Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Scarborough

For one person, living is cheaper in Scarborough: $2,130 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
103

Cost of Living Index in Scarborough
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Scarborough Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Scarborough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,130

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Scarborough

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,130 in Scarborough.

Barcelona $2,381
Scarborough $2,130

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $3,096 in Scarborough.

Barcelona $3,406
Scarborough $3,096

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $4,062 in Scarborough.

Barcelona $4,431
Scarborough $4,062

Living in Barcelona is roughly 12% more expensive than in Scarborough, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Scarborough 57% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$15.36 £11.53

16.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$71.1 £53.4

-7.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$12.12 £9.09

12.95%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$3.51 £2.63

-12.82%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$2.05 £1.53

49.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.02 £0.77

90.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$4.58 £3.44

-15.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$4.29 £3.22

7.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.29 £0.97

0.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.37 £1.03

53.28%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.08 £0.81

69.44%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$3.60 £2.70

28.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$7.92 £5.94

119.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$7.18 £5.39

29.25%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$13.94 £10.46

42.25%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.13 £2.35

-3.83%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.99 £1.49

2.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.65 £1.99

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$2.09 £1.57

37.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.74 £1.30

24.14%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.62 £1.21

32.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.15 £0.87

27.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.91 £1.43

-53.93%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$22.58 £16.94

-69.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$9.59 £7.19

-18.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$3.65 £2.74

-61.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$3.60 £2.70

-26.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$3.30 £2.48

-11.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$86.0 £64.5

-70.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$5.73 £4.30

-47.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$4.97 £3.73

-71.03%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$33.58 £25.19

-1.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.98 £1.48

-6.06%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$36.0K £27.0K

-10.09%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$39.9K £29.9K

-20.57%

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

$183 €163

$356 £267

-48.67%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$25.99 £19.50

-47.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$32.74 £24.56

0.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$66.1 £49.59

-17.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$12.67 £9.50

30.39%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$10.66 £7.99

5.35%

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

$954 €849

$1,804 £1,353

-47.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$14.7K £11.1K

12.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$66.3 £49.73

29.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$35.54 £26.66

10.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$108 £81.3

-4.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$114 £85.2

4.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$867 £651

95.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$831 £624

53.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,524 £1,143

68.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,365 £1,024

40.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$910 £683

144.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.53

-40.69%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Scarborough: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Scarborough

$831 39% 34.9% $445

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Scarborough

$276 13% 15.1% $49

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Scarborough

$245 11.5% 9% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Scarborough

$415 19.5% 80.9% $185

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Scarborough

$146 6.8% 6.8% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Scarborough

$87 4.1% 13.3% $10

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Scarborough

$130 6.1% 174% $83

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $867 in Scarborough. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 145% 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 $71.0 in Scarborough. Groceries flip the comparison at $325 vs $276, with Scarborough cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Scarborough

🕒 Local time

01:58 1:58 AM

00:58 12:58 AM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

61,749

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Scarborough 1,450 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Scarborough

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 Scarborough: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Scarborough differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,130 including rent). Scarborough is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 145% 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 $867 in Scarborough. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,804 in Scarborough. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,130 in Scarborough versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Scarborough but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Scarborough 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 Scarborough 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 Scarborough gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.