Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sabac

For one person, living is cheaper in Sabac: $845 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 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
41

Cost of Living Index in Sabac
Learn more

Sabac Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Sabac

🇷🇸 Serbia

$845

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sabac

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $845 in Sabac.

Barcelona $2,453
Sabac $845

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,285 in Sabac.

Barcelona $3,509
Sabac $1,285

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,726 in Sabac.

Barcelona $4,564
Sabac $1,726

Living in Barcelona is roughly 190% more expensive than in Sabac, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Sabac is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$8.02 RSD 845

119.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$27.56 RSD 2,904

144.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$6.61 RSD 696

104.69%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$1.95 RSD 206

63.59%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$1.86 RSD 196

56.45%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.40 RSD 148

35.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$2.56 RSD 270

56.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$2.75 RSD 290

64.73%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.27 RSD 133

3.15%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.62 RSD 65.7

225.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.88 RSD 198

-1.60%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.92 RSD 203

151.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$5.85 RSD 616

186.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$6.34 RSD 668

43.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$11.57 RSD 1,219

69.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.19 RSD 126

150.42%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.91 RSD 201

5.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.40 RSD 147

92.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.94 RSD 204

44.33%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.69 RSD 72.6

202.90%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.34 RSD 35.97

508.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.05 RSD 111

39.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.40 RSD 42.57

135.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$3.56 RSD 375

92.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$7.59 RSD 800

3.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.70 RSD 73.5

101.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$0.99 RSD 105

156.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.00 RSD 105

214.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.46 RSD 154

104.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.93 RSD 97.7

60.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$5.36 RSD 565

522.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.76 RSD 185

2.27%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$30.2K RSD 3.2M

9.85%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$23.8K RSD 2.5M

33.28%

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

$180 €162

$139 RSD 14.6K

30.21%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$25.55 RSD 2,692

-45.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$19.46 RSD 2,050

73.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$29.09 RSD 3,065

77.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$11.31 RSD 1,191

41.11%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$5.78 RSD 609

90.14%

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

$917 €821

$172 RSD 18.1K

433.48%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$3,864 RSD 407.1K

326.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$59.7 RSD 6,293

45.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$65.2 RSD 6,865

-40.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$57.8 RSD 6,092

83.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$118 RSD 12.4K

1.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$230 RSD 24.2K

640.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$153 RSD 16.1K

785.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$341 RSD 36.0K

662.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$259 RSD 27.3K

696.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$1,874 RSD 197.4K

268.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$1,513 RSD 159.4K

239.00%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$969 RSD 102.1K

128.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.84

-32.23%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sabac: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Sabac

$153 18.1% 88.7% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Sabac

$183 21.7% 43.1% $139

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Sabac

$139 16.4% 48.2% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Sabac

$184 21.7% 19.5% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Sabac

$135 16% 14.3% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Sabac

$41 4.8% 44.7% $33

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Sabac

$10 * 1.2% 79.2% $38

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $230 in Sabac. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.3 times 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $28 in Sabac for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $183 per month, with Sabac cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇸 Sabac

🕒 Local time

09:58 9:58 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

51,163

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 RSD = 9.49 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.5 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 105 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.49 USD). 1 EUR = 118 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.5 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sabac 1,470 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sabac

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 Sabac: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $845 in Sabac, so Sabac is about 66% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2.3 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 $230 in Sabac. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $172 in Sabac. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Sabac – a meal for two runs $28 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $845 in Sabac versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sabac but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sabac 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 Sabac are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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