Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Durham and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Durham: $2,073 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

100

Cost of Living Index in Durham
Learn more

Durham Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Durham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,073

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,073 in Durham versus $2,405 in Barcelona.

Durham $2,073
Barcelona $2,405

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,286 in Durham versus $3,477 in Barcelona.

Durham $3,286
Barcelona $3,477

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,498 in Durham versus $4,550 in Barcelona.

Durham $4,498
Barcelona $4,550

Living in Durham costs roughly 14% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Durham 55% above, Barcelona 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.57 £14.79

$17.98 €16.05

8.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.4 £70.6

$67.4 €60.2

38.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.40 £8.61

$13.37 €11.93

-14.73%

Cappuccino

$4.56 £3.44

$3.34 €2.98

36.53%

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

$2.54 £1.92

$2.95 €2.64

-13.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.90 €1.69

7.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.08 £4.59

$3.88 €3.46

56.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.33 £4.03

$4.57 €4.08

16.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.47

$1.27 €1.13

53.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.54 £1.17

$1.96 €1.75

-21.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$1.75 €1.56

73.14%

Eggs

$4.37 £3.30

$4.89 €4.36

-10.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.02 £7.57

$17.47 €15.59

-42.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 £6.69

$9.06 €8.09

-2.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.35 £16.13

$20.18 €18.01

5.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.21

$3.08 €2.75

-4.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.53 £1.91

$2.03 €1.81

24.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.75 £2.08

$2.60 €2.32

5.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.08 £3.84

$2.71 €2.42

87.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.56 £1.18

$2.15 €1.92

-27.44%

Onion (1kg)

$1.70 £1.29

$2.21 €1.97

-23.08%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 £0.80

$1.54 €1.38

-31.17%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.88 £1.42

$0.93 €0.83

102.15%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.61 £17.84

$7.09 €6.32

233.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.64 £8.04

$7.63 €6.81

39.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.50

$1.49 €1.33

122.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 £2.38

$2.73 €2.43

15.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.23 £2.44

$2.95 €2.63

9.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$86.9 £65.7

$25.91 €23.13

235.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.39 £4.83

$3.13 €2.80

104.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 £1.46

$1.45 €1.29

33.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.68 £17.89

$34.17 €30.49

-30.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 £1.42

$1.79 €1.60

5.03%

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

$37.8K £28.6K

$34.7K €31.0K

9.11%

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

$41.1K £31.1K

$30.3K €27.0K

35.68%

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

$265 £200

$181 €161

46.41%

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

$15.21 £11.49

$13.56 €12.10

12.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.95 £32.45

$35.12 €31.34

22.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.78 £35.35

$53.2 €47.44

-12.00%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.05 €14.33

Cinema Ticket

$12.51 £9.45

$11.37 €10.14

10.03%

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

$1,300 £982

$939 €838

38.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.2K £19.1K

$16.5K €14.7K

52.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 £80.3

$88.2 €78.7

20.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$71.4 £53.9

$39.77 €35.49

79.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$114 £86.1

$103 €92.3

10.19%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.2 £73.5

$119 €107

-18.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,539 £1,163

$1,695 €1,513

-9.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$743 £562

$1,301 €1,161

-42.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,661 £2,011

$2,576 €2,299

3.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 £1,183

$1,941 €1,732

-19.37%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,034 £3,804

$7,470 €6,666

-32.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,862 £2,919

$5,195 €4,636

-25.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,064 £1,559

$2,299 €2,052

-10.25%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.18

3.28

57.93%

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

Last update for Durham: October 4, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Durham

$743 35.7%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54% 74.9% $557

Groceries & Markets

Durham

$348 16.7%

Barcelona

$325 13.5% 6.7% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Durham

$323 15.5%

Barcelona

$229 9.5% 28.9% $93

Eating Out

Durham

$305 14.6%

Barcelona

$272 11.3% 10.8% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Durham

$175 8.4%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 9.8% $17

Getting Around

Durham

$116 5.6%

Barcelona

$48 2% 58.5% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Durham

$72 3.5%

Barcelona

$76 3.2% 5.7% $4.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,539 in Durham and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 11% 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: $93.0 in Durham vs $67.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $348 vs $325 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Durham

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

09:30 9:30 AM

10:30 10:30 AM

1 h ahead of Durham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

42,100

1,660,122

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Durham Barcelona 1,510 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Durham
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

Durham vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Durham and Barcelona differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,073 vs $2,405 including rent). Durham is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 11% 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: $1,539 in Durham versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,300 in Durham versus $939 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 7% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Durham 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, Durham 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 Durham gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.