Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Wuxi

For one person, living is cheaper in Wuxi: $758 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
37

Cost of Living Index in Wuxi
Learn more

Wuxi Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Wuxi

🇨🇳 China

$758

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Wuxi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $758 in Wuxi.

Barcelona $2,453
Wuxi $758

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,199 in Wuxi.

Barcelona $3,509
Wuxi $1,199

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,639 in Wuxi.

Barcelona $4,564
Wuxi $1,639

Living in Barcelona is roughly 223% more expensive than in Wuxi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Wuxi is 44% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

$3.68 ¥24.49

377.99%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$23.69 ¥157

184.89%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$4.60 ¥30.60

194.13%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.13 ¥20.77

1.92%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.52 ¥3.47

459.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.32 ¥2.13

490.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$1.47 ¥9.75

172.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$3.05 ¥20.28

48.52%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.83 ¥12.14

-28.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$2.15 ¥14.26

-6.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.10 ¥7.34

68.18%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.92 ¥12.73

151.56%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

$13.83 ¥91.9

21.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$3.34 ¥22.16

173.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

$11.43 ¥76.0

71.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$2.66 ¥17.68

12.03%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.31 ¥8.68

54.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.63 ¥10.82

65.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.17 ¥7.78

139.32%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.64 ¥4.26

226.56%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$0.80 ¥5.33

158.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.63 ¥4.19

131.75%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.58 ¥3.88

62.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.16

$5.29 ¥35.17

29.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

$11.77 ¥78.2

-32.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.93 ¥6.16

51.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$2.17 ¥14.43

17.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.43 ¥2.86

630.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

$18.44 ¥123

38.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.53 ¥10.18

95.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.43 ¥2.85

246.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

$8.73 ¥58.0

282.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.28 ¥8.49

40.63%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$19.5K ¥129.7K

70.08%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$18.8K ¥125.2K

68.29%

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

$180 €162

$36.25 ¥241

397.68%

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

$13.84 €12.40

$11.66 ¥77.5

18.70%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.20

$27.85 ¥185

21.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

$47.29 ¥314

8.92%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

$7.25 ¥48.15

120.14%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$5.87 ¥39.04

87.22%

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

$917 €821

$436 ¥2,897

110.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$16.2K ¥107.5K

1.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

$35.17 ¥234

147.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

$21.96 ¥146

75.36%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$65.6 ¥436

61.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$44.15 ¥293

171.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

$332 ¥2,204

412.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$204 ¥1,353

565.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

$583 ¥3,871

346.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

$385 ¥2,556

436.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

$3,637 ¥24.2K

90.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

$1,969 ¥13.1K

160.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

$1,059 ¥7,038

108.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.13

4.79%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Wuxi: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Wuxi

$204 26.9% 85% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Wuxi

$223 29.5% 30.6% $98

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Wuxi

$98 12.9% 63.6% $170

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Wuxi

$76 10% 66.8% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Wuxi

$75 9.9% 52.5% $83

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Wuxi

$59 7.8% 19.7% $14

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Wuxi

$24 3.1% 50.8% $25

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $332 in Wuxi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.1 times 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 in Barcelona vs $24 in Wuxi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $223 per month, with Wuxi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Wuxi

🕒 Local time

11:40 11:40 AM

18:40 6:40 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

7,462,135

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Wuxi 9,720 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Wuxi

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 Wuxi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $758 in Wuxi, so Wuxi is about 69% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2.1 times higher, 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $332 in Wuxi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $436 in Wuxi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 44% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $758 in Wuxi versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Wuxi but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Wuxi 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.

Expats usually find Wuxi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 69% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.