Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Umea

For one person, living is cheaper in Umea: $1,646 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Umea
Learn more

Umea Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Umea

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,646

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Umea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,646 in Umea.

Barcelona $2,453
Umea $1,646

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,615 in Umea.

Barcelona $3,509
Umea $2,615

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,583 in Umea.

Barcelona $4,564
Umea $3,583

Living in Barcelona is roughly 49% more expensive than in Umea.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Umea 21% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$14.95 SEK 146

17.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$79.0 SEK 771

-14.58%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$11.93 SEK 116

13.41%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$3.96 SEK 38.62

-19.44%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$3.15 SEK 30.74

-7.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$2.47 SEK 24.10

-23.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$8.62 SEK 84.1

-53.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$7.44 SEK 72.5

-39.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.74 SEK 16.99

-24.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$3.42 SEK 33.32

-40.94%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$4.09 SEK 39.92

-54.77%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$4.06 SEK 39.59

18.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$11.38 SEK 111

47.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$10.74 SEK 105

-15.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$16.82 SEK 164

16.77%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$2.58 SEK 25.18

15.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$2.18 SEK 21.23

-7.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$2.72 SEK 26.57

-0.74%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$4.30 SEK 41.94

-34.88%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.65 SEK 16.07

26.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.69 SEK 16.46

22.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$2.49 SEK 24.29

-41.37%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.33 SEK 12.93

-29.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$7.09 SEK 69.2

-3.10%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$10.19 SEK 99.5

-22.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$2.31 SEK 22.51

-38.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.44 SEK 23.81

4.10%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$2.89 SEK 28.19

8.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$57.8 SEK 564

-55.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$7.08 SEK 69.1

-57.77%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$4.99 SEK 48.64

-70.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.68 SEK 16.37

7.14%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$33.8K SEK 329.7K

-1.80%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$33.2K SEK 323.9K

-4.52%

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

$180 €161

$84.7 SEK 827

112.95%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$32.54 SEK 317

-57.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$27.49 SEK 268

22.59%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$48.29 SEK 471

6.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$35.41 SEK 345

-54.93%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$16.40 SEK 160

-32.99%

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

$917 €818

$139 SEK 1,360

557.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$99.7 SEK 972

-12.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$37.16 SEK 363

3.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$119 SEK 1,159

-10.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$141 SEK 1,371

-14.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$742 SEK 7,237

129.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$505 SEK 4,928

168.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$1,104 SEK 10.8K

135.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$842 SEK 8,214

144.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$4,640 SEK 45.3K

49.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$3,050 SEK 29.8K

68.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

$2,692 SEK 26.3K

-17.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.65

-10.14%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Umea: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Umea

$505 30.7% 62.7% $850

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Umea

$352 21.4% 9.3% $30

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Umea

$283 17.2% 5.8% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Umea

$145 8.8% 36.5% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Umea

$178 10.8% 12.9% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Umea

$81 4.9% 10.3% $7.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Umea

$101 6.2% 109% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $742 in Umea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Umea pays 22% 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 $79 in Umea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $352 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇪 Umea

🕒 Local time

19:21 7:21 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

79,594

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SEK = 10.25 USD

100 SEK = 9.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Umea 2,760 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Umea

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 Umea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

On paper, salaries run 18% 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 $742 in Umea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $139 in Umea. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 9% 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 Umea are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.