Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Yulin

For one person, living is cheaper in Yulin: $699 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $21,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
35

Cost of Living Index in Yulin
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Yulin Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Yulin

🇨🇳 China

$699

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Yulin

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $699 in Yulin.

Barcelona $2,453
Yulin $699

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,123 in Yulin.

Barcelona $3,509
Yulin $1,123

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,548 in Yulin.

Barcelona $4,564
Yulin $1,548

Living in Barcelona is roughly 251% more expensive than in Yulin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Yulin is 49% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$2.27 ¥15.10

674.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$16.19 ¥108

316.86%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$4.90 ¥32.60

176.12%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$2.14 ¥14.27

49.07%

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

$2.91 €2.62

$0.40 ¥2.67

627.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.24 ¥1.58

687.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$1.70 ¥11.30

135.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$2.23 ¥14.81

103.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.84 ¥12.24

-28.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.64 ¥10.95

23.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$0.98 ¥6.55

88.78%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$1.69 ¥11.22

185.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$12.16 ¥80.9

37.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$3.60 ¥23.94

153.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$11.61 ¥77.3

69.16%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$1.73 ¥11.49

72.25%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.33 ¥8.82

51.88%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$1.49 ¥9.91

81.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$1.23 ¥8.20

127.64%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.76 ¥5.07

175.00%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$0.99 ¥6.61

109.09%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.68 ¥4.53

114.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.56 ¥3.72

67.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$3.46 ¥23.03

98.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$10.34 ¥68.8

-23.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.81 ¥5.37

74.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$1.42 ¥9.44

78.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.31 ¥2.05

912.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$19.78 ¥132

28.67%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$1.44 ¥9.57

107.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.37 ¥2.48

302.70%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$7.94 ¥52.9

320.28%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.41 ¥9.35

27.66%

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

$33.2K €29.8K

$17.2K ¥114.4K

93.06%

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

$31.7K €28.5K

$17.8K ¥118.8K

77.61%

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

$180 €162

$57.2 ¥380

215.68%

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

$13.84 €12.43

$8.96 ¥59.6

54.46%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$11.40 ¥75.9

195.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$41.11 ¥274

25.30%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$16.85 ¥112

-5.28%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$6.49 ¥43.21

69.34%

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

$917 €823

$421 ¥2,803

117.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$16.2K ¥107.6K

1.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$43.04 ¥286

102.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$32.41 ¥216

18.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$74.7 ¥497

41.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$75.1 ¥500

59.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$329 ¥2,186

417.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$162 ¥1,081

734.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$613 ¥4,079

324.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$363 ¥2,415

468.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$3,146 ¥20.9K

119.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$1,915 ¥12.7K

167.82%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$592 ¥3,939

273.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

3.36

-2.38%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Yulin: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Yulin

$162 23.3% 88% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Yulin

$205 29.3% 36.4% $117

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Yulin

$74 10.6% 72.3% $194

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Yulin

$78 11.1% 66% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Yulin

$101 14.5% 35.8% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Yulin

$54 7.7% 26.4% $19

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Yulin

$24 3.5% 49.8% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $329 in Yulin. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 3.7 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $16 in Yulin for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $205 per month, with Yulin cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Yulin

🕒 Local time

00:24 12:24 AM

07:24 7:24 AM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

3,700,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Yulin 8,520 km ≈ 11 h 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 Yulin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $699 in Yulin, so Yulin is about 72% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 3.7 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 $329 in Yulin. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $421 in Yulin. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 57% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $699 in Yulin versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $800 budget is realistic in Yulin but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Yulin 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 Yulin gentler on the wallet – expenses run 72% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.