Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Turrialba

For one person, living is cheaper in Turrialba: $1,724 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 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
83

Cost of Living Index in Turrialba
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Turrialba Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Turrialba

🇨🇷 Costa Rica

$1,724

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Turrialba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $1,724 in Turrialba.

Barcelona $2,443
Turrialba $1,724

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $2,740 in Turrialba.

Barcelona $3,519
Turrialba $2,740

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $3,757 in Turrialba.

Barcelona $4,595
Turrialba $3,757

Living in Barcelona is roughly 42% more expensive than in Turrialba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Turrialba 27% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.79

$12.24 ₡5,503

44.28%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.3

$62.6 ₡28.1K

7.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.17

$11.59 ₡5,210

17.43%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.77

$4.48 ₡2,013

-30.80%

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

$3.00 €2.68

$2.76 ₡1,241

8.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.95 ₡875

-1.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.44

$3.20 ₡1,438

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.90

$4.45 ₡2,001

-2.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$2.35 ₡1,056

-46.81%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.90

$3.01 ₡1,355

-29.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.51 ₡1,130

-21.51%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.26

$3.57 ₡1,604

33.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.26

$10.50 ₡4,721

62.57%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €8.01

$10.63 ₡4,778

-15.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.46

$13.87 ₡6,239

48.88%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.83

$5.18 ₡2,329

-39.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.64 ₡738

20.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

$4.87 ₡2,188

-45.59%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.58

$3.92 ₡1,762

-26.53%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$3.80 ₡1,708

-45.79%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$3.59 ₡1,612

-39.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.08 ₡487

41.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$3.19 ₡1,436

-69.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.23

$6.07 ₡2,728

14.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.05

$19.88 ₡8,942

-60.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.27

$2.79 ₡1,255

-49.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.40

$3.58 ₡1,611

-24.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.96

$1.30 ₡586

154.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.90

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.76

$2.49 ₡1,118

23.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.33

$1.57 ₡706

-5.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.40

$8.72 ₡3,922

276.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.67

$1.52 ₡683

23.03%

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

$33.0K €29.5K

$34.3K ₡15.4M

-3.81%

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

$31.9K €28.6K

$42.6K ₡19.2M

-25.08%

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

$183 €164

$95.6 ₡43.0K

91.29%

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

$14.24 €12.73

$35.61 ₡16.0K

-60.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.91

$59.7 ₡26.8K

-42.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.98

$66.6 ₡29.9K

-22.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.65

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.89

$7.56 ₡3,401

46.30%

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

$944 €844

$992 ₡446.1K

-4.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.9K

$16.8K ₡7.6M

32.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.4

$71.1 ₡32.0K

23.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.67

$56.2 ₡25.3K

-31.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.5

$129 ₡57.9K

-18.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$133 ₡59.6K

-11.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,517

$788 ₡354.4K

115.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,195

$629 ₡283.0K

112.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,407

$1,892 ₡850.9K

42.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,857

$1,268 ₡570.1K

63.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,398

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,542

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €2,004

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

8.62

-62.99%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Turrialba: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Turrialba

$629 36.5% 52.9% $707

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Turrialba

$401 23.3% 22.4% $73

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Turrialba

$230 13.4% 13.8% $37

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Turrialba

$191 11.1% 17.6% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Turrialba

$175 10.2% 11.5% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Turrialba

$82 4.7% 11.1% $8.1

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Turrialba

$16 * 0.9% 68.5% $34

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 $1,697 in Barcelona and $788 in Turrialba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $63 in Turrialba. Groceries flip the comparison at $328 vs $401, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇷 Turrialba

🕒 Local time

22:50 10:50 PM

15:50 3:50 PM

7 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

27,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Costa Rican Colón CRC ₡

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD

1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CRC, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 450 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 503 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.99 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Turrialba 8,940 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Turrialba

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 Turrialba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $1,724 in Turrialba, so Turrialba is about 29% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $2,585 in Turrialba to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $788 in Turrialba. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $992 in Turrialba. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Turrialba – a meal for two runs $63 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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