Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Nanchang

For one person, living is cheaper in Nanchang: $648 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Nanchang
Learn more

Nanchang Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Nanchang

🇨🇳 China

$648

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Nanchang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $648 in Nanchang.

Barcelona $2,399
Nanchang $648

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $1,058 in Nanchang.

Barcelona $3,410
Nanchang $1,058

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $1,467 in Nanchang.

Barcelona $4,421
Nanchang $1,467

Living in Barcelona is roughly 270% more expensive than in Nanchang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 78% above, Nanchang is 52% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €16.02

$2.35 ¥15.71

663.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.8

$18.21 ¥122

273.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.86

$4.81 ¥32.19

176.09%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.90

$2.59 ¥17.29

25.48%

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

$3.01 €2.68

$0.44 ¥2.92

584.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.67

$0.27 ¥1.81

592.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.44

$1.31 ¥8.76

193.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €4.00

$1.89 ¥12.67

137.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.16

$2.05 ¥13.71

-37.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.82

$2.40 ¥16.08

-15.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$0.84 ¥5.64

104.76%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.26

$1.67 ¥11.15

185.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.98

$13.25 ¥88.6

26.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.97

$3.95 ¥26.45

126.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.75

$11.77 ¥78.7

68.90%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$1.99 ¥13.29

49.75%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.08 ¥7.22

87.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.44

$1.91 ¥12.74

42.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.39

$1.81 ¥12.13

48.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.88

$0.91 ¥6.11

130.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.86

$1.13 ¥7.54

84.07%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.61 ¥4.10

137.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$0.43 ¥2.90

106.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.20

$3.07 ¥20.51

126.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.95

$12.42 ¥83.1

-37.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.30

$0.78 ¥5.20

85.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.30

$1.52 ¥10.19

69.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.67

$0.26 ¥1.75

1050.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.50

$14.93 ¥99.8

68.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.79

$1.24 ¥8.26

151.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.31 ¥2.08

364.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.92

$7.29 ¥48.76

359.53%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.25 ¥8.34

43.20%

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

$34.6K €30.9K

$19.1K ¥127.7K

81.31%

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

$30.1K €26.9K

$17.9K ¥119.4K

68.44%

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

$178 €159

$34.93 ¥234

409.16%

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

$13.32 €11.90

$9.27 ¥62.0

43.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.15

$13.34 ¥89.3

161.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.55

$42.85 ¥287

24.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.29

$19.61 ¥131

-18.36%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.88

$6.42 ¥42.92

72.27%

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

$957 €854

$326 ¥2,177

193.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$16.8K ¥112.2K

-1.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.7

$37.86 ¥253

132.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.26

$22.07 ¥148

78.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.8

$87.6 ¥586

17.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$60.7 ¥406

100.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,476

$223 ¥1,493

640.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,162

$118 ¥791

1000.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,284

$451 ¥3,014

467.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,710

$257 ¥1,719

644.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,506

$2,008 ¥13.4K

262.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,536

$1,624 ¥10.9K

212.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,037

$745 ¥4,985

205.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.46

-5.20%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nanchang: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Nanchang

$118 18.3% 90.9% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Nanchang

$227 35% 29.1% $93

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Nanchang

$77 11.9% 71.3% $193

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Nanchang

$58 8.9% 74.5% $169

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Nanchang

$94 14.5% 40.9% $65

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Nanchang

$56 8.6% 26.1% $20

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Nanchang

$19 2.9% 60.5% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $223 in Nanchang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 206% 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: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $18.00 in Nanchang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $227 per month, with Nanchang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Nanchang

🕒 Local time

10:55 10:55 AM

16:55 4:55 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

5,042,566

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Nanchang 9,670 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Nanchang

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 Nanchang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Nanchang differ by about 270% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $648 including rent). Nanchang is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 206% 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $223 in Nanchang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $326 in Nanchang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $648 in Nanchang versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nanchang but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Nanchang 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 Nanchang 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 Nanchang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 270% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.