Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dornbirn and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Dornbirn: $2,321 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

111

Cost of Living Index in Dornbirn
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Dornbirn Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Dornbirn

🇦🇹 Austria

$2,321

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,321 in Dornbirn versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Dornbirn $2,321
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,420 in Dornbirn versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Dornbirn $3,420
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,520 in Dornbirn versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Dornbirn $4,520
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Dornbirn costs roughly 5% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dornbirn 71% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.92 €16.10

$17.59 €15.80

1.88%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.1 €71.0

$67.5 €60.6

17.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.10 €9.97

$13.53 €12.15

-17.96%

Cappuccino

$4.43 €3.98

$3.19 €2.87

38.87%

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

$4.26 €3.82

$2.91 €2.62

46.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.74 €3.36

$1.89 €1.70

97.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.08 €4.56

$4.01 €3.60

26.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 €3.98

$4.53 €4.07

-2.21%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.70 €1.53

$1.31 €1.17

29.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.08 €2.77

$2.02 €1.81

52.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.30 €2.07

$1.85 €1.66

24.32%

Eggs

$5.11 €4.59

$4.83 €4.34

5.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.94 €15.21

$16.74 €15.03

1.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.54 €12.16

$9.12 €8.19

48.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.72 €14.12

$19.64 €17.64

-19.96%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 €2.44

$2.98 €2.68

-8.72%

Banana (1kg)

$2.34 €2.11

$2.02 €1.81

15.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.87 €3.48

$2.70 €2.43

43.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.94 €3.54

$2.80 €2.52

40.71%

Potato (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$2.09 €1.87

4.78%

Onion (1kg)

$2.43 €2.18

$2.07 €1.86

17.39%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.97 €1.77

$1.46 €1.31

34.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.02 €0.92

$0.94 €0.84

8.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.19 €6.46

$6.87 €6.17

4.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.87 €8.86

$7.89 €7.08

25.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 €1.34

$1.41 €1.26

5.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 €1.63

$2.54 €2.28

-28.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.39 €3.04

$3.14 €2.82

7.96%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.1 €49.47

$25.45 €22.86

116.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.07 €4.56

$2.99 €2.69

69.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.49 €1.34

47.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.62

$1.80 €1.61

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

$29.7K €26.7K

$33.2K €29.8K

-10.44%

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

$32.6K €29.3K

$31.7K €28.5K

2.85%

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

$318 €286

$180 €162

76.46%

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

$14.33 €12.88

$13.84 €12.43

3.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.56 €27.45

$33.70 €30.27

-9.32%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$52.2 €46.86

$51.5 €46.27

1.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

Cinema Ticket

$14.98 €13.46

$10.99 €9.88

36.31%

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

$442 €397

$917 €823

-51.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.3K €29.9K

$16.5K €14.8K

101.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$56.5 €50.8

$87.0 €78.2

-35.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.0 €53.9

$38.51 €34.59

55.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.01 €40.43

$106 €95.1

-57.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.49 €39.97

$120 €108

-62.83%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,223 €1,098

$1,699 €1,527

-28.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,034 €929

$1,355 €1,217

-23.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,870 €1,680

$2,603 €2,338

-28.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,742 €1,565

$2,062 €1,853

-15.55%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,080 €8,156

$6,915 €6,211

31.31%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,315 €6,571

$5,128 €4,606

42.66%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,879 €2,586

$2,211 €1,986

30.22%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.61

3.28

10.06%

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

Last update for Dornbirn: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dornbirn

$1K 44.5%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 31.1% $321

Groceries & Markets

Dornbirn

$368 15.9%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 12.6% $47

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dornbirn

$363 15.7%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 37.2% $135

Eating Out

Dornbirn

$296 12.8%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 9.5% $28

Clothing & Footwear

Dornbirn

$93 4%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 70.4% $65

Getting Around

Dornbirn

$85 3.7%

Barcelona

$48 2% 42.8% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Dornbirn

$82 3.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 10.5% $8.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,223 in Dornbirn and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dornbirn pays 30% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $79 in Dornbirn vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $368 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇦🇹 Dornbirn

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

22:50 10:50 PM

Same time as Dornbirn

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

51,222

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Dornbirn Barcelona 900 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Dornbirn
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

Dornbirn vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,321 in Dornbirn and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Dornbirn is about 5% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 30% higher in Dornbirn, 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: $1,223 in Dornbirn versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $442 in Dornbirn versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 13% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Dornbirn is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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