Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Schaffhausen

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $3,139 in Schaffhausen, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. The total is higher in Schaffhausen despite lower rent and utilities.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
150

Cost of Living Index in Schaffhausen
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Schaffhausen Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Schaffhausen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,139

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Schaffhausen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,139 in Schaffhausen.

Barcelona $2,453
Schaffhausen $3,139

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $5,010 in Schaffhausen.

Barcelona $3,509
Schaffhausen $5,010

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $6,882 in Schaffhausen.

Barcelona $4,564
Schaffhausen $6,882

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 22% less than in Schaffhausen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Schaffhausen 131% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$30.45 CHF 25.26

-42.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$122 CHF 101

-44.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$18.19 CHF 15.09

-25.62%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$6.01 CHF 4.98

-46.92%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$5.32 CHF 4.41

-45.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$4.78 CHF 3.96

-60.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$8.39 CHF 6.96

-52.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$7.11 CHF 5.90

-36.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.16 CHF 1.79

-39.35%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$4.00 CHF 3.32

-49.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$4.25 CHF 3.53

-56.47%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$7.81 CHF 6.48

-38.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$27.90 CHF 23.15

-40.00%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$30.45 CHF 25.26

-70.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$42.66 CHF 35.39

-53.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$3.84 CHF 3.18

-22.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.07 CHF 1.72

-2.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$3.17 CHF 2.63

-14.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$5.49 CHF 4.55

-49.00%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$2.38 CHF 1.97

-12.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$2.14 CHF 1.77

-3.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.31 CHF 1.91

-36.80%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.16 CHF 0.96

-18.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$10.82 CHF 8.98

-36.51%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$12.00 CHF 9.95

-34.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.89 CHF 2.40

-51.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$3.59 CHF 2.98

-29.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$4.01 CHF 3.32

-21.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$98.0 CHF 81.3

-74.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$6.10 CHF 5.06

-50.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.86 CHF 2.37

-47.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$59.6 CHF 49.43

-43.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.22 CHF 1.84

-18.92%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$38.4K CHF 31.8K

-13.46%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$39.4K CHF 32.7K

-19.58%

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

$180 €162

$229 CHF 190

-21.32%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$28.98 CHF 24.04

-52.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$62.0 CHF 51.4

-45.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$110 CHF 91.3

-53.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$46.30 CHF 38.41

-65.53%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$23.59 CHF 19.57

-53.41%

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

$917 €823

$3,157 CHF 2,619

-70.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$24.5K CHF 20.3K

-32.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$163 CHF 135

-46.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$54.9 CHF 45.51

-29.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$172 CHF 142

-38.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$150 CHF 125

-20.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$1,272 CHF 1,055

33.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$1,192 CHF 989

13.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$2,689 CHF 2,230

-3.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$2,317 CHF 1,922

-11.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$8,110 CHF 6,728

-14.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$8,439 CHF 7,001

-39.24%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$7,148 CHF 5,930

-69.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

2.41

36.10%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Schaffhausen: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Schaffhausen

$1.2K 38% 12% $163

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Schaffhausen

$626 19.9% 94.4% $304

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Schaffhausen

$467 14.9% 74.2% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Schaffhausen

$320 10.2% 40.5% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Schaffhausen

$243 7.7% 53.7% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Schaffhausen

$157 5% 114% $84

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Schaffhausen

$134 4.3% 177% $86

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,272 in Schaffhausen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Schaffhausen pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $122 in Schaffhausen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $626 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇭 Schaffhausen

🕒 Local time

15:03 3:03 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

35,927

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Schaffhausen 870 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Schaffhausen

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 Schaffhausen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Schaffhausen differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($2,453 vs $3,139 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 69% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $1,272 in Schaffhausen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $3,157 in Schaffhausen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 94% higher in Schaffhausen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,139 in Schaffhausen, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Schaffhausen. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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 Schaffhausen are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

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