Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shrewsbury, Shropshire

For one person, living is cheaper in Shrewsbury, Shropshire: $2,060 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
100

Cost of Living Index in Shrewsbury, Shropshire
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Shrewsbury, Shropshire Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,060

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shrewsbury, Shropshire

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,060 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

Barcelona $2,381
Shrewsbury, Shropshire $2,060

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $2,922 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

Barcelona $3,406
Shrewsbury, Shropshire $2,922

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $3,784 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire.

Barcelona $4,431
Shrewsbury, Shropshire $3,784

Living in Barcelona is roughly 16% more expensive than in Shrewsbury, Shropshire, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Shrewsbury, Shropshire 52% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$19.87 £14.91

-9.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$56.1 £42.08

17.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$8.76 £6.57

56.28%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$4.57 £3.43

-33.04%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$3.00 £2.25

2.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$2.47 £1.86

-21.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$5.30 £3.98

-26.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$6.79 £5.10

-32.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.99 £1.50

-34.67%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.39 £1.79

-12.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$2.15 £1.61

-14.88%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.09 £3.07

12.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$7.95 £5.96

118.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$9.08 £6.81

2.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$9.36 £7.02

111.86%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$2.07 £1.56

45.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.28 £0.96

58.59%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.49 £1.87

6.43%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.16 £0.87

147.41%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.47 £1.10

46.94%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.07 £0.80

100.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.95 £0.71

54.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.20 £0.90

-26.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$23.96 £17.97

-71.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$9.07 £6.80

-13.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$2.62 £1.97

-46.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$4.54 £3.40

-42.07%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$2.86 £2.15

1.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$91.6 £68.7

-72.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$6.12 £4.59

-50.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$3.96 £2.97

-63.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.90 £1.42

-2.11%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$39.2K £29.4K

-17.44%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$40.3K £30.2K

-21.33%

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

$183 €163

$203 £152

-9.75%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$23.89 £17.93

-43.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$39.81 £29.87

-17.28%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$76.8 £57.6

-28.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$13.20 £9.91

25.15%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$15.15 £11.37

-25.87%

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

$954 €849

$1,452 £1,090

-34.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$18.5K £13.9K

-10.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$61.0 £45.74

41.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$46.80 £35.11

-16.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$83.7 £62.8

23.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$100 £75.3

18.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$1,053 £790

61.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$859 £645

48.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$1,564 £1,174

64.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$1,213 £910

58.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$3,990 £2,993

82.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$2,948 £2,212

69.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$2,434 £1,826

-8.51%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.3

-38.11%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Shrewsbury, Shropshire: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$859 41.7% 32.7% $417

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$265 12.9% 18.5% $60

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$302 14.7% 12.1% $33

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$266 12.9% 16.1% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$131 6.4% 16% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$107 5.2% 38.8% $30

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Shrewsbury, Shropshire

$129 6.3% 173% $82

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $1,053 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Shrewsbury, Shropshire pays 9% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $56.0 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $265 per month, with Shrewsbury, Shropshire cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Shrewsbury, Shropshire

🕒 Local time

22:57 10:57 PM

21:57 9:57 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

76,782

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shrewsbury, Shropshire 1,310 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shrewsbury, Shropshire

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 Shrewsbury, Shropshire: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Shrewsbury, Shropshire differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $2,060 including rent). Shrewsbury, Shropshire is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 9% lower in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $1,053 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $1,452 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 23% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,060 in Shrewsbury, Shropshire versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shrewsbury, Shropshire but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shrewsbury, Shropshire 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 Shrewsbury, Shropshire 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 Shrewsbury, Shropshire gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.