Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cartagena and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Cartagena: $1,520 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $11,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Cartagena

🇨🇴 Colombia

$1,520

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,520 in Cartagena versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Cartagena $1,520
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,565 in Cartagena versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Cartagena $2,565
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,610 in Cartagena versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Cartagena $3,610
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Cartagena costs roughly 38% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cartagena 12% above, Barcelona 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.63 COP 18.2K

$17.66 €15.79

-68.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$142 COP 457.5K

$67.5 €60.3

110.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 COP 32.9K

$13.61 €12.17

-25.13%

Cappuccino

$4.44 COP 14.3K

$3.10 €2.77

43.23%

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

$2.44 COP 7,876

$3.00 €2.68

-18.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 COP 7,198

$1.93 €1.72

15.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 COP 10.3K

$3.84 €3.44

-17.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.06 COP 16.3K

$4.36 €3.90

16.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 COP 6,121

$1.25 €1.11

52.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.78 COP 8,970

$2.12 €1.90

31.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 COP 4,615

$1.97 €1.76

-27.41%

Eggs

$4.96 COP 16.0K

$4.76 €4.26

4.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.42 COP 43.3K

$17.07 €15.26

-21.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.30 COP 55.9K

$8.96 €8.01

93.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.46

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.83

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.76

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.37

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.58

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.37

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.06 COP 6,639

$0.97 €0.87

112.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.23

Wine (Bottle)

$14.10 COP 45.5K

$7.89 €7.05

78.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 COP 4,503

$1.42 €1.27

-2.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.40

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.25 COP 4,027

$3.31 €2.96

-62.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$67.0 COP 216.1K

$25.61 €22.90

161.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.65 COP 15.0K

$3.08 €2.76

50.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.69 COP 11.9K

$1.48 €1.33

149.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.53 COP 30.8K

$32.87 €29.40

-71.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 COP 4,341

$1.87 €1.67

-28.34%

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

$33.9K COP 109.5M

$33.0K €29.5K

2.90%

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

$35.0K COP 113.1M

$31.9K €28.6K

9.64%

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

$79.0 COP 254.9K

$183 €164

-56.81%

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

$14.24 €12.73

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.91

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.8 COP 177.0K

$51.4 €45.98

6.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.65

Cinema Ticket

$8.10 COP 26.1K

$11.06 €9.89

-26.76%

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

$630 COP 2.0M

$944 €844

-33.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.0K COP 38.6M

$22.3K €19.9K

-46.30%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €78.4

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.67

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €93.5

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,347 COP 4.3M

$1,697 €1,517

-20.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$842 COP 2.7M

$1,337 €1,195

-37.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,468 COP 8.0M

$2,692 €2,407

-8.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,580 COP 5.1M

$2,077 €1,857

-23.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,398

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$921 COP 3.0M

$5,079 €4,542

-81.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$464 COP 1.5M

$2,241 €2,004

-79.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

370.22%

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

Last update for Cartagena: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Groceries & Markets

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Eating Out

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Clothing & Footwear

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Sport & Entertainment

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$74 3%

Getting Around

Cartagena

–

Barcelona

$49 2%

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,347 in Cartagena and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $142 in Cartagena vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $259 vs $328, with Cartagena cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇴 Cartagena

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

12:52 12:52 PM

18:52 6:52 PM

6 h ahead of Cartagena

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,028,736

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Colombian Peso COP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 COP = 3.1 USD

10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to COP – Colombian Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇴 Colombian Peso ($)

Colombian Peso exchange rates as of November 3, 2026: 1 USD = 3,229 COP (10,000 COP = 3.1 USD). 1 EUR = 3,615 COP (10,000 COP = 2.77 EUR).

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

USD to COP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cartagena Barcelona 8,220 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Cartagena
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

Cartagena vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,520 in Cartagena and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Cartagena is about 38% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 79% lower in Cartagena. 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: $1,347 in Cartagena versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $630 in Cartagena versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Cartagena is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Cartagena is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Barcelona, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

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