Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sohar

For one person, living is cheaper in Sohar: $1,430 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $12,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
69

Cost of Living Index in Sohar
Learn more

Sohar Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Sohar

🇴🇲 Oman

$1,430

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sohar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,430 in Sohar.

Barcelona $2,453
Sohar $1,430

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,095 in Sohar.

Barcelona $3,509
Sohar $2,095

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,759 in Sohar.

Barcelona $4,564
Sohar $2,759

Living in Barcelona is roughly 71% more expensive than in Sohar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Sohar 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$6.35 OMR 2.45

177.01%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$21.17 OMR 8.15

218.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$9.17 OMR 3.53

47.55%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$4.93 OMR 1.90

-35.29%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.69 OMR 0.26

321.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.30 OMR 0.12

530.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$13.15 OMR 5.06

-69.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$14.51 OMR 5.59

-68.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.13 OMR 0.82

-38.50%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.10 OMR 0.43

83.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.27 OMR 1.26

-43.43%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$2.69 OMR 1.04

79.55%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$13.27 OMR 5.11

26.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$9.06 OMR 3.49

0.66%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$14.23 OMR 5.48

38.02%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.22 OMR 1.24

-7.45%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.21 OMR 0.85

-8.60%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.55 OMR 0.98

5.88%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.17 OMR 0.45

139.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.83 OMR 0.71

14.21%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.87 OMR 0.72

10.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.73 OMR 0.67

-15.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.92 OMR 0.35

2.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$5.96 OMR 2.29

15.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$26.26 OMR 10.11

-69.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$3.99 OMR 1.54

-64.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$8.51 OMR 3.28

-70.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.54 OMR 0.98

23.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$51.9 OMR 19.98

-50.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$3.23 OMR 1.24

-7.43%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.60 OMR 0.62

-6.88%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$10.34 OMR 3.98

222.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$0.64 OMR 0.25

181.25%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$18.3K OMR 7,060

81.01%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$20.2K OMR 7,758

57.31%

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

$180 €162

$104 OMR 39.96

73.84%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$29.67 OMR 11.42

-53.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$87.6 OMR 33.71

-61.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$49.50 OMR 19.06

4.06%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$11.74 OMR 4.52

-6.39%

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

$917 €821

$294 OMR 113

211.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$6,986 OMR 2,690

135.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$51.2 OMR 19.72

69.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$43.66 OMR 16.81

-11.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$80.2 OMR 30.86

32.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$47.50 OMR 18.29

152.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$489 OMR 188

247.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$381 OMR 147

256.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$809 OMR 312

221.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$674 OMR 260

205.83%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$1,153 OMR 444

499.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$767 OMR 295

568.26%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$2,503 OMR 964

-11.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.33

-48.18%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Sohar: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Sohar

$381 26.6% 71.9% $975

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Sohar

$346 24.2% 7.5% $24

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Sohar

$236 16.5% 11.8% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Sohar

$221 15.5% 3% $6.9

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Sohar

$100 7% 36.6% $58

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Sohar

$73 5.1% 0.7% $0.5

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Sohar

$73 5.1% 51.2% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $489 in Sohar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sohar pays 13% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $21 in Sohar. Groceries flip the comparison at $322 vs $346, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇴🇲 Sohar

🕒 Local time

11:43 11:43 AM

14:43 2:43 PM

3 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

221,605

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Omani Rial OMR ر.ع.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 OMR = 2.6 USD

1 OMR = 2.33 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sohar 5,340 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sohar

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 Sohar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,430 in Sohar, so Sohar is about 42% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 12% lower in Barcelona. 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $489 in Sohar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $294 in Sohar. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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 Sohar are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.