Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Zhoukou

For one person, living is cheaper in Zhoukou: $753 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,400 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
36

Cost of Living Index in Zhoukou
Learn more

Zhoukou Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Zhoukou

🇨🇳 China

$753

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Zhoukou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $753 in Zhoukou.

Barcelona $2,453
Zhoukou $753

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,195 in Zhoukou.

Barcelona $3,509
Zhoukou $1,195

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $1,636 in Zhoukou.

Barcelona $4,564
Zhoukou $1,636

Living in Barcelona is roughly 226% more expensive than in Zhoukou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Zhoukou is 45% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.75

$3.95 ¥26.26

345.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

$22.27 ¥148

203.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.12

$4.95 ¥32.92

173.33%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.86

$3.33 ¥22.14

-4.20%

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

$2.91 €2.61

$0.50 ¥3.33

482.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$0.38 ¥2.53

397.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.59

$1.03 ¥6.83

289.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.06

$2.20 ¥14.59

105.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.83 ¥12.15

-28.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.64 ¥10.87

23.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$0.93 ¥6.21

98.92%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.33

$1.59 ¥10.54

203.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €14.99

$13.30 ¥88.4

25.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.17

$3.32 ¥22.07

174.70%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.59

$11.05 ¥73.4

77.74%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.67

$1.89 ¥12.59

57.67%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.34 ¥8.93

50.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.42

$1.58 ¥10.48

70.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.51

$1.47 ¥9.75

90.48%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.80 ¥5.34

161.25%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$1.06 ¥7.05

95.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$0.58 ¥3.86

151.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.59 ¥3.95

59.32%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.15

$3.41 ¥22.65

101.47%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.06

$11.45 ¥76.1

-31.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$0.83 ¥5.51

69.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

$1.76 ¥11.67

44.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.29 ¥1.92

982.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.79

$18.09 ¥120

40.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

$1.56 ¥10.37

91.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.36 ¥2.36

313.89%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.89

$6.17 ¥40.99

440.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.25 ¥8.33

44.00%

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

$33.2K €29.7K

$18.3K ¥121.3K

81.78%

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

$31.7K €28.4K

$17.9K ¥118.7K

77.47%

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

$180 €162

$56.7 ¥377

218.13%

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

$13.84 €12.39

$8.57 ¥56.9

61.49%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.18

$12.55 ¥83.4

168.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.13

$39.75 ¥264

29.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.29

$16.34 ¥109

-2.33%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

$6.42 ¥42.64

71.18%

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

$917 €821

$447 ¥2,970

105.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$16.7K ¥110.8K

-1.19%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €77.9

$37.95 ¥252

129.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.49

$31.56 ¥210

22.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

$75.8 ¥503

39.68%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

$83.5 ¥555

43.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,522

$282 ¥1,873

502.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

$187 ¥1,246

622.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,331

$670 ¥4,453

288.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,847

$359 ¥2,388

473.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,193

$2,776 ¥18.4K

149.05%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,592

$1,825 ¥12.1K

180.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,980

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 Zhoukou: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Zhoukou

$187 24.9% 86.2% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Zhoukou

$210 27.9% 34.7% $112

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Zhoukou

$100 13.2% 62.9% $168

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Zhoukou

$78 10.3% 65.9% $150

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Zhoukou

$103 13.7% 34.8% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Zhoukou

$53 7% 28.4% $21

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Zhoukou

$23 3% 53.4% $26

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $282 in Zhoukou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $22 in Zhoukou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $210 per month, with Zhoukou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇨🇳 Zhoukou

🕒 Local time

10:17 10:17 AM

17:17 5:17 PM

7 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

8,953,172

💱 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

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Between locations

Barcelona Zhoukou 9,190 km ≈ 12 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 Zhoukou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,453 in Barcelona and $753 in Zhoukou, so Zhoukou is about 69% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,679 in Barcelona and $1,130 in Zhoukou 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 $282 in Zhoukou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $447 in Zhoukou. 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 $753 in Zhoukou versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Zhoukou but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Zhoukou 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 Zhoukou 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.