Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cotabato City and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotabato City: $738 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

36

Cost of Living Index in Cotabato City
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Cotabato City Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Cotabato City

🇵🇭 Philippines

$738

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $738 in Cotabato City versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Cotabato City $738
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,139 in Cotabato City versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Cotabato City $1,139
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,539 in Cotabato City versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Cotabato City $1,539
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Cotabato City costs roughly 70% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cotabato City is 46% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.81 ₱307

$17.59 €15.80

-72.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.14 ₱1,031

$67.5 €60.6

-76.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.97 ₱254

$13.53 €12.15

-70.66%

Cappuccino

$2.17 ₱139

$3.19 €2.87

-31.97%

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

$1.06 ₱67.6

$2.91 €2.62

-63.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.62 ₱39.75

$1.89 €1.70

-67.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.14 ₱73.1

$4.01 €3.60

-71.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 ₱133

$4.53 €4.07

-54.08%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.01 ₱128

$1.31 €1.17

53.44%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 ₱68.8

$2.02 €1.81

-46.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.75 ₱48.19

$1.85 €1.66

-59.46%

Eggs

$1.90 ₱121

$4.83 €4.34

-60.66%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.44 ₱411

$16.74 €15.03

-61.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 ₱293

$9.12 €8.19

-49.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.44 ₱603

$19.64 €17.64

-51.93%

Apples (1kg)

$2.76 ₱176

$2.98 €2.68

-7.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.10 ₱70.0

$2.02 €1.81

-45.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.40 ₱153

$2.70 €2.43

-11.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱74.7

$2.80 €2.52

-58.21%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 ₱126

$2.09 €1.87

-5.74%

Onion (1kg)

$3.30 ₱211

$2.07 €1.86

59.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.24 ₱78.9

$1.46 €1.31

-15.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 ₱42.15

$0.94 €0.84

-29.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.40 ₱154

$6.87 €6.17

-65.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.03 ₱513

$7.89 €7.08

1.77%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 ₱80.9

$1.41 €1.26

-9.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.64 ₱105

$2.54 €2.28

-35.43%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₱13.98

$3.14 €2.82

-92.99%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$11.32 ₱723

$25.45 €22.86

-55.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.76 ₱48.30

$2.99 €2.69

-74.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.22 ₱13.97

$1.49 €1.34

-85.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.85 ₱118

$33.37 €29.98

-94.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ₱70.2

$1.80 €1.61

-38.89%

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

$20.8K ₱1.3M

$33.2K €29.8K

-37.28%

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

$18.8K ₱1.2M

$31.7K €28.5K

-40.80%

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

$108 ₱6,875

$180 €162

-40.36%

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

$18.43 ₱1,178

$13.84 €12.43

33.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.97 ₱1,978

$33.70 €30.27

-8.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.96 ₱1,978

$51.5 €46.27

-39.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.25 ₱335

$15.96 €14.34

-67.11%

Cinema Ticket

$4.73 ₱302

$10.99 €9.88

-56.96%

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

$105 ₱6,684

$917 €823

-88.59%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,282 ₱465.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

-55.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$32.48 ₱2,075

$87.0 €78.2

-62.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.49 ₱1,246

$38.51 €34.59

-49.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.5 ₱4,438

$106 €95.1

-34.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.5 ₱3,862

$120 €108

-49.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$224 ₱14.3K

$1,699 €1,527

-86.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$153 ₱9,753

$1,355 €1,217

-88.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$447 ₱28.6K

$2,603 €2,338

-82.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$333 ₱21.3K

$2,062 €1,853

-83.84%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,692 ₱172.0K

$6,915 €6,211

-61.08%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,003 ₱64.1K

$5,128 €4,606

-80.44%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

8.31

3.28

153.35%

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

Last update for Cotabato City: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Cotabato City

$199 26.9%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 61.8% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cotabato City

$157 21.3%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 45.2% $71

Accommodation & Living

Cotabato City

$153 20.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 788% $1.2K

Eating Out

Cotabato City

$93 12.6%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 188% $175

Clothing & Footwear

Cotabato City

$82 11.1%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 93% $76

Sport & Entertainment

Cotabato City

$40 5.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 81.9% $33

Getting Around

Cotabato City

$14 1.9%

Barcelona

$48 2% 245% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $224 in Cotabato City and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $16 in Cotabato City vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $322 per month, with Cotabato City cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 Cotabato City

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:20 5:20 AM

22:20 10:20 PM

7 h behind Cotabato City

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

325,079

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.41 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 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 28, 2026: 1 USD = 63.89 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.13 PHP (100 PHP = 1.41 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cotabato City Barcelona 12,030 km ≈ 16 h nonstop flight

From you

Cotabato City
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

Cotabato City vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $738 in Cotabato City and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Cotabato City is about 70% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,107 in Cotabato City and $3,679 in Barcelona 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: $224 in Cotabato City versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $105 in Cotabato City 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 62% higher in Barcelona. 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.

Expats usually find Cotabato City gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.