Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Yens

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $3,568 in Yens, rent and utilities included – about $13,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
167

Cost of Living Index in Yens
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Yens Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Yens

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,568

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Yens

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,568 in Yens.

Barcelona $2,443
Yens $3,568

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $5,328 in Yens.

Barcelona $3,519
Yens $5,328

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $7,088 in Yens.

Barcelona $4,595
Yens $7,088

Living in Barcelona costs roughly 32% less than in Yens, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Barcelona 81% above, Yens 164% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.69

$29.48 CHF 24.08

-40.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €59.9

$116 CHF 94.5

-41.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.09

$16.12 CHF 13.17

-15.57%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.75

$6.35 CHF 5.19

-51.18%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$5.07 CHF 4.14

-40.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.71

$4.04 CHF 3.30

-52.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.41

$9.34 CHF 7.63

-58.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.87

$7.91 CHF 6.46

-44.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$2.26 CHF 1.85

-44.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$3.06 CHF 2.50

-30.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$3.32 CHF 2.71

-40.66%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.23

$7.55 CHF 6.17

-36.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.16

$24.49 CHF 20.01

-30.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.96

$27.77 CHF 22.69

-67.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.34

$40.09 CHF 32.76

-48.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$3.63 CHF 2.97

-12.95%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.00 CHF 1.63

-1.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$2.52 CHF 2.06

5.16%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.56

$4.74 CHF 3.87

-39.24%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$1.66 CHF 1.35

24.10%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.97 CHF 1.61

10.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.36

$2.08 CHF 1.70

-26.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$1.37 CHF 1.12

-29.20%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.19

$11.04 CHF 9.02

-36.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.01

$12.38 CHF 10.11

-36.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$2.23 CHF 1.82

-36.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$3.05 CHF 2.49

-11.80%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.94

$3.99 CHF 3.26

-17.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.75

$107 CHF 87.8

-76.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.74

$7.99 CHF 6.53

-61.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$4.69 CHF 3.83

-68.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.20

$85.7 CHF 70.1

-61.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.34 CHF 1.91

-20.09%

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

$33.0K €29.3K

$39.0K CHF 31.9K

-15.58%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$39.9K CHF 32.6K

-20.01%

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

$183 €162

$280 CHF 229

-34.72%

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

$14.24 €12.65

$28.64 CHF 23.40

-50.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.70

$53.4 CHF 43.64

-35.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.68

$76.2 CHF 62.2

-32.49%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.55

$47.19 CHF 38.55

-65.29%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$24.30 CHF 19.85

-54.49%

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

$944 €838

$2,957 CHF 2,416

-68.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$35.6K CHF 29.1K

-37.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €77.9

$143 CHF 117

-38.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.44

$61.4 CHF 50.2

-36.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €92.9

$141 CHF 115

-25.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$195 CHF 159

-39.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,507

$1,735 CHF 1,417

-2.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,187

$1,655 CHF 1,352

-19.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,391

$2,868 CHF 2,343

-6.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,845

$2,682 CHF 2,191

-22.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,356

$16.6K CHF 13.6K

-56.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,512

$11.5K CHF 9,374

-55.73%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,991

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

1.95

63.59%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Yens: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Yens

$1.7K 46.4% 23.8% $318

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Yens

$569 16% 73.6% $241

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Yens

$459 12.9% 72.1% $192

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Yens

$362 10.2% 56.3% $130

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Yens

$243 6.8% 55.1% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Yens

$125 3.5% 69.6% $51

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Yens

$155 4.3% 214% $105

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $1,735 in Yens. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $116 in Yens for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $569 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇭 Yens

🕒 Local time

00:02 12:02 AM

Same time as Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

2,200

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Barcelona Yens 660 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
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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 Yens: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $3,568 in Yens, so Barcelona is about 32% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,664 in Barcelona and $5,352 in Yens to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $1,735 in Yens. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $2,957 in Yens. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 74% higher in Yens. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,568 in Yens, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Yens. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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 Yens are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.