Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Oulu

For one person, living is cheaper in Oulu: $1,878 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $6,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
91

Cost of Living Index in Oulu
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Oulu Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Oulu

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,878

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Oulu

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,878 in Oulu.

Barcelona $2,453
Oulu $1,878

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,905 in Oulu.

Barcelona $3,509
Oulu $2,905

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,932 in Oulu.

Barcelona $4,564
Oulu $3,932

Living in Barcelona is roughly 31% more expensive than in Oulu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Oulu 38% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$17.48 €15.66

0.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$90.5 €81.1

-25.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$15.02 €13.46

-9.92%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$4.83 €4.33

-33.95%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$2.95 €2.65

-1.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$2.28 €2.05

-17.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$7.68 €6.88

-47.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$7.96 €7.13

-43.09%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.19 €1.07

10.08%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.28 €2.05

-11.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.78 €2.49

-33.45%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.16 €2.84

52.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$7.40 €6.63

126.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$13.67 €12.25

-33.28%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$22.93 €20.55

-14.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.31 €2.07

29.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.97 €1.76

2.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.10 €1.88

28.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$4.20 €3.77

-33.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.97 €0.87

115.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.64 €1.47

26.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.69 €2.41

-45.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.61 €1.44

-41.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$13.25 €11.87

-48.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$12.35 €11.07

-36.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$3.62 €3.24

-61.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.09 €2.77

-17.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.99 €2.68

5.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$63.4 €56.8

-59.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$9.58 €8.58

-68.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.58 €1.41

-5.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$55.5 €49.69

-39.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.24 €2.01

-19.64%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$35.9K €32.2K

-7.59%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$37.0K €33.1K

-14.27%

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

$180 €162

$116 €104

55.75%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$25.74 €23.06

-46.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$21.15 €18.95

59.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$37.45 €33.55

37.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$19.34 €17.33

-17.48%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$17.03 €15.26

-35.47%

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

$917 €821

$519 €465

76.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$91.4 €81.9

-4.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$44.05 €39.47

-12.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$109 €98.0

-3.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$209 €188

-42.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$848 €760

100.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$673 €603

101.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$1,384 €1,240

88.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$1,040 €932

98.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$3,725 €3,338

85.62%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$1,990 €1,783

157.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,504 €2,244

-11.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.1

-20.00%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Oulu: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Oulu

$673 35.8% 50.4% $683

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Oulu

$356 19% 10.6% $34

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Oulu

$318 16.9% 18.7% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Oulu

$163 8.7% 28.6% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Oulu

$204 10.9% 29.4% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Oulu

$72 3.8% 2.7% $2

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Oulu

$93 4.9% 91.5% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $848 in Oulu. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Oulu pays 13% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $90 in Oulu for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $356 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇫🇮 Oulu

🕒 Local time

11:18 11:18 AM

12:18 12:18 PM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

214,651

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Oulu 3,010 km ≈ 4 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Oulu

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 Oulu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,878 in Oulu, so Oulu is about 23% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 12% lower in Barcelona. 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $848 in Oulu. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $519 in Oulu. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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 Oulu are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.