Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bulacan and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Bulacan: $638 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $21,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

31

Cost of Living Index in Bulacan
Learn more

Bulacan Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Bulacan

🇵🇭 Philippines

$638

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $638 in Bulacan versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Bulacan $638
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $927 in Bulacan versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Bulacan $927
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,215 in Bulacan versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Bulacan $1,215
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Bulacan costs roughly 73% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bulacan is 53% below, Barcelona is 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.00 ₱126

$17.94 €15.96

-88.85%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$15.88 ₱1,000

$68.1 €60.5

-76.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.71 ₱171

$13.28 €11.81

-79.59%

Cappuccino

$1.79 ₱112

$3.25 €2.89

-44.92%

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

$0.44 ₱27.72

$3.01 €2.67

-85.38%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.26 ₱16.39

$1.87 €1.66

-86.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.93 ₱58.4

$3.85 €3.42

-75.84%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 ₱101

$4.48 €3.98

-64.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 ₱102

$1.29 €1.15

24.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.16 ₱73.1

$2.04 €1.81

-43.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ₱60.1

$1.72 €1.53

-44.77%

Eggs

$1.79 ₱113

$4.77 €4.24

-62.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.80 ₱176

$16.77 €14.92

-83.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.45 ₱217

$8.93 €7.94

-61.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.03 ₱380

$19.88 €17.68

-69.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 ₱130

$2.98 €2.65

-30.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 ₱98.2

$2.03 €1.80

-23.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.99 ₱125

$2.73 €2.43

-27.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.04 ₱65.4

$2.68 €2.38

-61.19%

Potato (1kg)

$1.61 ₱101

$2.10 €1.87

-23.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 ₱109

$2.08 €1.85

-16.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.62 ₱39.14

$1.45 €1.29

-57.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.49 ₱31.07

$0.89 €0.79

-44.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.04 ₱191

$6.94 €6.17

-56.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.53 ₱222

$7.78 €6.92

-54.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 ₱56.3

$1.45 €1.29

-38.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.56 ₱98.1

$2.57 €2.29

-39.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 ₱11.81

$2.99 €2.66

-93.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$6.68 ₱421

$25.20 €22.41

-73.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.69 ₱43.19

$3.12 €2.77

-77.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.15 ₱9.67

$1.44 €1.28

-89.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.87 ₱118

$33.50 €29.80

-94.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₱66.7

$1.79 €1.59

-40.78%

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

$21.7K ₱1.4M

$34.6K €30.8K

-37.41%

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

$16.4K ₱1.0M

$30.1K €26.7K

-45.51%

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

$112 ₱7,031

$178 €158

-37.21%

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

$17.26 ₱1,087

$13.32 €11.85

29.58%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.39 ₱1,472

$34.88 €31.03

-32.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.17 ₱2,340

$53.3 €47.37

-30.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$0.78 ₱49.15

$16.01 €14.24

-95.13%

Cinema Ticket

$5.09 ₱320

$11.06 €9.84

-53.98%

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

$96.7 ₱6,088

$957 €851

-89.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$941 ₱59.3K

$16.6K €14.7K

-94.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$28.48 ₱1,793

$88.2 €78.4

-67.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.39 ₱1,221

$39.49 €35.12

-50.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.5 ₱4,756

$103 €91.5

-26.52%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.5 ₱3,493

$121 €108

-54.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$237 ₱14.9K

$1,653 €1,470

-85.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$146 ₱9,223

$1,302 €1,158

-88.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$385 ₱24.2K

$2,557 €2,275

-84.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$215 ₱13.5K

$1,915 €1,703

-88.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,879 ₱118.3K

$7,286 €6,481

-74.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,458 ₱91.8K

$5,080 €4,519

-71.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$290 ₱18.2K

$2,281 €2,029

-87.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.28

105.79%

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

Last update for Bulacan: October 11, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bulacan

$152 23.9%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 48.4% $74

Groceries & Markets

Bulacan

$147 23%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 118% $173

Accommodation & Living

Bulacan

$146 23%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 789% $1.2K

Clothing & Footwear

Bulacan

$81 12.6%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 96.7% $78

Eating Out

Bulacan

$56 8.8%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 380% $214

Sport & Entertainment

Bulacan

$47 7.4%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 59.2% $28

Getting Around

Bulacan

$8.9 1.4%

Barcelona

$47 2% 435% $39

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $237 in Bulacan and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 688% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $16.00 in Bulacan vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $147 vs $320 per month, with Bulacan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Bulacan

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

15:59 3:59 PM

09:59 9:59 AM

6 h behind Bulacan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,700,000

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.59 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 62.96 PHP (100 PHP = 1.59 USD). 1 EUR = 70.78 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bulacan Barcelona 11,160 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

Bulacan
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

Bulacan vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bulacan and Barcelona differ by about 276% in total monthly costs ($638 vs $2,399 including rent). Bulacan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 688% lower in Barcelona. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $237 in Bulacan versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $96.7 in Bulacan versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 118% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $638 in Bulacan versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Bulacan but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Bulacan 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.

Safety-wise, Bulacan and Barcelona are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bulacan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 276% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.