Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Nis

For one person, living is cheaper in Nis: $1,023 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 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
50

Cost of Living Index in Nis
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Nis Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Nis

🇷🇸 Serbia

$1,023

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Nis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,023 in Nis.

Barcelona $2,399
Nis $1,023

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $1,502 in Nis.

Barcelona $3,410
Nis $1,502

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $1,980 in Nis.

Barcelona $4,421
Nis $1,980

Living in Barcelona is roughly 135% more expensive than in Nis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 78% above, Nis is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$8.78 RSD 915

104.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$33.82 RSD 3,525

101.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$9.67 RSD 1,008

37.33%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$1.95 RSD 203

66.67%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.29 RSD 239

31.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.75 RSD 183

6.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$3.65 RSD 380

5.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$4.46 RSD 465

0.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.13 RSD 118

14.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$0.70 RSD 72.9

191.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.75 RSD 182

-1.71%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$2.35 RSD 245

102.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$7.86 RSD 819

113.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$5.69 RSD 594

56.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$10.37 RSD 1,081

91.71%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$1.11 RSD 116

168.47%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.67 RSD 174

21.56%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$1.48 RSD 155

84.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$2.14 RSD 223

25.23%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.82 RSD 85.6

156.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$0.72 RSD 75.2

188.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.66 RSD 69.0

119.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$0.58 RSD 60.9

53.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$4.43 RSD 462

56.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$5.63 RSD 587

38.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.71 RSD 73.9

104.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$1.28 RSD 134

100.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$1.76 RSD 183

77.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.70 RSD 72.9

105.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$8.10 RSD 845

313.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.89 RSD 197

-5.29%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$30.2K RSD 3.1M

14.62%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$23.3K RSD 2.4M

29.28%

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

$178 €158

$161 RSD 16.8K

10.18%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$18.82 RSD 1,962

-29.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$22.47 RSD 2,342

55.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$29.95 RSD 3,122

77.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$15.69 RSD 1,636

2.04%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$4.73 RSD 493

133.83%

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

$957 €851

$247 RSD 25.8K

286.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$4,859 RSD 506.5K

240.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$89.7 RSD 9,350

-1.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$38.11 RSD 3,973

3.62%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$98.6 RSD 10.3K

4.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$108 RSD 11.2K

12.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$392 RSD 40.9K

321.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$278 RSD 29.0K

367.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$581 RSD 60.6K

339.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$400 RSD 41.7K

378.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$2,477 RSD 258.2K

194.15%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$1,826 RSD 190.4K

178.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$886 RSD 92.4K

157.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.12

-35.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Nis: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Nis

$278 27.2% 78.6% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Nis

$181 17.7% 43.5% $139

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Nis

$166 16.2% 38.5% $104

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Nis

$203 19.8% 10.3% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Nis

$150 14.7% 5.1% $8.1

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Nis

$39 3.9% 47.7% $36

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Nis

$5.3 * 0.5% 88.9% $42

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $392 in Nis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 157% 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 $34.00 in Nis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $320 vs $181 per month, with Nis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇸 Nis

🕒 Local time

16:47 4:47 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

78,470

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Nis 1,630 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Nis

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 Nis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Nis differ by about 135% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,023 including rent). Nis is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 157% 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 $392 in Nis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $247 in Nis. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Nis – a meal for two runs $34.00 versus $68.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,023 in Nis versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Nis but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Nis 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 Nis 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 Nis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 135% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.