Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Riehen

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $3,548 in Riehen, rent and utilities included – about $13,300 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
171

Cost of Living Index in Riehen
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Riehen Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Riehen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,548

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Riehen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,548 in Riehen.

Barcelona $2,443
Riehen $3,548

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $5,293 in Riehen.

Barcelona $3,519
Riehen $5,293

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $7,038 in Riehen.

Barcelona $4,595
Riehen $7,038

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 31% less than in Riehen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Riehen 162% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.72

$30.03 CHF 24.49

-41.19%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.1

$123 CHF 100

-45.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.12

$15.58 CHF 12.70

-12.64%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$6.14 CHF 5.01

-49.51%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$5.07 CHF 4.14

-40.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$5.44 CHF 4.44

-64.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$7.16 CHF 5.84

-46.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$6.78 CHF 5.53

-35.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$2.23 CHF 1.82

-43.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$3.25 CHF 2.65

-34.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$3.40 CHF 2.77

-42.06%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$7.53 CHF 6.14

-36.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.20

$24.43 CHF 19.92

-30.13%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.97

$25.70 CHF 20.96

-65.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.39

$36.51 CHF 29.78

-43.44%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$3.39 CHF 2.76

-6.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.64 CHF 1.33

20.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.59 CHF 2.11

2.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$4.51 CHF 3.68

-36.14%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$1.78 CHF 1.45

15.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$2.01 CHF 1.64

8.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$2.29 CHF 1.87

-33.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$1.19 CHF 0.97

-18.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.20

$11.18 CHF 9.12

-37.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.02

$10.18 CHF 8.30

-22.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$3.49 CHF 2.85

-59.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$2.48 CHF 2.02

8.47%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$4.41 CHF 3.60

-24.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.80

$99.5 CHF 81.2

-74.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.75

$12.35 CHF 10.07

-75.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$4.96 CHF 4.05

-70.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.27

$87.3 CHF 71.2

-62.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.28 CHF 1.86

-17.98%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$39.1K CHF 31.9K

-15.71%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$39.8K CHF 32.5K

-19.73%

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

$183 €163

$338 CHF 276

-45.94%

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

$14.24 €12.68

$41.64 CHF 33.95

-65.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.78

$58.7 CHF 47.84

-41.08%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.79

$83.9 CHF 68.4

-38.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.59

$46.62 CHF 38.01

-64.86%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.85

$21.17 CHF 17.26

-47.76%

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

$944 €840

$2,789 CHF 2,275

-66.17%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$34.6K CHF 28.2K

-35.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.1

$102 CHF 83.1

-13.99%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.52

$97.0 CHF 79.1

-60.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.1

$161 CHF 131

-35.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$196 CHF 160

-40.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,511

$1,813 CHF 1,479

-6.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,190

$1,581 CHF 1,289

-15.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,397

$3,446 CHF 2,810

-21.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,849

$2,562 CHF 2,089

-18.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,371

$14.3K CHF 11.7K

-50.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,522

$12.0K CHF 9,804

-57.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,996

$8,695 CHF 7,090

-74.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

2.31

38.10%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Riehen: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Riehen

$1.6K 44.6% 18.3% $244

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Riehen

$545 15.4% 66.3% $217

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Riehen

$452 12.7% 69.3% $185

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Riehen

$439 12.4% 89.3% $207

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Riehen

$250 7.1% 59.6% $93

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Riehen

$126 3.6% 71.6% $53

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Riehen

$154 4.4% 213% $105

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,813 in Riehen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Riehen pays about 3.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $123 in Riehen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $545 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇭 Riehen

🕒 Local time

06:07 6:07 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

20,970

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CHF = 1.23 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Barcelona Riehen 810 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Riehen

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 Riehen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $3,548 in Riehen, so Barcelona is about 31% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 74% 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $1,813 in Riehen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $2,789 in Riehen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 66% higher in Riehen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,548 in Riehen, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Riehen. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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 Riehen are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Riehen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.