Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Palawan

For one person, living is cheaper in Palawan: $784 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 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
38

Cost of Living Index in Palawan
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Palawan Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Palawan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$784

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Palawan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $784 in Palawan.

Barcelona $2,453
Palawan $784

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,223 in Palawan.

Barcelona $3,509
Palawan $1,223

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,661 in Palawan.

Barcelona $4,564
Palawan $1,661

Living in Barcelona is roughly 213% more expensive than in Palawan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Palawan is 42% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$3.48 ₱221

405.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$19.38 ₱1,231

248.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$3.31 ₱210

308.76%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$2.52 ₱160

26.59%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$0.78 ₱49.48

273.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.39 ₱25.05

384.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$1.31 ₱83.0

206.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$2.15 ₱136

110.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.90 ₱120

-31.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.22 ₱77.2

65.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.00 ₱63.4

85.00%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.00 ₱127

141.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$7.91 ₱502

111.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$4.35 ₱276

109.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$7.62 ₱484

157.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$2.87 ₱182

3.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.58 ₱100

27.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$2.62 ₱166

3.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$1.55 ₱98.6

80.65%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.24 ₱142

-6.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.54 ₱161

-18.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.11 ₱70.2

31.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.75 ₱47.85

25.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$2.89 ₱184

137.72%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$6.95 ₱442

13.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.17 ₱74.0

20.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.98 ₱126

28.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$0.26 ₱16.37

1107.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$11.46 ₱728

122.08%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$0.81 ₱51.7

269.14%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.22 ₱13.95

577.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$2.08 ₱132

1504.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.13 ₱72.0

59.29%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$26.1K ₱1.7M

27.07%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$20.7K ₱1.3M

52.86%

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

$180 €161

$112 ₱7,092

61.56%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$33.36 ₱2,119

-58.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$27.52 ₱1,748

22.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$34.20 ₱2,172

50.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$4.55 ₱289

250.77%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$5.96 ₱378

84.40%

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

$917 €818

$153 ₱9,734

498.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$4,354 ₱276.5K

278.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$46.66 ₱2,963

86.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$26.57 ₱1,688

44.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$74.4 ₱4,726

42.20%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$54.1 ₱3,437

121.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$263 ₱16.7K

545.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$174 ₱11.1K

677.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$576 ₱36.6K

352.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$390 ₱24.8K

428.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$2,321 ₱147.4K

197.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$1,122 ₱71.2K

357.06%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.67

-50.82%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Palawan: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Palawan

$174 22.2% 87.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Palawan

$202 25.8% 37.1% $119

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Palawan

$84 10.7% 68.8% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Palawan

$173 22% 24.3% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Palawan

$91 11.6% 42.5% $67

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Palawan

$46 5.9% 37.3% $27

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Palawan

$14 1.8% 70.3% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $263 in Palawan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $19 in Palawan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $202 per month, with Palawan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇵🇭 Palawan

🕒 Local time

08:58 8:58 AM

15:58 3:58 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

939,594

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PHP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 63.51 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.1 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Palawan 11,410 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Palawan

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 Palawan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $784 in Palawan, so Palawan is about 68% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,679 in Barcelona and $1,176 in Palawan 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $263 in Palawan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $153 in Palawan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 59% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $784 in Palawan versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Palawan but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Palawan 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 Palawan are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Palawan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 68% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.