Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and St Helens

For one person, living is cheaper in St Helens: $1,993 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in St Helens
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St Helens Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

St Helens

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$1,993

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in St Helens

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,993 in St Helens.

Barcelona $2,399
St Helens $1,993

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $3,045 in St Helens.

Barcelona $3,410
St Helens $3,045

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $4,098 in St Helens.

Barcelona $4,421
St Helens $4,098

Living in Barcelona is roughly 20% more expensive than in St Helens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, St Helens 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$26.90 £20.18

-33.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$78.6 £59.0

-13.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$10.48 £7.86

26.72%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$4.08 £3.06

-20.34%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.37 £1.78

27.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.99 £1.50

-6.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$5.36 £4.02

-28.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$4.54 £3.41

-1.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.34 £1.01

-3.73%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.77 £1.33

15.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.94 £1.46

-11.34%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$4.01 £3.01

18.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$9.00 £6.75

86.33%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$8.28 £6.21

7.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$10.66 £7.99

86.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$3.25 £2.44

-8.31%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.30 £0.97

56.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$3.03 £2.27

-9.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$3.45 £2.59

-22.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.15 £0.86

82.61%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.83 £1.37

13.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.30 £0.98

11.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$1.30 £0.98

-31.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$19.59 £14.70

-64.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$9.96 £7.47

-21.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$2.86 £2.14

-49.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.61 £1.95

-1.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.65 £1.99

12.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$100 £75.1

-74.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$3.37 £2.53

-7.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.07 £1.56

-30.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$15.82 £11.87

111.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.94 £1.46

-7.73%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$26.4K £19.8K

31.12%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$33.6K £25.2K

-10.62%

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

$178 €158

$365 £274

-51.22%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$17.20 £12.91

-22.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$43.87 £32.91

-20.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$26.94 £20.21

97.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$3.85 £2.89

315.84%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$13.42 £10.07

-17.59%

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

$957 €851

$805 £604

18.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$6,625 £4,971

150.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$65.0 £48.78

35.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$39.08 £29.32

1.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$72.3 £54.3

42.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$109 £81.7

11.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$797 £598

107.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$636 £477

104.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$1,503 £1,128

70.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$1,257 £943

52.33%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$3,315 £2,487

119.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$2,308 £1,731

120.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$1,863 £1,398

22.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

5.21

-37.04%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for St Helens: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

St Helens

$636 31.9% 51.2% $666

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

St Helens

$276 13.9% 13.8% $44

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

St Helens

$349 17.5% 29.2% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

St Helens

$426 21.4% 88.3% $200

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

St Helens

$128 6.4% 18.9% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

St Helens

$54 2.7% 28.7% $22

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

St Helens

$124 6.2% 162% $77

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $797 in St Helens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 22% 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: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $79.0 in St Helens. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $276, with St Helens cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 St Helens

🕒 Local time

01:47 1:47 AM

00:47 12:47 AM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

183,200

💱 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 St Helens 1,390 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
St Helens

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 St Helens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and St Helens differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,993 including rent). St Helens is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 22% 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $797 in St Helens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $805 in St Helens. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 16% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,993 in St Helens versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in St Helens but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes St Helens 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 St Helens 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 St Helens gentler on the wallet – expenses run 20% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.