Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edison, NJ and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $3,122 in Edison, NJ, rent and utilities included – about $8,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

151

Cost of Living Index in Edison, NJ
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Edison, NJ Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Edison, NJ

🇺🇸 United States

$3,122

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,122 in Edison, NJ versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Edison, NJ $3,122
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,397 in Edison, NJ versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Edison, NJ $4,397
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,671 in Edison, NJ versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Edison, NJ $5,671
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Edison, NJ is roughly 27% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Edison, NJ 129% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.26 $18.26

$17.59 €15.80

3.81%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$59.8 $59.8

$67.5 €60.6

-11.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.17 $9.17

$13.53 €12.15

-32.22%

Cappuccino

$4.08 $4.08

$3.19 €2.87

27.90%

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

$1.03 $1.03

$2.91 €2.62

-64.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.89 €1.70

-48.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.44 $3.44

$4.01 €3.60

-14.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.82 $6.82

$4.53 €4.07

50.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.31 €1.17

-23.66%

White Bread (500g)

$3.22 $3.22

$2.02 €1.81

59.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$6.14 $6.14

$1.85 €1.66

231.89%

Eggs

$2.54 $2.54

$4.83 €4.34

-47.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.49 $13.49

$16.74 €15.03

-19.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 $10.34

$9.12 €8.19

13.38%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.70 $19.70

$19.64 €17.64

0.31%

Apples (1kg)

$5.93 $5.93

$2.98 €2.68

98.99%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 $1.54

$2.02 €1.81

-23.76%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.32 $4.32

$2.70 €2.43

60.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.40 $5.40

$2.80 €2.52

92.86%

Potato (1kg)

$3.01 $3.01

$2.09 €1.87

44.02%

Onion (1kg)

$3.11 $3.11

$2.07 €1.86

50.24%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.10 $3.10

$1.46 €1.31

112.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.96 $1.96

$0.94 €0.84

108.51%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.05 $10.05

$6.87 €6.17

46.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.72 $14.72

$7.89 €7.08

86.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.76 $1.76

$1.41 €1.26

24.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.54 $3.54

$2.54 €2.28

39.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.84 $5.84

$3.14 €2.82

85.99%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$199 $199

$25.45 €22.86

680.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.05 $3.05

$2.99 €2.69

2.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.91 $0.91

$1.49 €1.34

-38.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$42.35 $42.35

$33.37 €29.98

26.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.90 $0.90

$1.80 €1.61

-50.00%

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

$27.5K $27.5K

$33.2K €29.8K

-17.26%

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

$26.4K $26.4K

$31.7K €28.5K

-16.85%

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

$170 $170

$180 €162

-5.57%

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

$51.4 $51.4

$13.84 €12.43

271.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.6 $50.6

$33.70 €30.27

50.15%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$21.98 $21.98

$51.5 €46.27

-57.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

Cinema Ticket

$14.98 $14.98

$10.99 €9.88

36.31%

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

$2,006 $2,006

$917 €823

118.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.8K $15.8K

$16.5K €14.8K

-4.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.8 $50.8

$87.0 €78.2

-41.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$80.2 $80.2

$38.51 €34.59

108.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.1 $61.1

$106 €95.1

-42.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 $88.5

$120 €108

-26.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,171 $2,171

$1,699 €1,527

27.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,772 $1,772

$1,355 €1,217

30.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,129 $3,129

$2,603 €2,338

20.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,722 $2,722

$2,062 €1,853

32.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,960 $6,960

$2,211 €1,986

214.81%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.42

3.28

95.73%

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

Last update for Edison, NJ: October 24, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edison, NJ

$1.8K 56.8%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 23.5% $417

Groceries & Markets

Edison, NJ

$408 13.1%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 21.1% $86

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edison, NJ

$272 8.7%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 16.3% $44

Eating Out

Edison, NJ

$261 8.4%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 2.5% $6.5

Getting Around

Edison, NJ

$230 7.4%

Barcelona

$48 2% 78.9% $181

Clothing & Footwear

Edison, NJ

$126 4.1%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 25.1% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Edison, NJ

$52 1.7%

Barcelona

$74 3% 41.5% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,171 in Edison, NJ and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Edison, NJ pays about 3.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $60 in Edison, NJ vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $408 vs $322, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Edison, NJ

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

16:34 4:34 PM

21:34 9:34 PM

5 h ahead of Edison, NJ

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

107,588

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Edison, NJ Barcelona 6,210 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Edison, NJ
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

Edison, NJ vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,122 in Edison, NJ and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 21% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Edison, NJ is about 3.1 times higher, 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: $2,171 in Edison, NJ versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,006 in Edison, NJ 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 27% higher in Edison, NJ. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,122 in Edison, NJ, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Edison, NJ. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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.

It comes down to priorities – Barcelona wins on affordability, Edison, NJ on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.