Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Salalah

For one person, living is cheaper in Salalah: $1,062 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,700 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Salalah
Learn more

Salalah Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Salalah

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,062

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Salalah

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,062 in Salalah.

Barcelona $2,453
Salalah $1,062

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,598 in Salalah.

Barcelona $3,509
Salalah $1,598

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,134 in Salalah.

Barcelona $4,564
Salalah $2,134

Living in Barcelona is roughly 131% more expensive than in Salalah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Salalah is 22% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.75

$5.17 OMR 1.99

240.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$25.56 OMR 9.84

164.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$13.24 OMR 5.10

2.19%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$6.42 OMR 2.47

-50.31%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.85 OMR 0.33

242.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.27 OMR 0.10

600.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$8.88 OMR 3.42

-54.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$10.34 OMR 3.98

-56.19%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.93 OMR 0.74

-32.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.22 OMR 0.47

65.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.63 OMR 1.01

-29.66%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.89 OMR 0.73

155.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.99

$4.78 OMR 1.84

250.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$4.56 OMR 1.76

100.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.59

$6.35 OMR 2.45

209.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.90 OMR 0.73

56.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.79 OMR 0.69

12.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.07 OMR 0.80

30.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.87 OMR 0.72

49.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.44 OMR 0.55

45.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.06 OMR 0.41

95.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.06 OMR 0.41

37.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.48 OMR 0.19

95.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$5.88 OMR 2.26

16.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$19.95 OMR 7.68

-60.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$3.84 OMR 1.48

-63.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$4.65 OMR 1.79

-45.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$1.32 OMR 0.51

137.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.79

$54.9 OMR 21.13

-53.62%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$2.32 OMR 0.89

28.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.28 OMR 0.49

16.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.89

$11.54 OMR 4.44

189.17%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.64 OMR 0.25

181.25%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$20.7K OMR 7,971

60.31%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$17.9K OMR 6,900

76.87%

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

$180 €162

$79.2 OMR 30.50

127.73%

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

$13.84 €12.39

$49.43 OMR 19.03

-72.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.18

$73.9 OMR 28.45

-54.40%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.13

$40.35 OMR 15.54

27.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.29

$26.24 OMR 10.10

-39.18%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$7.84 OMR 3.02

40.18%

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

$917 €821

$105 OMR 40.39

773.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$1,970 OMR 758

736.57%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.9

$28.71 OMR 11.05

203.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.49

$31.42 OMR 12.10

22.57%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$57.6 OMR 22.16

83.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$44.75 OMR 17.23

167.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,522

$247 OMR 95.1

588.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$205 OMR 78.9

561.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,331

$634 OMR 244

310.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,847

$391 OMR 151

427.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,193

$1,980 OMR 762

249.30%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,592

$1,228 OMR 473

317.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,980

$1,778 OMR 684

24.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.58

-28.38%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Salalah: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Salalah

$205 19.3% 84.9% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Salalah

$229 21.5% 29% $93

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Salalah

$228 21.5% 15% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Salalah

$203 19.1% 11.1% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Salalah

$73 6.9% 53.7% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Salalah

$56 5.3% 23.8% $17

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Salalah

$69 6.5% 42.1% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $247 in Salalah. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 24% 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 $26 in Salalah for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $229 per month, with Salalah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇴🇲 Salalah

🕒 Local time

22:34 10:34 PM

01:34 1:34 AM

3 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

178,469

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Salalah 5,620 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
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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 Salalah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,062 in Salalah, so Salalah is about 57% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 24% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $247 in Salalah. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $105 in Salalah. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 41% 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. Salalah 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.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Salalah are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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