Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sharm El Sheikh

For one person, living is cheaper in Sharm El Sheikh: $442 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $24,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Sharm El Sheikh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$442

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sharm El Sheikh

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 Sharm El Sheikh actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $442 in Sharm El Sheikh.

Barcelona $2,453
Sharm El Sheikh $442

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $674 in Sharm El Sheikh.

Barcelona $3,509
Sharm El Sheikh $674

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $905 in Sharm El Sheikh.

Barcelona $4,564
Sharm El Sheikh $905

Living in Barcelona is roughly 455% more expensive than in Sharm El Sheikh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Sharm El Sheikh is 68% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$21.07 E£1,180

220.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$4.46 E£249

203.36%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.17 E£122

47.00%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.33 E£18.71

781.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.51 E£28.57

270.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$3.46 E£194

15.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$4.36 E£244

3.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$0.83 E£46.19

57.83%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$0.42 E£23.72

340.48%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.08 E£60.4

347.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$3.46 E£193

163.58%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.39 E£77.8

114.39%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$0.45 E£25.39

348.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$0.42 E£23.78

542.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$0.26 E£14.42

976.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$2.06 E£115

233.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.39 E£78.0

1.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.08 E£4.38

3825.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.43 E£24.08

318.60%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$29.6K E£1.7M

11.97%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$20.4K E£1.1M

55.45%

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

$180 €162

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

$13.84 €12.40

$10.80 E£605

28.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$27.30 E£1,528

23.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

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

$917 €821

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$337 E£18.8K

404.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$284 E£15.9K

377.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$588 E£32.9K

342.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$506 E£28.3K

307.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$950 E£53.2K

627.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$663 E£37.1K

673.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$141 E£7,910

1464.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

26.5

-87.62%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sharm El Sheikh: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $337 in Sharm El Sheikh. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 16 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $21 in Sharm El Sheikh for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $51 per month, with Sharm El Sheikh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇪🇬 Sharm El Sheikh

🕒 Local time

06:29 6:29 AM

08:29 8:29 AM

2 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

38,478

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Egyptian Pound EGP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.6 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

EGP, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.97 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.31 EGP (100 EGP = 1.6 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sharm El Sheikh 3,270 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sharm El Sheikh

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 Sharm El Sheikh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $442 in Sharm El Sheikh, so Sharm El Sheikh is about 82% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 16 times higher, 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $337 in Sharm El Sheikh. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Sharm El Sheikh – a meal for two runs $21 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $2,453 per month in Barcelona versus $442 in Sharm El Sheikh – Sharm El Sheikh is about 82% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $442 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sharm El Sheikh but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sharm El Sheikh 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 Sharm El Sheikh are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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