Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shiraz

For one person, living is cheaper in Shiraz: $551 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $22,200 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
26

Cost of Living Index in Shiraz
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Shiraz Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Shiraz

🇮🇷 Iran

$551

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shiraz

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,405 in Barcelona versus $551 in Shiraz.

Barcelona $2,405
Shiraz $551

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,477 in Barcelona versus $810 in Shiraz.

Barcelona $3,477
Shiraz $810

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,550 in Barcelona versus $1,069 in Shiraz.

Barcelona $4,550
Shiraz $1,069

Living in Barcelona is roughly 337% more expensive than in Shiraz, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 79% above, Shiraz is 59% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.98 €16.05

$4.62 $4.62

289.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 €60.2

$13.16 $13.16

412.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.37 €11.93

$3.92 $3.92

241.07%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.03 $1.03

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.79 $1.79

Cappuccino

$3.34 €2.98

$1.17 $1.17

185.47%

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

$2.95 €2.64

$0.66 $0.66

346.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.88 €3.46

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 €4.08

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.13

$0.67 $0.67

89.55%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 €1.75

$0.41 $0.41

378.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.90 $1.90

-7.89%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.36

$1.22 $1.22

300.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.47 €15.59

$2.35 $2.35

643.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.06 €8.09

$2.95 $2.95

207.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.18 €18.01

$9.81 $9.81

105.71%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 €2.75

$1.12 $1.12

175.00%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.54 $1.54

31.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$0.89 $0.89

192.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$0.55 $0.55

392.73%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

$0.55 $0.55

290.91%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$0.55 $0.55

301.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.38

$0.51 $0.51

201.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$0.17 $0.17

447.06%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.87 $0.87

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 $0.59

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.71 $1.71

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.09 €6.32

$3.04 $3.04

133.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.63 €6.81

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.33

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 €2.43

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.95 €2.63

$0.11 $0.11

2581.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.91 €23.13

$3.09 $3.09

738.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 €2.80

$0.38 $0.38

723.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.45 €1.29

$0.21 $0.21

590.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.17 €30.49

$3.44 $3.44

893.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

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

$34.7K €31.0K

$66.0K $66.0K

-47.42%

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

$30.3K €27.0K

$53.1K $53.1K

-42.97%

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

$181 €161

$23.64 $23.64

664.30%

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

$13.56 €12.10

$2.06 $2.06

558.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.34

$17.07 $17.07

105.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.2 €47.44

$18.96 $18.96

180.38%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.33

$13.51 $13.51

18.80%

Cinema Ticket

$11.37 €10.14

$1.98 $1.98

474.24%

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

$939 €838

$104 $104

802.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$2,421 $2,421

582.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.7

$22.81 $22.81

286.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.77 €35.49

$18.49 $18.49

115.09%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.3

$95.2 $95.2

8.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €107

$56.0 $56.0

113.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,513

$291 $291

483.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,301 €1,161

$217 $217

500.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,299

$537 $537

379.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 €1,732

$321 $321

504.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,470 €6,666

$1,164 $1,164

542.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,195 €4,636

$503 $503

933.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,299 €2,052

$243 $243

847.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

24.3

-86.50%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Last update for Shiraz: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54%

Shiraz

$217 40% 83.3% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.5%

Shiraz

$103 18.9% 68.4% $222

Eating Out

Barcelona

$272 11.3%

Shiraz

$65 * 12.1% 75.9% $207

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.5%

Shiraz

$43 7.9% 81.4% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Shiraz

$87 16% 45.1% $71

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$76 3.2%

Shiraz

$23 4.2% 69.8% $53

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Shiraz

$5 0.9% 89.7% $43

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 $1,695 in Barcelona and $291 in Shiraz. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 848% 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 $13.00 in Shiraz for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $103 per month, with Shiraz cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇷 Shiraz

🕒 Local time

16:27 4:27 PM

17:57 5:57 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,565,572

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shiraz 4,670 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shiraz

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 Shiraz: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Shiraz differ by about 337% in total monthly costs ($2,405 vs $551 including rent). Shiraz is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 848% 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 $291 in Shiraz. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $939 in Barcelona versus $104 in Shiraz. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 217% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $551 in Shiraz versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Shiraz but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shiraz 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 Shiraz 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 Shiraz gentler on the wallet – expenses run 337% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.