Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Vasteras

For one person, living is cheaper in Vasteras: $1,818 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Vasteras
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Vasteras Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Vasteras

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,818

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Vasteras

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,818 in Vasteras.

Barcelona $2,399
Vasteras $1,818

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $2,764 in Vasteras.

Barcelona $3,410
Vasteras $2,764

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $3,710 in Vasteras.

Barcelona $4,421
Vasteras $3,710

Living in Barcelona is roughly 32% more expensive than in Vasteras, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Vasteras 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$13.70 SEK 136

30.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$64.6 SEK 640

5.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$9.91 SEK 98.2

34.01%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$4.23 SEK 41.92

-23.17%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.25 SEK 22.27

33.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.22 SEK 21.97

-15.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$7.15 SEK 70.8

-46.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$7.08 SEK 70.2

-36.72%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.40 SEK 13.87

-7.86%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$3.00 SEK 29.70

-32.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$3.57 SEK 35.37

-51.82%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$3.89 SEK 38.55

22.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$12.11 SEK 120

38.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$12.74 SEK 126

-29.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$22.30 SEK 221

-10.85%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$3.19 SEK 31.59

-6.58%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$2.53 SEK 25.05

-19.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$3.67 SEK 36.37

-25.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$4.39 SEK 43.46

-38.95%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.47 SEK 14.55

42.86%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.70 SEK 16.80

22.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$2.18 SEK 21.62

-33.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$1.49 SEK 14.73

-40.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$7.08 SEK 70.2

-1.98%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$13.30 SEK 132

-41.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.32 SEK 13.10

9.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$2.17 SEK 21.54

18.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$3.32 SEK 32.88

-9.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$70.7 SEK 700

-64.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$3.51 SEK 34.78

-11.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.50 SEK 24.78

-42.40%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$81.0 SEK 802

-58.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.66 SEK 16.49

7.83%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$33.2K SEK 328.6K

4.42%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$32.0K SEK 317.5K

-6.15%

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

$178 €158

$183 SEK 1,817

-3.03%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$22.17 SEK 220

-39.92%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$43.15 SEK 428

-19.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$34.14 SEK 338

55.98%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$19.65 SEK 195

-18.52%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$16.74 SEK 166

-33.93%

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

$957 €851

$151 SEK 1,499

532.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$4,881 SEK 48.4K

239.44%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$101 SEK 1,002

-12.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$40.24 SEK 399

-1.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$86.7 SEK 859

18.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$134 SEK 1,323

-9.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$750 SEK 7,429

120.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$601 SEK 5,957

116.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$1,366 SEK 13.5K

87.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$997 SEK 9,880

92.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$3,564 SEK 35.3K

104.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$2,404 SEK 23.8K

111.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$2,996 SEK 29.7K

-23.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.53

-7.08%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Last update for Vasteras: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Vasteras

$601 33.1% 53.8% $701

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Vasteras

$380 20.9% 18.8% $60

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Vasteras

$258 14.2% 4.5% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Vasteras

$249 13.7% 10% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Vasteras

$163 9% 2.8% $4.4

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Vasteras

$68 3.7% 10.3% $7.8

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Vasteras

$100 5.5% 111% $53

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $750 in Vasteras. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vasteras pays 31% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Barcelona vs $65.0 in Vasteras. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $380, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇸🇪 Vasteras

🕒 Local time

00:30 12:30 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

110,877

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Vasteras 2,260 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Vasteras

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 Vasteras: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Vasteras differ by about 32% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,818 including rent). Vasteras is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 31% lower in Vasteras. 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: $1,653 in Barcelona versus $750 in Vasteras. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $151 in Vasteras. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 19% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,818 in Vasteras versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Vasteras but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Vasteras 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 Vasteras 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 Vasteras gentler on the wallet – expenses run 32% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.