Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Willemstad

For one person, living is cheaper in Willemstad: $2,022 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 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
97

Cost of Living Index in Willemstad
Learn more

Willemstad Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Willemstad

🇨🇼 Curacao

$2,022

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Willemstad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,405 in Barcelona versus $2,022 in Willemstad.

Barcelona $2,405
Willemstad $2,022

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,477 in Barcelona versus $3,076 in Willemstad.

Barcelona $3,477
Willemstad $3,076

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,550 in Barcelona versus $4,130 in Willemstad.

Barcelona $4,550
Willemstad $4,130

Living in Barcelona is roughly 19% more expensive than in Willemstad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 79% above, Willemstad 51% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.98 €16.05

$18.34 ANG 32.83

-1.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.4 €60.2

$75.5 ANG 135

-10.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.37 €11.93

$11.33 ANG 20.29

18.01%

Cappuccino

$3.34 €2.98

$3.61 ANG 6.46

-7.48%

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

$2.95 €2.64

$3.01 ANG 5.39

-1.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.80 ANG 3.22

5.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.88 €3.46

$5.57 ANG 9.96

-30.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 €4.08

$5.44 ANG 9.75

-15.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.96 ANG 3.51

-35.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.96 €1.75

$2.84 ANG 5.08

-30.99%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$3.57 ANG 6.39

-50.98%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.36

$4.21 ANG 7.53

16.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.47 €15.59

$16.87 ANG 30.19

3.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.06 €8.09

$7.04 ANG 12.60

28.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.18 €18.01

$12.12 ANG 21.70

66.50%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 €2.75

$5.40 ANG 9.66

-42.96%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$3.12 ANG 5.58

-34.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.60 €2.32

$3.29 ANG 5.89

-20.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.71 €2.42

$3.80 ANG 6.79

-28.68%

Potato (1kg)

$2.15 €1.92

$2.50 ANG 4.47

-14.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$1.95 ANG 3.49

13.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.54 €1.38

$2.39 ANG 4.29

-35.56%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 €0.83

$2.85 ANG 5.10

-67.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.09 €6.32

$10.02 ANG 17.93

-29.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.63 €6.81

$12.48 ANG 22.33

-38.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.33

$2.39 ANG 4.29

-37.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 €2.43

$2.35 ANG 4.20

16.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.95 €2.63

$1.92 ANG 3.44

53.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.91 €23.13

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.13 €2.80

$22.17 ANG 39.68

-85.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.45 €1.29

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.17 €30.49

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 €1.60

$1.38 ANG 2.47

29.71%

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

$34.7K €31.0K

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

$30.3K €27.0K

$20.6K ANG 36.9K

47.02%

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

$181 €161

$271 ANG 486

-33.40%

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

$13.56 €12.10

$76.8 ANG 138

-82.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.34

$65.1 ANG 117

-46.04%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.2 €47.44

$48.55 ANG 86.9

9.50%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.33

$43.82 ANG 78.4

-63.37%

Cinema Ticket

$11.37 €10.14

$11.96 ANG 21.41

-4.93%

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

$939 €838

$323 ANG 578

190.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$12.4K ANG 22.2K

33.05%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €78.7

$103 ANG 185

-14.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.77 €35.49

$74.7 ANG 134

-46.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.3

$160 ANG 287

-35.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €107

$93.1 ANG 167

28.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,513

$810 ANG 1,450

109.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,301 €1,161

$643 ANG 1,151

102.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,299

$1,742 ANG 3,119

47.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 €1,732

$1,221 ANG 2,186

58.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,470 €6,666

$838 ANG 1,500

791.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,195 €4,636

$170 ANG 305

2953.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,299 €2,052

$1,279 ANG 2,289

79.80%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

4.97

-34.00%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Last update for Willemstad: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54%

Willemstad

$643 32% 50.6% $658

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.5%

Willemstad

$376 18.7% 15.7% $51

Eating Out

Barcelona

$272 11.3%

Willemstad

$282 14% 3.7% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.5%

Willemstad

$413 20.6% 80.1% $184

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.6%

Willemstad

$194 9.7% 22.9% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$76 3.2%

Willemstad

$72 3.6% 4.5% $3.4

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Willemstad

$30 * 1.5% 37.9% $18

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $810 in Willemstad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 80% 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: $67.0 in Barcelona vs $76.0 in Willemstad for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $376 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇼 Willemstad

🕒 Local time

10:18 10:18 AM

04:18 4:18 AM

6 h behind Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

140,000 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Netherlands Antillean Guilder ANG ƒ

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 ANG = 0.559 USD

1 ANG = 0.498 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ANG, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Netherlands Antillean Guilder exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.79 ANG (1 ANG = 0.559 USD). 1 EUR = 2.01 ANG (1 ANG = 0.498 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Willemstad 7,550 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Willemstad

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 Willemstad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Willemstad differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($2,405 vs $2,022 including rent). Willemstad is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 80% 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 $810 in Willemstad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $939 in Barcelona versus $323 in Willemstad. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Willemstad – a meal for two runs $76.0 versus $67.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,022 in Willemstad versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Willemstad but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Willemstad 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 Willemstad 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 Willemstad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.