Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Varberg

For one person, living is cheaper in Varberg: $1,635 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 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
79

Cost of Living Index in Varberg
Learn more

Varberg Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Varberg

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,635

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Varberg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,635 in Varberg.

Barcelona $2,453
Varberg $1,635

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $2,623 in Varberg.

Barcelona $3,509
Varberg $2,623

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $3,610 in Varberg.

Barcelona $4,564
Varberg $3,610

Living in Barcelona is roughly 50% more expensive than in Varberg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 80% above, Varberg 20% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$15.35 SEK 152

14.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$76.3 SEK 758

-11.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$10.20 SEK 101

32.65%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$3.83 SEK 38.04

-16.71%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$1.19 SEK 11.82

144.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.02 SEK 10.13

85.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$6.18 SEK 61.4

-35.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$7.42 SEK 73.7

-38.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.43 SEK 14.17

-8.39%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.96 SEK 29.43

-31.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$3.44 SEK 34.16

-46.22%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$4.13 SEK 41.00

16.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$12.77 SEK 127

31.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$10.88 SEK 108

-16.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$19.85 SEK 197

-1.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$2.97 SEK 29.50

0.34%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.53 SEK 25.10

-20.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$2.95 SEK 29.25

-8.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$4.21 SEK 41.80

-33.49%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$1.47 SEK 14.59

42.18%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$1.49 SEK 14.75

38.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$2.53 SEK 25.15

-42.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.97 SEK 9.65

-3.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$6.77 SEK 67.3

1.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$10.24 SEK 102

-22.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.07 SEK 20.54

-31.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$1.18 SEK 11.71

115.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.94 SEK 29.15

6.80%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$77.8 SEK 773

-67.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$4.93 SEK 49.01

-39.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$2.41 SEK 23.89

-38.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$49.63 SEK 493

-32.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.81 SEK 18.01

-0.55%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$33.0K SEK 327.6K

0.63%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$33.6K SEK 333.5K

-5.61%

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

$180 €162

$141 SEK 1,400

28.00%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$19.92 SEK 198

-30.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$29.69 SEK 295

13.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$40.37 SEK 401

27.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$40.39 SEK 401

-60.49%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$15.84 SEK 157

-30.62%

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

$917 €823

$149 SEK 1,477

516.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$3,455 SEK 34.3K

376.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$70.9 SEK 704

22.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$40.23 SEK 400

-4.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$108 SEK 1,077

-2.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$149 SEK 1,479

-19.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$798 SEK 7,926

112.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$495 SEK 4,916

173.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$1,221 SEK 12.1K

113.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$915 SEK 9,087

125.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$6,532 SEK 64.9K

5.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$3,568 SEK 35.4K

43.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$3,103 SEK 30.8K

-28.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

1.9

72.63%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Varberg: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Varberg

$495 30.3% 63.5% $860

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Varberg

$352 21.5% 9.2% $30

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Varberg

$254 15.5% 5.2% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Varberg

$191 11.7% 16.4% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Varberg

$166 10.1% 5% $7.8

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Varberg

$72 4.4% 2% $1.5

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Varberg

$107 6.5% 120% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $798 in Varberg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varberg pays 40% 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 $76 in Varberg 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

🇸🇪 Varberg

🕒 Local time

21:27 9:27 PM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

27,602

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

100 SEK = 10.07 USD

100 SEK = 9.05 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Varberg 1,890 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Varberg

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 Varberg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $1,635 in Varberg, so Varberg is about 33% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 29% 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 $798 in Varberg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $149 in Varberg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 8% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,635 in Varberg versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Varberg but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Varberg 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 Varberg are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.