Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Newham

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $3,180 in Newham, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 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
151

Cost of Living Index in Newham
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Newham Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Newham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,180

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Newham

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,180 in Newham.

Barcelona $2,443
Newham $3,180

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $4,600 in Newham.

Barcelona $3,519
Newham $4,600

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $6,020 in Newham.

Barcelona $4,595
Newham $6,020

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 23% less than in Newham, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Newham 135% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.69

$20.71 £15.36

-14.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €59.9

$94.8 £70.3

-28.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.09

$10.58 £7.85

28.64%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.75

$5.26 £3.90

-41.06%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$2.65 £1.96

13.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.71

$1.95 £1.45

-1.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.41

$7.03 £5.21

-45.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.87

$6.74 £5.00

-35.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.71 £1.26

-26.90%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.84 £1.36

15.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.30 £1.70

-14.35%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.23

$4.28 £3.18

11.21%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.16

$10.39 £7.70

64.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.96

$7.78 £5.77

15.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.34

$12.93 £9.59

59.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$2.71 £2.01

16.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.79 £1.33

10.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.98 £2.21

-11.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.56

$3.16 £2.34

-8.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$1.46 £1.08

41.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.79 £1.33

21.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.12 £0.83

36.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$1.73 £1.28

-43.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.19

$25.35 £18.80

-72.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.01

$11.06 £8.21

-28.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$2.68 £1.99

-47.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.80 £2.08

-3.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.94

$4.41 £3.27

-24.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.75

$109 £80.7

-76.46%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.74

$4.65 £3.44

-33.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$2.00 £1.49

-26.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.20

$25.14 £18.64

30.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.31 £1.71

-19.05%

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

$33.0K €29.3K

$43.2K £32.0K

-23.72%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$36.6K £27.2K

-12.82%

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

$183 €162

$352 £261

-48.00%

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

$14.24 €12.65

$15.53 £11.52

-8.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.70

$44.63 £33.10

-22.56%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.68

$39.15 £29.04

31.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.55

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$14.08 £10.44

-21.45%

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

$944 €838

$1,980 £1,469

-52.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$22.1K £16.4K

0.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €77.9

$88.9 £65.9

-1.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.44

$46.12 £34.21

-15.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €92.9

$102 £75.3

2.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$97.0 £71.9

21.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,507

$1,310 £972

29.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,187

$1,785 £1,324

-25.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,391

$3,359 £2,491

-19.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,845

$3,017 £2,237

-31.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,356

$4,527 £3,357

58.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,512

$3,432 £2,545

48.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,991

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

5.09

-37.33%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Newham: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Newham

$1.8K 56.1% 33.6% $449

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Newham

$297 9.3% 9.4% $31

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Newham

$328 10.3% 22.7% $61

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Newham

$412 13% 77.8% $180

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Newham

$150 4.7% 4.3% $6.8

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Newham

$67 2.1% 8.5% $6.3

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Newham

$141 4.4% 186% $92

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,310 in Newham. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $95 in Newham. Groceries flip the comparison at $328 vs $297, with Newham cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Newham

🕒 Local time

16:35 4:35 PM

15:35 3:35 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

15,551

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Newham 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Newham

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 Newham: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $3,180 in Newham, so Barcelona is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $4,770 in Newham 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $1,310 in Newham. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $1,980 in Newham. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Newham pay roughly 9% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,180 in Newham, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Newham. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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.