Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Paramaribo

For one person, living is cheaper in Paramaribo: $1,035 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
50

Cost of Living Index in Paramaribo
Learn more

Paramaribo Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Paramaribo

🇸🇷 Suriname

$1,035

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Paramaribo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,035 in Paramaribo.

Barcelona $2,453
Paramaribo $1,035

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,707 in Paramaribo.

Barcelona $3,509
Paramaribo $1,707

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,379 in Paramaribo.

Barcelona $4,564
Paramaribo $2,379

Living in Barcelona is roughly 137% more expensive than in Paramaribo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Paramaribo is 24% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$13.36 SRD 499

31.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$52.9 SRD 1,976

27.68%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$11.21 SRD 419

20.70%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.80 SRD 105

13.93%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$1.36 SRD 50.7

113.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.85 SRD 31.94

122.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$2.64 SRD 98.7

51.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$3.95 SRD 148

14.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.75 SRD 65.4

-25.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.39 SRD 52.0

45.32%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.68 SRD 62.7

10.12%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$3.03 SRD 113

59.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$11.70 SRD 437

43.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$6.21 SRD 232

46.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$10.17 SRD 380

93.12%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$4.82 SRD 180

-38.17%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.09 SRD 116

-34.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$3.77 SRD 141

-28.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$6.13 SRD 229

-54.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.32 SRD 49.22

58.33%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.01 SRD 75.1

2.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.54 SRD 57.5

-5.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.52 SRD 57.0

-38.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$5.65 SRD 211

21.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$7.90 SRD 295

-0.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.02 SRD 75.7

-30.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$3.68 SRD 138

-30.98%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.55 SRD 20.47

470.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$31.71 SRD 1,186

-19.74%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$2.14 SRD 79.9

39.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.50 SRD 56.0

-0.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$7.19 SRD 269

364.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.17 SRD 43.92

53.85%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$25.5K SRD 952.9K

30.24%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$24.8K SRD 928.0K

27.72%

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

$180 €162

$37.77 SRD 1,412

377.65%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$25.57 SRD 956

-45.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$30.52 SRD 1,141

10.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$13.67 SRD 511

276.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$20.29 SRD 758

-21.34%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$5.04 SRD 188

118.06%

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

$917 €821

$63.8 SRD 2,386

1336.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$1,758 SRD 65.7K

837.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$33.13 SRD 1,239

162.69%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$20.78 SRD 777

85.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$66.7 SRD 2,493

58.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$102 SRD 3,810

17.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$478 SRD 17.9K

255.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$268 SRD 10.0K

405.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$937 SRD 35.0K

177.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$501 SRD 18.7K

311.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$474 SRD 17.7K

1359.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$405 SRD 15.2K

1164.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$277 SRD 10.4K

698.36%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

-79.50%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Paramaribo: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Paramaribo

$268 25.9% 80.2% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Paramaribo

$301 29.1% 6.5% $21

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Paramaribo

$204 19.7% 23.8% $64

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Paramaribo

$94 9.1% 58.8% $134

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Paramaribo

$100 9.7% 36.6% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Paramaribo

$24 2.3% 67.7% $50

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Paramaribo

$44 4.2% 10.2% $4.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $478 in Paramaribo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $53 in Paramaribo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $301 per month, with Paramaribo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇷 Paramaribo

🕒 Local time

05:02 5:02 AM

01:02 1:02 AM

4 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

242,946 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Surinamese Dollar SRD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SRD = 2.67 USD

100 SRD = 2.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SRD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Surinamese Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 37.39 SRD (100 SRD = 2.67 USD). 1 EUR = 41.75 SRD (100 SRD = 2.4 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Paramaribo 6,890 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Paramaribo

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 Paramaribo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,035 in Paramaribo, so Paramaribo is about 58% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 8 times higher, 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $478 in Paramaribo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $64 in Paramaribo. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Paramaribo 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.

It comes down to priorities – Paramaribo wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.