Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Urmia

For one person, living is cheaper in Urmia: $419 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $23,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
20

Cost of Living Index in Urmia
Learn more

Urmia Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Urmia

🇮🇷 Iran

$419

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Urmia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $419 in Urmia.

Barcelona $2,381
Urmia $419

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $725 in Urmia.

Barcelona $3,406
Urmia $725

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,030 in Urmia.

Barcelona $4,431
Urmia $1,030

Living in Barcelona is roughly 468% more expensive than in Urmia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Urmia is 69% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$5.06 $5.06

253.56%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$23.78 $23.78

178.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$2.97 $2.97

360.94%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.26 $1.26

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 $1.57

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$1.09 $1.09

180.73%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$0.74 $0.74

314.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$0.49 $0.49

295.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$0.62 $0.62

109.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$0.44 $0.44

377.27%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$2.35 $2.35

-22.13%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$1.22 $1.22

278.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$4.29 $4.29

304.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$2.54 $2.54

265.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$6.37 $6.37

211.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$0.88 $0.88

242.05%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.46 $1.46

39.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$0.74 $0.74

258.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$0.67 $0.67

328.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.52 $0.52

315.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.56 $0.56

283.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.53 $0.53

177.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.26 $0.26

238.46%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.78 $0.78

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 $0.55

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.37 $1.37

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$1.13 $1.13

513.27%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.16 $0.16

1718.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$9.65 $9.65

163.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$0.39 $0.39

669.23%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.31 $0.31

364.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$2.55 $2.55

1201.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$0.10 $0.10

1760.00%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$49.6K $49.6K

-34.85%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$44.0K $44.0K

-27.94%

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

$183 €163

$12.79 $12.79

1328.93%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$1.58 $1.58

761.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$3.65 $3.65

802.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$9.38 $9.38

483.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$13.16 $13.16

25.53%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$2.02 $2.02

455.94%

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

$954 €849

$106 $106

803.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$2,393 $2,393

593.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$22.69 $22.69

279.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$27.94 $27.94

39.98%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$97.7 $97.7

6.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$32.75 $32.75

262.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$175 $175

866.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$130 $130

881.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$326 $326

689.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$271 $271

608.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$712 $712

922.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$594 $594

743.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$277 $277

705.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

24.3

-86.50%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Urmia: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Urmia

$130 31% 89.8% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Urmia

$97 23.1% 70.2% $228

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Urmia

$67 16.1% 75% $202

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Urmia

$18 4.3% 92.1% $211

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Urmia

$81 19.4% 47.9% $75

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Urmia

$13 3.2% 82.6% $64

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Urmia

$12 2.9% 74.2% $35

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $175 in Urmia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 705% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $24.00 in Urmia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $97.0 per month, with Urmia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇷 Urmia

🕒 Local time

19:01 7:01 PM

20:31 8:31 PM

1 h 30 min ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

736,224

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Urmia 3,670 km ≈ 5 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Urmia

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 Urmia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Urmia differ by about 468% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $419 including rent). Urmia is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 705% 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $175 in Urmia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $106 in Urmia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 235% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $419 in Urmia versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Urmia but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Urmia 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 Urmia 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 Urmia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 468% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.