Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Biel and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $2,841 in Biel, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. The total is higher in Biel despite lower rent and utilities.

137

Cost of Living Index in Biel
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Biel Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Biel

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,841

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Biel 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 Biel and in Barcelona actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,841 in Biel versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Biel $2,841
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,464 in Biel versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Biel $4,464
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,086 in Biel versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Biel $6,086
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Biel is roughly 16% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Biel 109% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.78 CHF 24.65

$17.59 €15.76

69.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$110 CHF 90.9

$67.5 €60.5

62.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.20 CHF 15.07

$13.53 €12.12

34.52%

Cappuccino

$6.18 CHF 5.12

$3.19 €2.86

93.73%

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

$5.19 CHF 4.30

$2.91 €2.61

78.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 CHF 3.59

$1.89 €1.70

129.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.97 CHF 6.60

$4.01 €3.59

98.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.80 CHF 3.97

$4.53 €4.06

5.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.19 CHF 1.82

$1.31 €1.17

67.18%

White Bread (500g)

$4.04 CHF 3.34

$2.02 €1.81

100.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.17 CHF 2.63

$1.85 €1.66

71.35%

Eggs

$7.29 CHF 6.04

$4.83 €4.33

50.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.06 CHF 18.26

$16.74 €15.00

31.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.61 CHF 22.86

$9.12 €8.17

202.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.54 CHF 32.74

$19.64 €17.60

101.32%

Apples (1kg)

$3.19 CHF 2.64

$2.98 €2.67

7.05%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.77

$2.02 €1.81

5.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 CHF 2.06

$2.70 €2.42

-7.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.18 CHF 2.64

$2.80 €2.51

13.57%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 CHF 1.23

$2.09 €1.87

-28.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 CHF 1.48

$2.07 €1.85

-14.01%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.04 CHF 1.69

$1.46 €1.31

39.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 CHF 0.88

$0.94 €0.84

12.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.07 CHF 9.16

$6.87 €6.16

61.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.28 CHF 12.65

$7.89 €7.07

93.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 CHF 0.77

$1.41 €1.26

-33.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 CHF 1.47

$2.54 €2.27

-30.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.80 CHF 3.97

$3.14 €2.82

52.87%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$94.7 CHF 78.4

$25.45 €22.80

272.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.91 CHF 6.55

$2.99 €2.68

164.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.65 CHF 3.85

$1.49 €1.34

212.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$85.5 CHF 70.8

$33.37 €29.91

156.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.21 CHF 1.83

$1.80 €1.61

22.78%

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

$39.7K CHF 32.8K

$33.2K €29.7K

19.52%

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

$34.3K CHF 28.4K

$31.7K €28.4K

8.32%

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

$134 CHF 111

$180 €162

-25.46%

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

$35.35 CHF 29.27

$13.84 €12.40

155.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.5 CHF 42.65

$33.70 €30.20

52.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$75.5 CHF 62.5

$51.5 €46.16

46.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$22.03 CHF 18.24

$10.99 €9.85

100.45%

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

$2,676 CHF 2,215

$917 €821

191.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.5K CHF 30.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

121.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 CHF 88.3

$87.0 €78.0

22.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.85 CHF 33.82

$38.51 €34.51

6.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 CHF 114

$106 €94.8

30.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$220 CHF 182

$120 €107

83.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,231 CHF 1,019

$1,699 €1,523

-27.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,124 CHF 930

$1,355 €1,214

-17.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,248 CHF 1,861

$2,603 €2,332

-13.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,007 CHF 1,662

$2,062 €1,848

-2.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,720 CHF 8,047

$6,915 €6,196

40.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,717 CHF 6,389

$5,128 €4,595

50.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,640 CHF 4,669

$2,211 €1,981

155.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.68

3.28

-48.78%

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

Last update for Biel: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Biel

$1.1K 39.6%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 20.6% $232

Groceries & Markets

Biel

$549 19.3%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 41.4% $227

Eating Out

Biel

$455 16%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 41.1% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Biel

$228 8%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 30.6% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Biel

$221 7.8%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 3% $6.6

Getting Around

Biel

$145 5.1%

Barcelona

$48 2% 66.6% $97

Sport & Entertainment

Biel

$120 4.2%

Barcelona

$74 3% 38.6% $46

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,231 in Biel and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Biel pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $110 in Biel vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $549 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Biel

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

07:27 7:27 AM

Same time as Biel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,378

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.828 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.922 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Biel Barcelona 760 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Biel
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

Biel vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,841 in Biel and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 14% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Biel is about 2.6 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: $1,231 in Biel versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,676 in Biel versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 71% higher in Biel. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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

It comes down to priorities – Barcelona wins on affordability, Biel on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.