Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shenzhen

For one person, living is cheaper in Shenzhen: $1,134 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,300 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
55

Cost of Living Index in Shenzhen
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Shenzhen Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Shenzhen

🇨🇳 China

$1,134

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shenzhen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,405 in Barcelona versus $1,134 in Shenzhen.

Barcelona $2,405
Shenzhen $1,134

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,477 in Barcelona versus $1,734 in Shenzhen.

Barcelona $3,477
Shenzhen $1,734

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,550 in Barcelona versus $2,333 in Shenzhen.

Barcelona $4,550
Shenzhen $2,333

Living in Barcelona is roughly 112% more expensive than in Shenzhen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 79% above, Shenzhen is 15% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.98 €16.05

$3.64 ¥24.33

393.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 €60.2

$29.70 ¥199

127.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.37 €11.93

$5.12 ¥34.18

161.13%

Cappuccino

$3.34 €2.98

$3.21 ¥21.47

4.05%

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

$2.95 €2.64

$0.59 ¥3.91

400.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$0.33 ¥2.19

475.76%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.88 €3.46

$1.48 ¥9.88

162.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 €4.08

$2.24 ¥14.98

104.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.55 ¥10.39

-18.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 €1.75

$1.64 ¥10.97

19.51%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.09 ¥7.29

60.55%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.36

$1.76 ¥11.78

177.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.47 €15.59

$20.95 ¥140

-16.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.06 €8.09

$3.38 ¥22.62

168.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.18 €18.01

$14.38 ¥96.1

40.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 €2.75

$2.31 ¥15.47

33.33%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.60 ¥10.70

26.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$1.89 ¥12.61

37.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$1.41 ¥9.44

92.20%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

$1.07 ¥7.16

100.93%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$1.24 ¥8.28

78.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.38

$0.59 ¥3.95

161.02%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$0.59 ¥3.97

57.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.09 €6.32

$4.54 ¥30.35

56.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.63 €6.81

$11.82 ¥79.0

-35.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.92 ¥6.16

61.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 €2.43

$1.76 ¥11.76

55.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.95 €2.63

$0.59 ¥3.92

400.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.91 €23.13

$21.95 ¥147

18.04%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 €2.80

$1.46 ¥9.75

114.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.38 ¥2.55

281.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.17 €30.49

$7.13 ¥47.67

379.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.35 ¥9.05

32.59%

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

$34.7K €31.0K

$19.3K ¥129.3K

79.29%

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

$30.3K €27.0K

$18.6K ¥124.2K

63.05%

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

$181 €161

$63.8 ¥426

183.24%

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

$13.56 €12.10

$10.04 ¥67.1

35.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.34

$16.28 ¥109

115.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.2 €47.44

$50.3 ¥336

5.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.33

$17.02 ¥114

-5.70%

Cinema Ticket

$11.37 €10.14

$7.28 ¥48.63

56.18%

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

$939 €838

$523 ¥3,496

79.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$23.8K ¥159.1K

-30.60%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.7

$55.1 ¥368

60.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.77 €35.49

$40.53 ¥271

-1.88%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.3

$72.0 ¥481

43.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €107

$92.4 ¥617

29.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,513

$764 ¥5,103

122.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,301 €1,161

$485 ¥3,238

168.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,299

$1,941 ¥13.0K

32.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 €1,732

$845 ¥5,650

129.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,470 €6,666

$14.0K ¥93.7K

-46.71%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,195 €4,636

$6,137 ¥41.0K

-15.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,299 €2,052

$1,693 ¥11.3K

35.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.35

-2.09%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Last update for Shenzhen: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54%

Shenzhen

$484 42.8% 62.7% $816

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.5%

Shenzhen

$249 22% 23.4% $76

Eating Out

Barcelona

$272 11.3%

Shenzhen

$99 8.7% 63.8% $173

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.5%

Shenzhen

$90 8% 60.7% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Shenzhen

$117 10.3% 25.9% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$76 3.2%

Shenzhen

$65 5.7% 14.6% $11

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Shenzhen

$28 2.4% 42.5% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $764 in Shenzhen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 36% 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: $67.0 in Barcelona vs $30.00 in Shenzhen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $249 per month, with Shenzhen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Shenzhen

🕒 Local time

10:30 10:30 AM

16:30 4:30 PM

6 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

12,528,300

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shenzhen 10,040 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shenzhen

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 Shenzhen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Shenzhen differ by about 112% in total monthly costs ($2,405 vs $1,134 including rent). Shenzhen is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 36% 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 $764 in Shenzhen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $939 in Barcelona versus $523 in Shenzhen. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,134 in Shenzhen versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Shenzhen but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shenzhen 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 Shenzhen 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 Shenzhen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 112% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.