Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Nalaikh

For one person, living is cheaper in Nalaikh: $905 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Nalaikh
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Nalaikh Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Nalaikh

🇲🇳 Mongolia

$905

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Nalaikh

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $905 in Nalaikh.

Barcelona $2,453
Nalaikh $905

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,430 in Nalaikh.

Barcelona $3,509
Nalaikh $1,430

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,956 in Nalaikh.

Barcelona $4,564
Nalaikh $1,956

Living in Barcelona is roughly 171% more expensive than in Nalaikh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Nalaikh is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$4.39 MNT 15.8K

300.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$26.30 MNT 94.5K

156.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$4.49 MNT 16.1K

201.34%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$2.24 MNT 8,050

42.41%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$0.67 MNT 2,411

334.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.40 MNT 1,437

372.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$1.40 MNT 5,034

186.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$2.18 MNT 7,832

107.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.23 MNT 4,425

6.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$0.87 MNT 3,114

132.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.60 MNT 5,735

15.63%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.14 MNT 7,695

125.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$12.58 MNT 45.2K

33.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$4.20 MNT 15.1K

117.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$5.39 MNT 19.4K

264.38%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$3.12 MNT 11.2K

-4.49%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.39 MNT 8,583

-15.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$3.82 MNT 13.7K

-29.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$2.75 MNT 9,873

1.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$0.57 MNT 2,052

266.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.01 MNT 3,630

104.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.22 MNT 4,369

19.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.62 MNT 2,238

51.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$1.63 MNT 5,848

321.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$8.53 MNT 30.7K

-7.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$0.95 MNT 3,431

48.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.62 MNT 5,826

56.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$0.16 MNT 562

1862.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$6.26 MNT 22.5K

306.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$0.55 MNT 1,980

443.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.56 MNT 2,001

166.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$2.47 MNT 8,859

1251.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$0.96 MNT 3,446

87.50%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$26.7K MNT 96.0M

24.20%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$16.6K MNT 59.5M

91.41%

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

$180 €161

$69.2 MNT 248.5K

160.90%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$6.91 MNT 24.8K

100.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$11.33 MNT 40.7K

197.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$55.0 MNT 197.8K

-6.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$13.70 MNT 49.2K

16.50%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$2.85 MNT 10.2K

285.61%

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

$917 €818

$125 MNT 449.2K

633.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$5,461 MNT 19.6M

201.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$60.8 MNT 218.6K

43.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$45.19 MNT 162.4K

-14.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$83.5 MNT 300.1K

26.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$127 MNT 456.0K

-5.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$425 MNT 1.5M

300.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$302 MNT 1.1M

348.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$1,249 MNT 4.5M

108.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$587 MNT 2.1M

251.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$1,407 MNT 5.1M

391.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$829 MNT 3.0M

518.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$531 MNT 1.9M

316.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

-34.40%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Nalaikh: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Nalaikh

$302 33.4% 77.7% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Nalaikh

$211 23.3% 34.5% $111

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Nalaikh

$91 10.1% 66% $177

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Nalaikh

$87 9.7% 61.7% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Nalaikh

$142 15.7% 9.9% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Nalaikh

$61 6.7% 17.4% $13

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Nalaikh

$10 1.1% 78.9% $38

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $425 in Nalaikh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 4.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $26 in Nalaikh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $211 per month, with Nalaikh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇲🇳 Nalaikh

🕒 Local time

00:31 12:31 AM

07:31 7:31 AM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

30,049

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Mongolian Tögrög MNT ₮

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD

10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MNT, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Mongolian Tögrög exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 3,594 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.78 USD). 1 EUR = 4,028 MNT (10,000 MNT = 2.48 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Nalaikh 7,670 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Nalaikh

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 Nalaikh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $905 in Nalaikh, so Nalaikh is about 63% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 4.2 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $425 in Nalaikh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $125 in Nalaikh. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Nalaikh is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

Expats usually find Nalaikh gentler on the wallet – expenses run 63% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.