Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Verbania

For one person, living is cheaper in Verbania: $1,697 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
82

Cost of Living Index in Verbania
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Verbania Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Verbania

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,697

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Verbania

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,399 in Barcelona versus $1,697 in Verbania.

Barcelona $2,399
Verbania $1,697

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,410 in Barcelona versus $2,614 in Verbania.

Barcelona $3,410
Verbania $2,614

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,421 in Barcelona versus $3,531 in Verbania.

Barcelona $4,421
Verbania $3,531

Living in Barcelona is roughly 41% more expensive than in Verbania, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 78% above, Verbania 26% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.94 €15.96

$16.47 €14.65

8.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.1 €60.5

$78.5 €69.8

-13.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.28 €11.81

$11.02 €9.80

20.51%

Cappuccino

$3.25 €2.89

$1.81 €1.61

79.56%

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

$3.01 €2.67

$2.90 €2.58

3.79%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.07 €0.96

74.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$4.58 €4.07

-15.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.48 €3.98

$3.40 €3.03

31.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.37 €1.22

-5.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.04 €1.81

$1.59 €1.42

28.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$4.20 €3.74

-59.05%

Eggs

$4.77 €4.24

$2.95 €2.63

61.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.77 €14.92

$15.34 €13.65

9.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.93 €7.94

$14.18 €12.61

-37.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.88 €17.68

$15.25 €13.56

30.36%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.65

$1.90 €1.69

56.84%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.80

$1.68 €1.49

20.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.73 €2.43

$3.05 €2.71

-10.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 €2.38

$2.86 €2.55

-6.29%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.88 €1.67

11.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.34 €1.19

55.22%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.55 €1.38

-6.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.79

$0.61 €0.54

45.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.94 €6.17

$6.61 €5.88

4.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.78 €6.92

$4.36 €3.88

78.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.25 €1.11

16.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$1.72 €1.53

49.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.99 €2.66

$2.29 €2.04

30.57%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.20 €22.41

$66.7 €59.4

-62.23%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

$5.51 €4.90

-43.38%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$1.63 €1.45

-11.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

$29.94 €26.63

11.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.59

$1.90 €1.69

-5.79%

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

$34.6K €30.8K

$35.7K €31.7K

-2.92%

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

$30.1K €26.7K

$34.5K €30.7K

-12.75%

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

$178 €158

$198 €176

-10.27%

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

$13.32 €11.85

$11.94 €10.62

11.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.88 €31.03

$26.67 €23.72

30.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.3 €47.37

$56.2 €49.99

-5.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.01 €14.24

$24.60 €21.88

-34.92%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.84

$9.89 €8.79

11.83%

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

$957 €851

$902 €803

6.02%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.7K

$19.4K €17.3K

-14.59%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.4

$87.7 €78.0

0.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.49 €35.12

$44.44 €39.53

-11.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.5

$107 €95.3

-4.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$121 €108

$127 €113

-4.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,653 €1,470

$728 €648

126.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 €1,158

$590 €525

120.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,557 €2,275

$1,275 €1,134

100.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,915 €1,703

$970 €863

97.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,286 €6,481

$2,896 €2,576

151.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,080 €4,519

$2,057 €1,829

147.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

$2,370 €2,108

-3.79%

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 11, 2026

Last update for Verbania: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3%

Verbania

$590 34.8% 54.7% $712

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$320 13.3%

Verbania

$307 18.1% 4% $13

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Verbania

$232 13.7% 14.1% $38

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$226 9.4%

Verbania

$237 14% 4.8% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Verbania

$165 9.7% 4.1% $6.5

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$75 3.1%

Verbania

$76 4.5% 0.8% $0.6

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Verbania

$90 5.3% 88.7% $42

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,653 in Barcelona and $728 in Verbania. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Verbania pays 4% 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 $78.0 in Verbania. Groceries flip the comparison at $320 vs $307, with Verbania cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇮🇹 Verbania

🕒 Local time

00:04 12:04 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

31,070

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Verbania 720 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Verbania

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 Verbania: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Verbania differ by about 41% in total monthly costs ($2,399 vs $1,697 including rent). Verbania is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 4% lower in Verbania. 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 $728 in Verbania. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $957 in Barcelona versus $902 in Verbania. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,697 in Verbania versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Verbania but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Verbania 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 Verbania 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 Verbania gentler on the wallet – expenses run 41% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.