Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sao Luis

For one person, living is cheaper in Sao Luis: $832 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,600 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Sao Luis
Learn more

Sao Luis Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Sao Luis

🇧🇷 Brazil

$832

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sao Luis

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $839 in Sao Luis.

Barcelona $2,381
Sao Luis $839

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,331 in Sao Luis.

Barcelona $3,406
Sao Luis $1,331

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,823 in Sao Luis.

Barcelona $4,431
Sao Luis $1,823

Living in Barcelona is roughly 184% more expensive than in Sao Luis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Sao Luis is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$6.64 R$33.64

169.43%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$40.14 R$203

64.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$6.89 R$34.93

98.69%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.13 R$10.80

43.66%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.22 R$6.20

151.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.71 R$3.60

173.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.95 R$9.87

98.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.43 R$12.31

89.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.05 R$5.33

23.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.98 R$10.06

6.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.14 R$5.80

60.53%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$2.21 R$11.21

109.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$9.82 R$49.77

76.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$4.31 R$21.87

115.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$7.89 R$39.99

151.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.17 R$11.02

38.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.38 R$7.02

47.10%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.20 R$6.08

120.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.69 R$8.58

69.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.39 R$7.03

55.40%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.27 R$6.45

69.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.88 R$4.46

67.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.77 R$3.88

14.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.36 R$11.97

193.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$8.07 R$40.90

-2.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.27 R$6.44

9.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$2.25 R$11.42

16.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.85 R$4.30

242.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$37.93 R$192

-32.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$0.95 R$4.83

215.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.92 R$4.66

56.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.24 R$6.29

50.00%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$23.8K R$120.7K

35.82%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$30.7K R$155.9K

3.12%

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

$183 €163

$95.3 R$483

91.87%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$17.60 R$89.2

-22.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$21.13 R$107

55.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$20.40 R$103

168.09%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$15.06 R$76.4

9.69%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$6.76 R$34.25

66.12%

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

$954 €849

$184 R$935

417.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$2,903 R$14.7K

471.97%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$64.5 R$327

33.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$54.2 R$275

-27.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$76.1 R$386

36.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$59.2 R$300

100.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$360 R$1,824

371.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$184 R$930

595.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$577 R$2,923

346.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$322 R$1,635

496.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,529 R$7,749

376.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$717 R$3,633

598.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$394 R$1,998

464.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Sao Luis: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Sao Luis

$184 22.1% 85.6% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Sao Luis

$197 23.7% 39.3% $128

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Sao Luis

$122 14.6% 54.9% $148

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Sao Luis

$134 16.1% 41.6% $95

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Sao Luis

$114 13.8% 26.9% $42

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Sao Luis

$34 4.1% 56.1% $43

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Sao Luis

$47 5.6% 0.9% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $357 in Sao Luis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 466% 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 $41.00 in Sao Luis for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $198 per month, with Sao Luis cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇧🇷 Sao Luis

🕒 Local time

12:20 12:20 PM

07:20 7:20 AM

5 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,037,775

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Brazilian Real BRL R$

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 BRL = 0.197 USD

1 BRL = 0.175 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sao Luis 6,770 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sao Luis

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 Sao Luis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Sao Luis differ by about 184% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $839 including rent). Sao Luis is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 466% 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 $357 in Sao Luis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $184 in Sao Luis. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 64% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $839 in Sao Luis versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sao Luis but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sao Luis 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 Sao Luis 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 Sao Luis gentler on the wallet – expenses run 184% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.