Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Nakhon Ratchasima

For one person, living is cheaper in Nakhon Ratchasima: $777 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Nakhon Ratchasima
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Nakhon Ratchasima Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Nakhon Ratchasima

🇹🇭 Thailand

$777

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Nakhon Ratchasima

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $777 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Barcelona $2,381
Nakhon Ratchasima $777

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,275 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Barcelona $3,406
Nakhon Ratchasima $1,275

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,773 in Nakhon Ratchasima.

Barcelona $4,431
Nakhon Ratchasima $1,773

Living in Barcelona is roughly 206% more expensive than in Nakhon Ratchasima, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Nakhon Ratchasima is 43% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$2.84 ฿94.9

529.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$26.08 ฿871

153.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$6.01 ฿201

127.79%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$1.92 ฿64.2

59.38%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.57 ฿19.14

438.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.29 ฿9.65

568.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.83 ฿61.1

111.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.75 ฿92.0

67.64%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.59 ฿53.2

-18.24%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.27 ฿42.52

65.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.23 ฿40.98

48.78%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.50 ฿50.2

208.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$15.63 ฿522

11.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$2.66 ฿88.9

248.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$10.10 ฿338

96.34%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.10 ฿104

-2.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.28 ฿42.68

58.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.86 ฿62.1

42.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.95 ฿65.1

47.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.20 ฿40.24

80.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.03 ฿34.37

108.74%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.23 ฿41.02

19.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.38 ฿12.60

131.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.89 ฿96.7

139.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$17.65 ฿590

-55.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.71 ฿57.2

-18.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.99 ฿100.0

-12.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.43 ฿14.40

576.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$18.99 ฿635

34.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.02 ฿34.03

194.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.13 ฿37.66

27.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$7.30 ฿244

354.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.35 ฿45.03

37.78%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$46.6K ฿1.6M

-30.65%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$26.6K ฿889.2K

19.15%

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

$183 €163

$86.1 ฿2,877

112.29%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$11.39 ฿381

19.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$19.25 ฿643

71.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$46.92 ฿1,568

16.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$14.91 ฿498

10.80%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$4.71 ฿158

138.43%

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

$954 €849

$180 ฿6,020

429.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$14.1K ฿470.9K

17.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$49.69 ฿1,661

73.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$29.73 ฿994

31.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$78.9 ฿2,637

31.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$67.1 ฿2,243

76.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$217 ฿7,263

680.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$158 ฿5,292

705.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$496 ฿16.6K

419.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$420 ฿14.1K

357.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,287 ฿109.9K

121.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,737 ฿58.1K

188.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$615 ฿20.6K

261.88%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.1

-35.69%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Nakhon Ratchasima: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$158 20.4% 87.6% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$235 30.3% 27.6% $90

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$82 10.5% 69.6% $188

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$117 15% 49.1% $113

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$101 13.1% 35.1% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$56 7.3% 27% $21

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Nakhon Ratchasima

$27 3.5% 42.2% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $217 in Nakhon Ratchasima. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 262% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $26.00 in Nakhon Ratchasima for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $235 per month, with Nakhon Ratchasima cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇹🇭 Nakhon Ratchasima

🕒 Local time

08:09 8:09 AM

14:09 2:09 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

126,391

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Thai Baht THB ฿

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 THB = 2.99 USD

100 THB = 2.66 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Barcelona Nakhon Ratchasima 9,710 km ≈ 13 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 Nakhon Ratchasima: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Nakhon Ratchasima differ by about 206% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $777 including rent). Nakhon Ratchasima is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 262% 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $217 in Nakhon Ratchasima. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $180 in Nakhon Ratchasima. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $777 in Nakhon Ratchasima versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Nakhon Ratchasima but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Nakhon Ratchasima 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 Nakhon Ratchasima 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 Nakhon Ratchasima gentler on the wallet – expenses run 206% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.