Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Retford

For one person, living is cheaper in Retford: $2,255 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Retford
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Retford Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Retford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,255

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Retford

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,255 in Retford.

Barcelona $2,381
Retford $2,255

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $3,343 in Retford.

Barcelona $3,406
Retford $3,343

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $4,432 in Retford.

Barcelona $4,431
Retford $4,432

Living in Barcelona is roughly 6% more expensive than in Retford, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Retford 66% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$14.72 £11.04

21.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$66.5 £49.87

-0.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$7.14 £5.36

91.74%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.88 £2.91

-21.13%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.75 £1.31

75.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.78 £1.33

8.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$4.30 £3.22

-10.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$4.34 £3.26

6.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.72 £1.29

-24.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.83 £1.38

14.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.64 £1.23

11.59%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.66 £3.50

-0.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$11.18 £8.39

55.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$10.16 £7.62

-8.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$12.50 £9.38

58.64%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.09 £1.56

44.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.80 £1.35

12.78%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.76 £1.32

50.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.74 £1.31

64.94%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.48 £1.11

45.95%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.58 £1.19

36.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.42 £0.31

250.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.56 £1.17

-43.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$23.33 £17.50

-70.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$7.77 £5.83

0.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.70 £1.27

-18.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.04 £1.53

28.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$3.65 £2.74

-20.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$108 £80.7

-76.33%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$4.93 £3.70

-39.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$3.91 £2.93

-63.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$28.85 £21.64

15.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.09 £1.57

-11.00%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$40.1K £30.1K

-19.43%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$44.2K £33.2K

-28.28%

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

$183 €163

$342 £257

-46.55%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$27.87 £20.91

-51.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$46.53 £34.91

-29.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$52.7 £39.53

3.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$11.50 £8.62

-2.35%

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

$954 €849

$1,926 £1,445

-50.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$23.9K £17.9K

-30.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$85.1 £63.9

1.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$60.8 £45.59

-35.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$109 £81.4

-4.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$161 £121

-26.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,398 £1,049

21.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$924 £693

38.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$2,099 £1,575

22.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,675 £1,257

14.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$5,059 £3,796

43.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$3,851 £2,889

30.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,711 £1,283

30.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.3

-38.11%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Retford: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Retford

$924 41% 27.6% $352

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Retford

$276 12.2% 15.2% $49

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Retford

$230 10.2% 14.6% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Retford

$416 18.5% 81.6% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Retford

$187 8.3% 19.6% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Retford

$76 3.4% 1.9% $1.5

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Retford

$147 6.5% 210% $99

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,398 in Retford. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 30% 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 $66.0 in Retford. Groceries flip the comparison at $325 vs $276, with Retford cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Retford

🕒 Local time

13:15 1:15 PM

12:15 12:15 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

22,023

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Barcelona Retford 1,350 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Retford

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 Retford: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Retford differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,255 including rent). Retford is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 30% 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,398 in Retford. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,926 in Retford. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

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

At $2,255 in Retford versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Retford but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Retford 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 Retford 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 Retford gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.