Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Santa Cruz de La Palma

For one person, living is cheaper in Santa Cruz de La Palma: $1,622 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
79

Cost of Living Index in Santa Cruz de La Palma
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Santa Cruz de La Palma Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Santa Cruz de La Palma

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,622

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Santa Cruz de La Palma

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 Santa Cruz de La Palma actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $1,622 in Santa Cruz de La Palma.

Barcelona $2,381
Santa Cruz de La Palma $1,622

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $2,411 in Santa Cruz de La Palma.

Barcelona $3,406
Santa Cruz de La Palma $2,411

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $3,200 in Santa Cruz de La Palma.

Barcelona $4,431
Santa Cruz de La Palma $3,200

Living in Barcelona is roughly 47% more expensive than in Santa Cruz de La Palma, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Santa Cruz de La Palma 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$16.58 €14.75

7.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$56.2 €49.96

17.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$10.99 €9.78

24.57%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.32 €2.07

31.90%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$2.59 €2.31

18.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.78 €1.58

8.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$3.33 €2.96

16.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$3.85 €3.42

19.74%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.16 €1.03

12.07%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.49 €1.33

40.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.55 €1.37

18.06%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$3.50 €3.12

32.00%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$11.61 €10.33

49.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$7.91 €7.04

17.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$17.25 €15.34

14.96%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.75 €2.44

9.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$2.11 €1.88

-3.79%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.25 €2.00

17.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$2.41 €2.14

19.09%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.89 €1.68

14.29%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.42 €1.26

3.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.70 €0.63

25.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$5.75 €5.12

20.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$6.05 €5.38

29.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.11 €0.99

25.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.34 €2.08

12.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.66 €1.47

75.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$33.48 €29.78

-23.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$3.99 €3.55

-24.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.25 €1.12

15.20%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$23.77 €21.15

39.67%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.75 €1.56

6.29%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$36.8K €32.8K

-12.23%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$27.1K €24.1K

16.86%

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

$183 €163

$139 €124

31.37%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$18.28 €16.26

-25.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$27.14 €24.14

21.33%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$47.66 €42.39

14.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$15.19 €13.51

8.76%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$8.93 €7.94

25.76%

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

$954 €849

$408 €363

133.90%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$8,540 €7,596

94.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$88.1 €78.4

-2.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$41.25 €36.69

-5.19%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$84.9 €75.5

22.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$110 €97.7

7.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$904 €804

87.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$674 €600

89.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,343 €1,195

91.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,027 €914

87.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,343 €2,974

117.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,209 €1,965

126.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$1,360 €1,210

63.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.3

-0.61%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Santa Cruz de La Palma: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$674 41.6% 47.2% $602

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$267 16.4% 18% $58

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$235 14.5% 12.7% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$185 11.4% 19.5% $45

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$146 9% 6.7% $10

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$66 4% 15.1% $12

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Santa Cruz de La Palma

$50 3.1% 6.5% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $904 in Santa Cruz de La Palma. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 64% 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 $56.0 in Santa Cruz de La Palma for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $267 per month, with Santa Cruz de La Palma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇸 Santa Cruz de La Palma

🕒 Local time

20:56 8:56 PM

19:56 7:56 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

15,441

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Santa Cruz de La Palma 2,290 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Santa Cruz de La Palma

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 Santa Cruz de La Palma: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Santa Cruz de La Palma differ by about 47% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $1,622 including rent). Santa Cruz de La Palma is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 64% 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 $904 in Santa Cruz de La Palma. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $408 in Santa Cruz de La Palma. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 22% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,622 in Santa Cruz de La Palma versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Santa Cruz de La Palma but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Santa Cruz de La Palma 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 Santa Cruz de La Palma 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 Santa Cruz de La Palma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 47% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.