Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Oakville

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $2,641 in Oakville, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
127

Cost of Living Index in Oakville
Learn more

Oakville Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Oakville

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,641

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Oakville

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,641 in Oakville.

Barcelona $2,381
Oakville $2,641

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $3,848 in Oakville.

Barcelona $3,406
Oakville $3,848

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $5,054 in Oakville.

Barcelona $4,431
Oakville $5,054

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 10% less than in Oakville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Oakville 95% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$14.43 CA$20.39

23.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$71.8 CA$102

-7.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$9.34 CA$13.20

46.57%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.84 CA$5.42

-20.31%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$2.20 CA$3.10

39.55%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.74 CA$2.45

11.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$5.83 CA$8.24

-33.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$6.48 CA$9.17

-28.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$2.56 CA$3.62

-49.22%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$3.30 CA$4.67

-36.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$3.50 CA$4.94

-47.71%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.18 CA$5.91

10.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$10.42 CA$14.74

66.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$11.95 CA$16.90

-22.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$19.22 CA$27.17

3.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.34 CA$4.72

-9.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.93 CA$2.72

5.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.28 CA$4.64

-19.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$2.93 CA$4.14

-2.05%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$2.34 CA$3.31

-7.69%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$2.60 CA$3.68

-17.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$2.25 CA$3.18

-34.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.73 CA$2.45

-49.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$14.25 CA$20.14

-51.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$13.23 CA$18.71

-40.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$3.20 CA$4.52

-56.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.41 CA$3.41

9.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$2.77 CA$3.92

5.05%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$97.2 CA$137

-73.82%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.16 CA$1.64

60.34%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$28.1K CA$39.7K

15.16%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$21.3K CA$30.1K

48.95%

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

$183 €163

$91.0 CA$129

100.92%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$28.41 CA$40.16

-52.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$45.95 CA$65.0

-28.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$42.03 CA$59.4

30.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$9.76 CA$13.80

15.06%

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

$954 €849

$1,154 CA$1,632

-17.36%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$16.6K CA$23.5K

-0.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$68.2 CA$96.3

26.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$93.2 CA$132

-58.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$128 CA$181

-18.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$107 CA$152

10.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,859 CA$2,628

-8.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$1,497 CA$2,116

-14.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$3,590 CA$5,075

-28.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$2,384 CA$3,371

-19.38%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$4,866 CA$6,879

49.63%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$6,100 CA$8,623

-17.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$3,090 CA$4,369

-27.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.26

-37.64%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Oakville: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Oakville

$1.5K 56.7% 17.3% $221

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Oakville

$383 14.5% 17.9% $58

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Oakville

$247 9.4% 8.3% $22

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Oakville

$165 6.3% 27.9% $64

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Oakville

$178 6.8% 14.1% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Oakville

$62 2.3% 20.2% $16

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Oakville

$108 * 4.1% 129% $61

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 $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,859 in Oakville. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oakville pays 39% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $72.0 in Oakville for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $383 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇦 Oakville

🕒 Local time

16:23 4:23 PM

10:23 10:23 AM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

193,832

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Canadian Dollar CAD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Oakville 6,430 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Oakville

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 Oakville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Oakville differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,641 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 39% lower in Oakville. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,859 in Oakville. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,154 in Oakville. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Oakville. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Barcelona 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.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Oakville 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 Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 11% less than in Oakville. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.