Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Zhanjiang

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhanjiang: $724 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,700 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 Zhanjiang
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Zhanjiang Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Zhanjiang

🇨🇳 China

$724

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Zhanjiang

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $724 in Zhanjiang.

Barcelona $2,453
Zhanjiang $724

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,154 in Zhanjiang.

Barcelona $3,509
Zhanjiang $1,154

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,583 in Zhanjiang.

Barcelona $4,564
Zhanjiang $1,583

Living in Barcelona is roughly 239% more expensive than in Zhanjiang, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Zhanjiang is 47% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.69

$2.83 ¥18.78

521.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$23.34 ¥155

189.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.07

$4.92 ¥32.63

175.00%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.85

$2.81 ¥18.67

13.52%

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

$2.91 €2.60

$0.43 ¥2.85

576.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$0.27 ¥1.78

600.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.58

$1.21 ¥8.00

231.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.04

$2.09 ¥13.85

116.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$2.04 ¥13.51

-35.78%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.70 ¥11.26

18.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.01 ¥6.68

83.17%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.31

$1.59 ¥10.58

203.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.93

$12.68 ¥84.2

32.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.14

$3.31 ¥21.99

175.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.52

$12.10 ¥80.3

62.31%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.66

$1.91 ¥12.66

56.02%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.34 ¥8.88

50.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.41

$1.32 ¥8.75

104.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.50

$1.32 ¥8.77

112.12%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$0.63 ¥4.19

231.75%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.04 ¥6.90

99.04%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.30

$0.60 ¥3.95

143.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.60 ¥3.99

56.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.13

$3.55 ¥23.56

93.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.04

$10.69 ¥71.0

-26.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$0.86 ¥5.68

63.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.57 ¥10.39

61.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.80

$0.29 ¥1.95

982.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.70

$18.25 ¥121

39.45%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.67

$1.41 ¥9.36

112.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.35 ¥2.32

325.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.78

$8.26 ¥54.8

304.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.25 ¥8.27

44.00%

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

$33.2K €29.6K

$19.7K ¥130.7K

68.53%

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

$31.7K €28.3K

$15.8K ¥104.7K

100.99%

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

$180 €161

$49.47 ¥328

264.69%

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

$13.84 €12.35

$8.14 ¥54.0

70.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.06

$11.77 ¥78.1

186.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €45.96

$36.09 ¥240

42.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.24

$13.77 ¥91.4

15.90%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.81

$6.51 ¥43.18

68.82%

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

$917 €818

$375 ¥2,491

144.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.7K

$19.8K ¥131.2K

-16.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.7

$45.98 ¥305

89.28%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.35

$34.62 ¥230

11.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.4

$70.8 ¥470

49.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$85.3 ¥566

40.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,516

$310 ¥2,060

447.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$182 ¥1,210

643.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,322

$525 ¥3,485

395.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,840

$342 ¥2,270

503.00%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,169

$3,013 ¥20.0K

129.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,575

$1,766 ¥11.7K

190.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,972

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 Zhanjiang: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Zhanjiang

$182 25.2% 86.5% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Zhanjiang

$210 29.1% 34.6% $111

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Zhanjiang

$84 11.6% 68.6% $184

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Zhanjiang

$69 9.6% 69.6% $159

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Zhanjiang

$107 14.7% 32.6% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Zhanjiang

$49 6.8% 33.2% $24

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Zhanjiang

$23 3.1% 53.4% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $310 in Zhanjiang. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $23 in Zhanjiang for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $210 per month, with Zhanjiang cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Zhanjiang

🕒 Local time

17:23 5:23 PM

00:23 12:23 AM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

1,612,000

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 CNY = 0.151 USD

1 CNY = 0.135 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Zhanjiang 9,870 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

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Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

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Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Barcelona vs Zhanjiang: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $724 in Zhanjiang, so Zhanjiang is about 70% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,679 in Barcelona and $1,087 in Zhanjiang 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: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $310 in Zhanjiang. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $375 in Zhanjiang. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 53% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $724 in Zhanjiang versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Zhanjiang but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Zhanjiang 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 Zhanjiang gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.