Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sarpsborg

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $2,872 in Sarpsborg, rent and utilities included – about $5,100 less a year. The total is higher in Sarpsborg despite lower rent and utilities.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
138

Cost of Living Index in Sarpsborg
Learn more

Sarpsborg Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Sarpsborg

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,872

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sarpsborg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $2,872 in Sarpsborg.

Barcelona $2,443
Sarpsborg $2,872

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $4,169 in Sarpsborg.

Barcelona $3,519
Sarpsborg $4,169

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $5,466 in Sarpsborg.

Barcelona $4,595
Sarpsborg $5,466

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 15% less than in Sarpsborg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Sarpsborg 112% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.73

$40.81 NOK 379

-56.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.1

$99.3 NOK 921

-32.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.13

$19.17 NOK 178

-29.00%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$5.74 NOK 53.3

-45.99%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$2.88 NOK 26.75

4.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$2.67 NOK 24.77

-27.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$6.60 NOK 61.2

-41.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$8.19 NOK 76.0

-46.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$2.32 NOK 21.49

-46.12%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$3.49 NOK 32.42

-39.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$4.01 NOK 37.22

-50.87%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$4.56 NOK 42.30

4.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.20

$12.54 NOK 116

36.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.98

$17.04 NOK 158

-47.42%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.39

$34.26 NOK 318

-39.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.82

$3.85 NOK 35.74

-17.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.67 NOK 24.81

-26.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.49 NOK 32.43

-24.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$6.04 NOK 56.1

-52.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.84 NOK 26.39

-27.46%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$3.18 NOK 29.50

-31.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$2.65 NOK 24.61

-42.26%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$2.59 NOK 24.00

-62.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.21

$15.56 NOK 144

-55.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.03

$13.73 NOK 127

-42.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$3.34 NOK 30.97

-57.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$4.71 NOK 43.69

-42.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$2.62 NOK 24.36

26.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.81

$87.2 NOK 809

-70.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.75

$12.01 NOK 111

-74.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.97 NOK 18.26

-24.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.28

$63.8 NOK 592

-48.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.27 NOK 21.08

-17.62%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$55.3K NOK 513.5K

-40.42%

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

$31.9K €28.5K

$47.2K NOK 437.7K

-32.27%

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

$183 €163

$238 NOK 2,207

-23.12%

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

$14.24 €12.69

$36.62 NOK 340

-61.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.79

$47.03 NOK 436

-26.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.81

$50.1 NOK 465

2.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.60

$38.46 NOK 357

-57.41%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.86

$19.49 NOK 181

-43.25%

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

$944 €841

$239 NOK 2,217

294.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$11.6K NOK 107.7K

91.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.1

$111 NOK 1,034

-21.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.54

$66.9 NOK 621

-42.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.1

$125 NOK 1,158

-16.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$180 NOK 1,670

-34.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,512

$1,224 NOK 11.4K

38.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,191

$1,093 NOK 10.1K

22.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,398

$1,606 NOK 14.9K

67.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,850

$1,399 NOK 13.0K

48.49%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,373

$6,415 NOK 59.5K

11.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,524

$4,241 NOK 39.4K

19.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,997

$2,714 NOK 25.2K

-17.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

5.18

-38.42%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Sarpsborg: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Sarpsborg

$1.1K 38.1% 18.3% $244

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Sarpsborg

$508 17.7% 54.9% $180

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Sarpsborg

$524 18.3% 96.5% $257

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Sarpsborg

$321 11.2% 38.8% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Sarpsborg

$217 7.6% 38.5% $60

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Sarpsborg

$89 3.1% 21.1% $15

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Sarpsborg

$120 4.2% 142% $70

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,224 in Sarpsborg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sarpsborg pays 21% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $99 in Sarpsborg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $508 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇳🇴 Sarpsborg

🕒 Local time

03:38 3:38 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

59,906

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 NOK = 10.78 USD

100 NOK = 9.6 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 9.28 NOK (1 NOK = 0.108 USD). 1 EUR = 10.42 NOK (100 NOK = 9.6 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sarpsborg 2,080 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sarpsborg

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 Sarpsborg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $2,872 in Sarpsborg, so Barcelona is about 15% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 17% 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 $1,224 in Sarpsborg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $239 in Sarpsborg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 55% higher in Sarpsborg. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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 Sarpsborg are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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