Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shiga

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiga: $1,207 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Shiga
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Shiga Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Shiga

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,207

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shiga

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,207 in Shiga.

Barcelona $2,453
Shiga $1,207

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,897 in Shiga.

Barcelona $3,509
Shiga $1,897

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,588 in Shiga.

Barcelona $4,564
Shiga $2,588

Living in Barcelona is roughly 103% more expensive than in Shiga, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Shiga is 11% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$6.19 ¥977

184.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$31.73 ¥5,011

112.70%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$4.96 ¥783

172.78%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$2.95 ¥466

8.14%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$1.31 ¥206

122.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.70 ¥110

170.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$2.76 ¥436

45.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$3.53 ¥558

28.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.28 ¥203

2.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.24 ¥196

62.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$3.89 ¥614

-52.44%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$2.04 ¥322

136.76%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$9.45 ¥1,492

77.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$9.19 ¥1,452

-0.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$18.48 ¥2,918

6.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$3.44 ¥543

-13.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.03 ¥320

-0.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$2.04 ¥323

32.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$3.97 ¥626

-29.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.52 ¥240

37.50%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.14 ¥180

81.58%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.36 ¥215

7.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.87 ¥137

8.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$3.97 ¥627

73.05%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$9.77 ¥1,543

-19.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.90 ¥301

-25.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$3.13 ¥494

-18.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$1.16 ¥183

170.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$56.2 ¥8,877

-54.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$3.86 ¥610

-22.54%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$3.20 ¥505

-53.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$21.98 ¥3,472

51.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.09 ¥173

65.14%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$22.7K ¥3.6M

46.35%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$15.3K ¥2.4M

107.76%

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

$180 €161

$137 ¥21.7K

31.60%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$24.58 ¥3,882

-43.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$18.76 ¥2,962

79.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$52.0 ¥8,215

-0.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$12.55 ¥1,982

-12.43%

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

$917 €818

$697 ¥110.1K

31.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$13.4K ¥2.1M

23.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$48.59 ¥7,674

79.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$30.84 ¥4,870

24.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$73.3 ¥11.6K

44.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$90.1 ¥14.2K

32.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$551 ¥87.0K

208.41%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$337 ¥53.2K

302.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$998 ¥157.6K

160.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$727 ¥114.8K

183.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$4,617 ¥729.1K

49.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$2,022 ¥319.3K

153.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$1,210 ¥191.2K

82.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

2.21

48.42%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Shiga: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Shiga

$337 27.9% 75.2% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Shiga

$294 24.4% 8.6% $28

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Shiga

$129 10.7% 52% $139

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Shiga

$180 15% 20.8% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Shiga

$109 9.1% 30.8% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Shiga

$77 6.4% 4.9% $3.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Shiga

$81 6.7% 66.5% $32

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $551 in Shiga. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 83% 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 $32 in Shiga for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $294 per month, with Shiga cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇯🇵 Shiga

🕒 Local time

14:07 2:07 PM

22:07 10:07 PM

8 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

23,836

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

JPY, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.33 USD). 1 EUR = 176 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.67 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shiga 10,280 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shiga

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 Shiga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,207 in Shiga, so Shiga is about 51% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 83% 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $551 in Shiga. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $697 in Shiga. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,207 in Shiga versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shiga but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shiga 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 Shiga are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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