Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Shymkent

For one person, living is cheaper in Shymkent: $808 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Shymkent
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Shymkent Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Shymkent

🇰🇿 Kazakhstan

$808

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Shymkent

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $808 in Shymkent.

Barcelona $2,381
Shymkent $808

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,390 in Shymkent.

Barcelona $3,406
Shymkent $1,390

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,971 in Shymkent.

Barcelona $4,431
Shymkent $1,971

Living in Barcelona is roughly 195% more expensive than in Shymkent, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Shymkent is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$11.25 ₸5,086

59.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$33.35 ₸15.1K

98.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$6.50 ₸2,938

110.62%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.54 ₸1,147

20.47%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.03 ₸467

198.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.54 ₸246

259.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.09 ₸492

255.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$1.35 ₸609

241.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.46 ₸661

-10.96%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.41 ₸184

412.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.79 ₸811

2.23%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.73 ₸783

167.05%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$10.04 ₸4,538

72.91%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$5.26 ₸2,376

76.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$8.98 ₸4,059

120.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.19 ₸538

152.94%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$2.12 ₸957

-4.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.58 ₸1,166

2.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.35 ₸610

112.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.55 ₸250

292.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.41 ₸184

424.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.88 ₸397

67.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.83 ₸376

6.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$2.46 ₸1,114

181.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$4.55 ₸2,057

72.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.03 ₸466

34.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.51 ₸683

74.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.14 ₸64.0

1978.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$0.87 ₸395

244.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.34 ₸156

323.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$10.02 ₸4,532

231.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.64 ₸291

190.63%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$27.2K ₸12.3M

19.00%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$29.0K ₸13.1M

9.13%

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

$183 €163

$47.29 ₸21.4K

286.47%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$9.60 ₸4,338

41.77%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$14.79 ₸6,685

122.65%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$38.82 ₸17.5K

40.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$8.82 ₸3,986

87.30%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$5.68 ₸2,567

97.71%

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

$954 €849

$57.8 ₸26.1K

1551.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$37.55 ₸17.0K

129.11%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$33.85 ₸15.3K

15.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$187 ₸84.4K

-44.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$52.9 ₸23.9K

124.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$338 ₸153.0K

400.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$203 ₸92.0K

527.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$698 ₸315.6K

268.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$545 ₸246.2K

253.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,104 ₸499.1K

559.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$986 ₸445.6K

408.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$442 ₸199.6K

404.21%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

18.25

-82.03%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Shymkent: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Shymkent

$203 25.2% 84.1% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Shymkent

$185 22.9% 43.1% $140

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Shymkent

$154 19.1% 42.7% $115

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Shymkent

$72 8.9% 68.7% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Shymkent

$140 17.3% 10.5% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Shymkent

$50 6.2% 35% $27

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Shymkent

$3.2 * 0.4% 93.3% $44

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 $338 in Shymkent. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 404% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $33.00 in Shymkent for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $185 per month, with Shymkent cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇰🇿 Shymkent

🕒 Local time

21:13 9:13 PM

01:13 1:13 AM

4 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,222,055

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Kazakhstani Tenge KZT ₸

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD

1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

KZT, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Kazakhstani Tenge exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 452 KZT (1,000 KZT = 2.21 USD). 1 EUR = 508 KZT (1,000 KZT = 1.97 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Shymkent 5,430 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Shymkent

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 Shymkent: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Shymkent differ by about 195% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $808 including rent). Shymkent is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 404% 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 $338 in Shymkent. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $57.8 in Shymkent. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Shymkent – a meal for two runs $33.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $808 in Shymkent versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Shymkent but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Shymkent 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 Shymkent 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 Shymkent gentler on the wallet – expenses run 195% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.