Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shenyang

For one person, living is cheaper in Shenyang: $708 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
34

Cost of Living Index in Shenyang
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Shenyang Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Shenyang

🇨🇳 China

$708

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shenyang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $708 in Shenyang.

Barcelona $2,453
Shenyang $708

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,046 in Shenyang.

Barcelona $3,509
Shenyang $1,046

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,384 in Shenyang.

Barcelona $4,564
Shenyang $1,384

Living in Barcelona is roughly 247% more expensive than in Shenyang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Shenyang is 48% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$2.97 ¥19.72

492.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$22.45 ¥149

200.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$5.40 ¥35.89

150.56%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$2.50 ¥16.64

27.60%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.47 ¥3.10

519.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.39 ¥2.57

384.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$0.86 ¥5.72

366.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$1.89 ¥12.54

139.68%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.00 ¥13.31

-34.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.38 ¥15.80

-15.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.08 ¥7.18

71.30%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.07 ¥7.09

351.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$11.93 ¥79.2

64.63%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.79 ¥11.90

66.48%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.17 ¥7.75

72.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.47 ¥9.76

90.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.62 ¥4.12

135.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.64 ¥4.28

46.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$3.69 ¥24.52

86.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$16.70 ¥111

-52.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.68 ¥4.54

107.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.13 ¥7.52

124.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.29 ¥1.90

982.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$14.87 ¥98.8

71.15%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.38 ¥9.15

116.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.31 ¥2.07

380.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$3.06 ¥20.31

990.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.30 ¥8.64

38.46%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$19.4K ¥128.7K

71.34%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$17.5K ¥116.0K

81.64%

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

$180 €162

$76.2 ¥506

136.85%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$15.50 ¥103

-10.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$14.86 ¥98.7

126.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$22.51 ¥150

128.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$10.68 ¥71.0

49.44%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$5.88 ¥39.04

86.90%

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

$917 €821

$549 ¥3,650

66.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$21.9K ¥145.4K

-24.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$42.33 ¥281

105.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$60.9 ¥405

73.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$70.1 ¥466

70.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$226 ¥1,499

653.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$228 ¥1,514

494.91%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$538 ¥3,578

383.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$344 ¥2,287

499.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$1,814 ¥12.1K

281.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$1,102 ¥7,322

365.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,082 ¥7,190

104.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.37

-24.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Shenyang: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Shenyang

$228 32.2% 83.2% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Shenyang

$161 * 22.7% 50% $161

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Shenyang

$81 11.5% 69.6% $186

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Shenyang

$107 15.1% 53.3% $121

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Shenyang

$78 * 11% 50.6% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Shenyang

$34 4.8% 53.4% $39

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Shenyang

$19 2.7% 60.9% $30

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $226 in Shenyang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2 times 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: $67 in Barcelona vs $22 in Shenyang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $161 per month, with Shenyang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Shenyang

🕒 Local time

09:49 9:49 AM

16:49 4:49 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

9,199,601

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shenyang 9,050 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shenyang

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 Shenyang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $708 in Shenyang, so Shenyang is about 71% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2 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 $226 in Shenyang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $549 in Shenyang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 100% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $708 in Shenyang versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $800 budget is realistic in Shenyang but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shenyang 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.

Expats usually find Shenyang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.