Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dili and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Dili: $1,574 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

77

Cost of Living Index in Dili
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Dili Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Dili

🇹🇱 Timor-Leste

$1,574

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,574 in Dili versus $2,405 in Barcelona.

Dili $1,574
Barcelona $2,405

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,466 in Dili versus $3,477 in Barcelona.

Dili $2,466
Barcelona $3,477

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,359 in Dili versus $4,550 in Barcelona.

Dili $3,359
Barcelona $4,550

Living in Dili costs roughly 35% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dili 17% above, Barcelona 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.13 $5.13

$17.98 €16.03

-71.47%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.43 $42.43

$67.4 €60.1

-37.07%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.91 $7.91

$13.37 €11.92

-40.84%

Cappuccino

$4.18 $4.18

$3.34 €2.98

25.15%

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

$1.63 $1.63

$2.95 €2.63

-44.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 $2.76

$1.90 €1.69

45.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.57 $2.57

$3.88 €3.46

-33.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.46 $4.46

$4.57 €4.08

-2.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.37 $2.37

$1.27 €1.13

86.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.52 $2.52

$1.96 €1.74

28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.96 $0.96

$1.75 €1.56

-45.14%

Eggs

$2.68 $2.68

$4.89 €4.36

-45.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$2.05 $2.05

$17.47 €15.58

-88.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.41 $9.41

$9.06 €8.08

3.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.78 $15.78

$20.18 €17.99

-21.80%

Apples (1kg)

$3.29 $3.29

$3.08 €2.74

6.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 $1.85

$2.03 €1.81

-8.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.49 $2.49

$2.60 €2.32

-4.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.26 $2.26

$2.71 €2.42

-16.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.24 $1.24

$2.15 €1.92

-42.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 $1.15

$2.21 €1.97

-47.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.85 $0.85

$1.54 €1.37

-44.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$0.93 €0.83

5.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.08 $3.08

$7.09 €6.32

-56.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.95 $11.95

$7.63 €6.80

56.62%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.49 €1.33

46.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.89 $2.89

$2.73 €2.43

5.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 $0.24

$2.95 €2.63

-91.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.78 $29.78

$25.91 €23.11

14.94%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.52 $3.52

$3.13 €2.79

12.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.58 $3.58

$1.45 €1.29

146.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.75 $19.75

$34.17 €30.46

-42.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 $1.44

$1.79 €1.60

-19.55%

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

$18.0K $18.0K

$34.7K €30.9K

-48.16%

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

$16.7K $16.7K

$30.3K €27.0K

-44.80%

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

$152 $152

$181 €161

-16.01%

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

$27.49 $27.49

$13.56 €12.09

102.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.12 €31.31

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.46 $49.46

$53.2 €47.40

-6.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.31

Cinema Ticket

$6.17 $6.17

$11.37 €10.13

-45.73%

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

$1,477 $1,477

$939 €837

57.33%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K $16.1K

$16.5K €14.7K

-2.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$61.0 $61.0

$88.2 €78.7

-30.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.46 $30.46

$39.77 €35.46

-23.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 $79.3

$103 €92.2

-23.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$60.3 $60.3

$119 €107

-49.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$831 $831

$1,695 €1,512

-50.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$759 $759

$1,301 €1,160

-41.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,739 $2,739

$2,576 €2,297

6.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,504 $1,504

$1,941 €1,731

-22.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,470 €6,660

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,195 €4,631

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,656 $3,656

$2,299 €2,050

59.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.37

3.28

63.72%

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

Last update for Dili: October 5, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dili

$759 47.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54% 71.3% $541

Groceries & Markets

Dili

$275 17.3%

Barcelona

$325 13.5% 18.3% $50

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dili

$179 * 11.3%

Barcelona

$229 9.5% 28% $50

Eating Out

Dili

$154 9.7%

Barcelona

$272 11.3% 76.2% $118

Clothing & Footwear

Dili

$104 6.6%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 51.9% $54

Sport & Entertainment

Dili

$62 3.9%

Barcelona

$76 3.2% 22.8% $14

Getting Around

Dili

$52 3.3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 7.7% $4

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 $831 in Dili and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dili pays 59% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $42.00 in Dili vs $67.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $275 vs $325 per month, with Dili cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇹🇱 Dili

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

15:21 3:21 PM

08:21 8:21 AM

7 h behind Dili

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

222,323 Capital

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Dili Barcelona 13,390 km ≈ 17 h nonstop flight

From you

Dili
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

Dili vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dili and Barcelona differ by about 53% in total monthly costs ($1,574 vs $2,405 including rent). Dili is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 59% higher in Dili, 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: $831 in Dili versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,477 in Dili versus $939 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,574 in Dili versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Dili but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Dili 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, Dili 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 Dili gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.