiang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $416 in Mudanjiang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 56% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $736 in Mudanjiang versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Mudanjiang but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Mudanjiang 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.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Mudanjiang are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Mudanjiang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 224% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.