Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bedford and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Bedford: $2,117 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Bedford
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Bedford Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Bedford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,117

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bedford and in Barcelona

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bedford and in Barcelona actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,117 in Bedford versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Bedford $2,117
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,333 in Bedford versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Bedford $3,333
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,549 in Bedford versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Bedford $4,549
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Bedford costs roughly 13% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bedford 57% above, Barcelona 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.85 £14.80

$17.66 €15.79

12.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.8 £66.2

$67.5 €60.3

31.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.89 £8.12

$13.61 €12.17

-19.99%

Cappuccino

$4.54 £3.38

$3.10 €2.77

46.45%

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

$2.00 £1.49

$3.00 €2.68

-33.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.18 £0.88

$1.93 €1.72

-38.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.72 £5.01

$3.84 €3.44

75.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.98 £4.46

$4.36 €3.90

37.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 £1.29

$1.25 €1.11

38.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 £1.11

$2.12 €1.90

-29.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.64 £1.22

$1.97 €1.76

-16.75%

Eggs

$3.81 £2.84

$4.76 €4.26

-19.96%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.42 £7.02

$17.07 €15.26

-44.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.63 £6.43

$8.96 €8.01

-3.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.96 £9.66

$20.65 €18.46

-37.24%

Apples (1kg)

$3.35 £2.50

$3.16 €2.83

6.01%

Banana (1kg)

$1.34 £1.00

$1.97 €1.76

-31.98%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.54 £1.89

$2.65 €2.37

-4.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.12 £2.33

$2.88 €2.58

8.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 £1.00

$2.06 €1.84

-34.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 £1.01

$2.18 €1.95

-37.61%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.04 £0.78

$1.53 €1.37

-32.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 £1.00

$0.97 €0.87

39.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.59 £17.59

$6.97 €6.23

238.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.80 £8.05

$7.89 €7.05

36.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.66 £1.98

$1.42 €1.27

87.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.84

$2.69 €2.40

-8.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.61 £1.94

$3.31 €2.96

-21.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.90

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.05 £3.77

$3.08 €2.76

63.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 £1.22

$1.48 €1.33

10.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$20.36 £15.18

$32.87 €29.40

-38.06%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.87 €1.67

5.35%

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

$39.2K £29.2K

$33.0K €29.5K

18.81%

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

$40.4K £30.1K

$31.9K €28.6K

26.44%

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

$316 £236

$183 €164

72.84%

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

$17.74 £13.23

$14.24 €12.73

24.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.87 £29.73

$34.56 €30.91

15.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.18 £28.47

$51.4 €45.98

-25.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.65

Cinema Ticket

$16.11 £12.01

$11.06 €9.89

45.66%

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

$1,366 £1,019

$944 €844

44.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.7K £17.7K

$22.3K €19.9K

6.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$23.98 £17.88

$87.7 €78.4

-72.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.73 £19.19

$38.77 €34.67

-33.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.6 £59.4

$105 €93.5

-23.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.8 £66.2

$118 €105

-24.51%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,126 £839

$1,697 €1,517

-33.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$965 £720

$1,337 €1,195

-27.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,461 £1,835

$2,692 €2,407

-8.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,037 £1,519

$2,077 €1,857

-1.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,398

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,542

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,303 £2,463

$2,241 €2,004

47.38%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.67

3.19

46.39%

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

Last update for Bedford: November 3, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bedford

$965 45.6%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 38.5% $372

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bedford

$374 17.7%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 38% $142

Eating Out

Bedford

$304 14.4%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 12.2% $37

Groceries & Markets

Bedford

$282 13.3%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 16.4% $46

Clothing & Footwear

Bedford

$98 4.6%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 59.8% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Bedford

$70 3.3%

Barcelona

$74 3% 4.5% $3.1

Getting Around

Bedford

$24 * 1.1%

Barcelona

$49 2% 109% $26

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,126 in Bedford and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bedford pays 47% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $89 in Bedford vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $282 vs $328, with Bedford cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Bedford

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

18:04 6:04 PM

19:04 7:04 PM

1 h ahead of Bedford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,000

1,660,122

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.746 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 0.894 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bedford Barcelona 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Bedford
Barcelona

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

Bedford vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,117 in Bedford and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Bedford is about 13% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 47% higher in Bedford, 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: $1,126 in Bedford versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,366 in Bedford versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Barcelona – a meal for two runs $67 versus $89 in Bedford. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Bedford is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Bedford and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.