Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dusseldorf and Barcelona

For one person, living costs are similar in Dusseldorf and in Barcelona: $2,285 and $2,399 a month, rent and utilities included.

111

Cost of Living Index in Dusseldorf
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Dusseldorf Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Dusseldorf

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,285

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,285 in Dusseldorf versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Dusseldorf $2,285
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,476 in Dusseldorf versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Dusseldorf $3,476
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,668 in Dusseldorf versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Dusseldorf $4,668
Barcelona $4,421

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

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Dusseldorf 69% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.41 €14.60

$17.94 €15.96

-8.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$70.4 €62.6

$68.1 €60.5

3.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.03

$13.28 €11.81

1.88%

Cappuccino

$4.23 €3.76

$3.25 €2.89

30.15%

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

$3.09 €2.75

$3.01 €2.67

2.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 €2.59

$1.87 €1.66

55.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.12 €4.55

$3.85 €3.42

32.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.40 €3.91

$4.48 €3.98

-1.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 €1.17

$1.29 €1.15

2.33%

White Bread (500g)

$2.39 €2.13

$2.04 €1.81

17.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$1.72 €1.53

73.84%

Eggs

$4.33 €3.85

$4.77 €4.24

-9.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.10 €13.43

$16.77 €14.92

-9.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.05 €11.61

$8.93 €7.94

46.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.49 €20.00

$19.88 €17.68

13.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.18 €2.83

$2.98 €2.65

6.71%

Banana (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$2.03 €1.80

6.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.73 €2.43

-21.61%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.23 €3.76

$2.68 €2.38

57.84%

Potato (1kg)

$1.20 €1.07

$2.10 €1.87

-42.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 €1.07

$2.08 €1.85

-41.83%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.45 €1.29

13.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.25 €1.11

$0.89 €0.79

40.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.42 €8.38

$6.94 €6.17

35.73%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.65 €5.91

$7.78 €6.92

-14.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 €0.99

$1.45 €1.29

-23.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.52

$2.57 €2.29

-33.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.01 €3.57

$2.99 €2.66

34.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$69.6 €61.9

$25.20 €22.41

176.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.46 €4.86

$3.12 €2.77

75.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.04 €2.71

$1.44 €1.28

111.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$47.97 €42.67

$33.50 €29.80

43.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 €2.02

$1.79 €1.59

27.37%

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

$32.6K €29.0K

$34.6K €30.8K

-5.98%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$30.1K €26.7K

27.25%

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

$339 €302

$178 €158

90.80%

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

$19.47 €17.32

$13.32 €11.85

46.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.64 €37.04

$34.88 €31.03

19.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.15 €38.38

$53.3 €47.37

-18.97%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.20 €31.31

$16.01 €14.24

119.86%

Cinema Ticket

$15.91 €14.15

$11.06 €9.84

43.85%

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

$1,070 €952

$957 €851

11.85%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.7K €17.5K

$16.6K €14.7K

18.83%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.0

$88.2 €78.4

16.07%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.11 €36.57

$39.49 €35.12

4.10%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €100

$103 €91.5

9.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$167 €149

$121 €108

37.84%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,077 €958

$1,653 €1,470

-34.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$878 €781

$1,302 €1,158

-32.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,358 €2,097

$2,557 €2,275

-7.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,669 €1,485

$1,915 €1,703

-12.82%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,943 €7,955

$7,286 €6,481

22.75%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,892 €4,351

$5,080 €4,519

-3.70%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,778 €3,360

$2,281 €2,029

65.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.91

3.28

19.21%

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

Last update for Dusseldorf: October 13, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dusseldorf

$878 38.4%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 48.2% $423

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dusseldorf

$400 17.5%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 43.5% $174

Groceries & Markets

Dusseldorf

$353 15.5%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 9.3% $33

Eating Out

Dusseldorf

$281 12.3%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 3.9% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Dusseldorf

$191 8.3%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 16.9% $32

Getting Around

Dusseldorf

$106 4.7%

Barcelona

$47 2% 55.4% $59

Sport & Entertainment

Dusseldorf

$75 3.3%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 0.5% $0.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,077 in Dusseldorf and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dusseldorf pays 66% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $70.0 in Dusseldorf vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $353 vs $320 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Dusseldorf

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

18:17 6:17 PM

Same time as Dusseldorf

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

618,128

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Dusseldorf Barcelona 1,150 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Dusseldorf
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

Dusseldorf vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dusseldorf and Barcelona differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($2,285 vs $2,399 including rent). Dusseldorf is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 66% higher in Dusseldorf, 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: $1,077 in Dusseldorf versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,070 in Dusseldorf versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 10% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,285 in Dusseldorf versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Dusseldorf but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Dusseldorf 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, Dusseldorf 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 Dusseldorf gentler on the wallet – expenses run 5% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.