Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Southwark

For one person, living is cheaper in Southwark: $1,486 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
72

Cost of Living Index in Southwark
Learn more

Southwark Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Southwark

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,486

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Southwark

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $1,486 in Southwark.

Barcelona $2,381
Southwark $1,486

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $4,262 in Southwark.

Barcelona $3,406
Southwark $4,262

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $7,038 in Southwark.

Barcelona $4,431
Southwark $7,038

Living in Barcelona is roughly 60% more expensive than in Southwark, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 76% above, Southwark 10% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$25.00 £18.76

-28.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$101 £75.6

-34.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$10.67 £8.00

28.30%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$5.70 £4.28

-46.32%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$3.05 £2.29

0.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$2.60 £1.95

-25.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$9.29 £6.97

-58.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$8.28 £6.21

-44.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.92 £1.44

-32.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$2.05 £1.54

2.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$2.20 £1.65

-16.82%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$4.38 £3.29

5.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$11.90 £8.93

45.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$9.07 £6.80

2.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$15.57 £11.68

27.36%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$3.05 £2.29

-1.31%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.44 £1.08

40.97%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.98 £2.24

-11.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$3.52 £2.64

-18.47%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.66 £1.25

30.12%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.79 £1.34

20.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.36 £1.02

8.09%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$1.86 £1.39

-52.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$23.44 £17.59

-70.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$12.16 £9.12

-35.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$3.05 £2.29

-54.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$3.22 £2.42

-18.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$3.89 £2.92

-25.19%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$157 £118

-83.77%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$4.97 £3.73

-39.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.72 £2.04

-47.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$39.66 £29.75

-16.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$2.15 £1.62

-13.49%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$37.9K £28.4K

-14.55%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$39.9K £30.0K

-20.64%

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

$183 €163

$335 £251

-45.39%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$18.37 £13.78

-25.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$40.35 £30.27

-18.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$18.05 £13.54

-37.78%

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

$954 €849

$2,557 £1,919

-62.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$30.4K £22.8K

-45.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$93.1 £69.9

-7.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$46.53 £34.91

-15.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$103 £77.5

0.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$90.0 £67.5

31.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$2,307 £1,731

-26.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$5,586 £4,190

-53.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$3,792 £2,844

-49.30%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$4,185 £3,140

-46.79%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.12

-35.94%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Southwark: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Southwark

- * 0% 100%

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Southwark

$329 22.2% 1.4% $4.4

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Southwark

$386 26% 43.2% $117

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Southwark

$393 26.5% 71.6% $164

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Southwark

$150 10.1% 4.2% $6.6

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Southwark

$36 * 2.4% 53.2% $41

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Southwark

$191 12.9% 304% $144

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 $2,307 in Southwark. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Southwark pays 88% 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 $101 in Southwark for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $329 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Southwark

🕒 Local time

19:00 7:00 PM

18:00 6:00 PM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

71,552

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Southwark 1,130 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Southwark

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 Southwark: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Southwark differ by about 60% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $1,486 including rent). Southwark is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 88% lower in Southwark. 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 $2,307 in Southwark. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $2,557 in Southwark. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Southwark is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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 Southwark 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 Southwark gentler on the wallet – expenses run 60% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.