Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Wigan

For one person, living is cheaper in Wigan: $2,078 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Wigan
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Wigan Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Wigan

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,078

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Wigan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $2,078 in Wigan.

Barcelona $2,443
Wigan $2,078

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $3,025 in Wigan.

Barcelona $3,519
Wigan $3,025

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $3,973 in Wigan.

Barcelona $4,595
Wigan $3,973

Living in Barcelona is roughly 18% more expensive than in Wigan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Wigan 54% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.71

$20.17 £14.96

-12.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.0

$71.3 £52.9

-5.33%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.12

$10.10 £7.49

34.75%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$4.09 £3.04

-24.21%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$2.42 £1.80

23.97%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.71

$1.59 £1.18

21.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$4.92 £3.65

-21.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$4.21 £3.13

3.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.30 £0.96

-3.85%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$1.44 £1.07

47.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$1.38 £1.02

42.75%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$3.62 £2.68

31.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.19

$5.32 £3.95

220.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.97

$5.61 £4.16

59.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.38

$7.81 £5.80

164.40%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$1.49 £1.10

112.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.75 £1.30

12.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.53 £2.62

-24.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$3.70 £2.75

-22.16%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$1.82 £1.35

13.19%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.77 £1.31

23.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.16 £0.86

31.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$2.02 £1.50

-51.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.20

$23.19 £17.21

-69.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.02

$9.23 £6.85

-14.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$4.43 £3.29

-67.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$3.27 £2.42

-17.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.94

$2.65 £1.97

24.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.79

$107 £79.1

-75.97%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.74

$3.44 £2.55

-10.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.61 £1.20

-8.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.25

$16.45 £12.21

99.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.91 £1.41

-2.09%

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

$33.0K €29.3K

$38.0K £28.2K

-13.35%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$39.8K £29.6K

-19.81%

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

$183 €163

$349 £259

-47.54%

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

$14.24 €12.67

$16.25 £12.06

-12.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.76

$40.40 £29.98

-14.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.76

$59.5 £44.13

-13.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.58

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.85

$17.39 £12.90

-36.40%

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

$944 €840

$1,583 £1,174

-40.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$19.4K £14.4K

15.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.0

$110 £81.9

-20.59%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.51

$56.2 £41.73

-31.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.0

$114 £84.4

-8.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$116 £86.1

1.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,510

$937 £695

81.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,190

$731 £543

82.79%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,396

$1,438 £1,067

87.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,848

$1,199 £890

73.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,367

$3,807 £2,824

87.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,520

$2,696 £2,001

88.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,995

$3,457 £2,565

-35.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

6.4

-50.16%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Wigan: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Wigan

$731 35.2% 45.3% $605

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Wigan

$250 12.1% 23.6% $77

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Wigan

$290 14% 8.6% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Wigan

$405 19.5% 74.9% $174

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Wigan

$178 8.6% 13.7% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Wigan

$94 4.5% 28.1% $21

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Wigan

$129 6.2% 161% $79

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $937 in Wigan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wigan pays 54% 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 $71 in Wigan. Groceries flip the comparison at $328 vs $250, with Wigan cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇬🇧 Wigan

🕒 Local time

07:06 7:06 AM

06:06 6:06 AM

1 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

81,203

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Wigan 1,400 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Wigan

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 Wigan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $2,078 in Wigan, so Wigan is about 15% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 35% 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $937 in Wigan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $1,583 in Wigan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Wigan is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.