Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Wollongong

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $2,577 in Wollongong, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. The total is higher in Wollongong despite lower rent and utilities.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
123

Cost of Living Index in Wollongong
Learn more

Wollongong Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Wollongong

🇦🇺 Australia

$2,577

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Wollongong

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $2,577 in Wollongong.

Barcelona $2,443
Wollongong $2,577

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $3,790 in Wollongong.

Barcelona $3,519
Wollongong $3,790

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $5,004 in Wollongong.

Barcelona $4,595
Wollongong $5,004

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 5% less than in Wollongong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Wollongong 91% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.73

$17.42 A$24.82

1.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.1

$84.9 A$121

-20.49%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.13

$10.63 A$15.15

28.03%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.76

$3.53 A$5.04

-12.18%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$3.33 A$4.74

-9.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$2.17 A$3.10

-11.06%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.42

$7.20 A$10.26

-46.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.88

$7.21 A$10.27

-39.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.14 A$1.62

9.65%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$2.91 A$4.15

-27.15%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

$2.23 A$3.18

-11.66%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.24

$3.93 A$5.60

21.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.20

$10.44 A$14.87

63.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.98

$9.65 A$13.75

-7.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.39

$16.02 A$22.83

28.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.82

$3.04 A$4.33

3.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.50 A$3.56

-21.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$3.35 A$4.77

-20.90%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.57

$4.49 A$6.40

-35.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.39 A$3.41

-13.81%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$2.57 A$3.66

-15.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

$2.88 A$4.10

-46.87%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$1.83 A$2.61

-46.99%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.21

$44.34 A$63.2

-84.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.03

$13.97 A$19.90

-43.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$4.56 A$6.49

-68.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$4.70 A$6.70

-42.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$2.29 A$3.27

44.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.81

$140 A$200

-81.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.75

$3.63 A$5.18

-15.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$1.87 A$2.67

-20.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.28

$46.72 A$66.6

-29.64%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.34 A$1.90

39.55%

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

$33.0K €29.4K

$29.5K A$42.1K

11.71%

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

$31.9K €28.5K

$24.7K A$35.2K

29.48%

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

$183 €163

$238 A$340

-23.31%

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

$14.24 €12.69

$31.92 A$45.49

-55.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.79

$49.91 A$71.1

-30.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.81

$85.5 A$122

-39.89%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.60

$13.93 A$19.85

17.59%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.86

$13.47 A$19.20

-17.89%

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

$944 €841

$2,144 A$3,055

-55.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$12.6K A$18.0K

76.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.1

$69.8 A$99.4

25.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.54

$61.6 A$87.8

-37.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.1

$145 A$206

-27.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$111 A$158

6.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,512

$1,427 A$2,034

18.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,191

$1,157 A$1,648

15.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,398

$2,413 A$3,438

11.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,850

$1,879 A$2,678

10.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,373

$4,592 A$6,543

55.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,524

$3,562 A$5,076

42.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,997

$5,227 A$7,448

-57.12%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

5.23

-39.01%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Wollongong: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Wollongong

$1.2K 44.9% 13.5% $180

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Wollongong

$365 14.2% 11.3% $37

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Wollongong

$286 11.1% 7.2% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Wollongong

$320 12.4% 38.2% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Wollongong

$174 6.8% 11% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Wollongong

$112 4.4% 52.9% $39

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Wollongong

$162 6.3% 229% $113

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,427 in Wollongong. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wollongong pays about 2.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $85 in Wollongong for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $365 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇦🇺 Wollongong

🕒 Local time

15:56 3:56 PM

01:56 1:56 AM

10 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

280,153

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Australian Dollar AUD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 AUD = 0.702 USD

1 AUD = 0.624 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

AUD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Australian Dollar exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1.43 AUD (1 AUD = 0.702 USD). 1 EUR = 1.6 AUD (1 AUD = 0.624 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Wollongong 17,180 km ≈ 22 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Wollongong

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 Wollongong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $2,577 in Wollongong, so Barcelona is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 57% 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 $1,427 in Wollongong. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $2,144 in Wollongong. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Wollongong. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Barcelona gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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 Wollongong are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Barcelona wins on affordability, Wollongong on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.