Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Nantong

For one person, living is cheaper in Nantong: $748 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,500 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Nantong
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Nantong Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Nantong

🇨🇳 China

$748

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Nantong

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $748 in Nantong.

Barcelona $2,453
Nantong $748

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,233 in Nantong.

Barcelona $3,509
Nantong $1,233

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,719 in Nantong.

Barcelona $4,564
Nantong $1,719

Living in Barcelona is roughly 228% more expensive than in Nantong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Nantong is 45% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$2.97 ¥19.73

492.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$23.82 ¥159

183.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$4.44 ¥29.54

204.73%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.84 ¥18.90

12.32%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.65 ¥4.32

347.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.31 ¥2.04

509.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$0.73 ¥4.85

449.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$2.31 ¥15.35

96.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.58 ¥10.49

-17.09%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.53 ¥10.19

32.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$0.84 ¥5.57

120.24%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.76 ¥11.70

174.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$6.84 ¥45.54

144.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$3.66 ¥24.38

149.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$10.04 ¥66.8

95.62%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.32 ¥15.46

28.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.35 ¥9.01

49.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.47 ¥9.79

83.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.42 ¥9.45

97.18%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.73 ¥4.86

186.30%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.93 ¥6.18

122.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.66 ¥4.40

121.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.51 ¥3.41

84.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$3.30 ¥21.94

108.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$9.20 ¥61.2

-14.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.79 ¥5.28

78.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.70 ¥11.34

49.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.21 ¥1.40

1395.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$14.81 ¥98.6

71.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.89 ¥12.61

58.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.39 ¥2.56

282.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$7.23 ¥48.09

361.55%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.16 ¥7.72

55.17%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$19.1K ¥127.4K

73.45%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$18.4K ¥122.7K

71.97%

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

$180 €162

$47.68 ¥317

278.38%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$7.37 ¥49.03

87.79%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$15.00 ¥99.8

124.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$114 ¥756

-54.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$12.01 ¥79.9

32.89%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$7.34 ¥48.83

49.73%

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

$917 €821

$204 ¥1,355

350.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$11.9K ¥78.9K

38.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$58.6 ¥390

48.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$41.71 ¥278

-7.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$64.6 ¥430

63.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$108 ¥719

10.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$211 ¥1,402

706.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$142 ¥947

852.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$696 ¥4,630

274.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$354 ¥2,358

482.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$3,703 ¥24.6K

86.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$2,275 ¥15.1K

125.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,327 ¥8,828

66.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.5

-6.29%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Nantong: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Nantong

$142 19% 89.5% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Nantong

$182 24.3% 43.5% $140

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Nantong

$83 11.1% 68.9% $185

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Nantong

$70 9.4% 69.3% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Nantong

$123 16.4% 22.2% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Nantong

$128 17.2% 74.5% $55

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Nantong

$19 2.6% 59.8% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $211 in Nantong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 67% 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $24 in Nantong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $182 per month, with Nantong cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Nantong

🕒 Local time

02:23 2:23 AM

09:23 9:23 AM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

7,726,635

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Nantong 9,720 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Nantong

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 Nantong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $748 in Nantong, so Nantong is about 70% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 67% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $211 in Nantong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $204 in Nantong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $748 in Nantong versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Nantong but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Nantong 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.

Expats usually find Nantong gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.