Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Thun

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $3,488 in Thun, rent and utilities included – about $12,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
167

Cost of Living Index in Thun
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Thun Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Thun

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,488

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Thun

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,488 in Thun.

Barcelona $2,453
Thun $3,488

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $5,274 in Thun.

Barcelona $3,509
Thun $5,274

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $7,060 in Thun.

Barcelona $4,564
Thun $7,060

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 30% less than in Thun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Thun 156% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$29.14 CHF 24.13

-39.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$123 CHF 102

-45.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$15.96 CHF 13.21

-15.23%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$6.33 CHF 5.24

-49.61%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$6.10 CHF 5.05

-52.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$5.99 CHF 4.96

-68.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$9.16 CHF 7.59

-56.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$7.80 CHF 6.46

-41.92%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$2.20 CHF 1.82

-40.45%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$3.01 CHF 2.49

-32.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.14 CHF 2.60

-41.08%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$7.87 CHF 6.52

-38.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$24.90 CHF 20.61

-32.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$27.51 CHF 22.78

-66.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$39.29 CHF 32.53

-50.01%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$3.58 CHF 2.96

-16.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.97 CHF 1.63

2.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$2.63 CHF 2.18

2.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$4.73 CHF 3.92

-40.80%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.65 CHF 1.37

26.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.01 CHF 1.66

2.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.28 CHF 1.89

-35.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.30 CHF 1.08

-27.69%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$11.23 CHF 9.30

-38.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$12.22 CHF 10.12

-35.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.29 CHF 1.90

-38.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.88 CHF 2.39

-11.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$4.18 CHF 3.46

-24.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$102 CHF 84.3

-75.00%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$7.70 CHF 6.38

-61.17%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$4.58 CHF 3.79

-67.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$83.8 CHF 69.4

-60.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$2.36 CHF 1.96

-23.73%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$39.5K CHF 32.7K

-16.03%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$39.7K CHF 32.8K

-20.10%

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

$180 €162

$289 CHF 239

-37.58%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$45.48 CHF 37.66

-69.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$64.3 CHF 53.3

-47.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$90.3 CHF 74.7

-42.93%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$46.46 CHF 38.47

-65.65%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$23.20 CHF 19.21

-52.63%

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

$917 €821

$3,003 CHF 2,486

-69.47%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$30.1K CHF 25.0K

-45.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$144 CHF 119

-39.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$79.9 CHF 66.1

-51.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$162 CHF 134

-34.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$195 CHF 161

-38.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$1,792 CHF 1,483

-5.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$1,510 CHF 1,250

-10.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$2,952 CHF 2,444

-11.83%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$2,512 CHF 2,079

-17.89%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$16.3K CHF 13.5K

-57.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$12.3K CHF 10.2K

-58.31%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$5,715 CHF 4,732

-61.32%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

2.42

35.54%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Thun: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Thun

$1.5K 43.3% 11.4% $155

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Thun

$565 16.2% 75.7% $244

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Thun

$467 13.4% 74.2% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Thun

$399 11.4% 75% $171

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Thun

$261 7.5% 65.4% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Thun

$137 3.9% 85.9% $63

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Thun

$149 4.3% 208% $101

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $1,792 in Thun. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Thun pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $123 in Thun for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $565 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇭 Thun

🕒 Local time

05:02 5:02 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

43,905

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Thun 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Thun

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 Thun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $3,488 in Thun, so Barcelona is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 61% 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 $1,792 in Thun. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $3,003 in Thun. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 76% higher in Thun. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,488 in Thun, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Thun. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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.

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Thun. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.