Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Embrach and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $3,563 in Embrach, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

171

Cost of Living Index in Embrach
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Embrach Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Embrach

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,563

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,563 in Embrach versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Embrach $3,563
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,363 in Embrach versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Embrach $5,363
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,163 in Embrach versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Embrach $7,163
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Embrach is roughly 46% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Embrach 164% above, Barcelona 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.30 CHF 24.73

$17.66 €15.71

71.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$124 CHF 101

$67.5 €60.0

83.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.53 CHF 15.13

$13.61 €12.12

36.15%

Cappuccino

$6.21 CHF 5.07

$3.10 €2.76

100.32%

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

$5.43 CHF 4.43

$3.00 €2.67

81.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.82 CHF 3.94

$1.93 €1.71

149.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.91 CHF 7.27

$3.84 €3.42

132.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.23 CHF 5.90

$4.36 €3.88

65.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 CHF 1.76

$1.25 €1.11

72.00%

White Bread (500g)

$3.84 CHF 3.13

$2.12 €1.89

81.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.33 CHF 2.72

$1.97 €1.76

69.04%

Eggs

$7.93 CHF 6.47

$4.76 €4.24

66.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$29.57 CHF 24.14

$17.07 €15.19

73.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.12 CHF 22.96

$8.96 €7.97

213.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$41.77 CHF 34.10

$20.65 €18.38

102.28%

Apples (1kg)

$3.50 CHF 2.86

$3.16 €2.81

10.76%

Banana (1kg)

$2.06 CHF 1.68

$1.97 €1.75

4.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.86 CHF 2.34

$2.65 €2.36

7.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.13 CHF 3.37

$2.88 €2.57

43.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 CHF 1.38

$2.06 €1.83

-17.96%

Onion (1kg)

$2.33 CHF 1.91

$2.18 €1.94

6.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.30 CHF 1.88

$1.53 €1.37

50.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 CHF 1.04

$0.97 €0.86

31.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.54 CHF 7.79

$6.97 €6.20

36.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.34 CHF 10.07

$7.89 €7.02

56.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 CHF 2.30

$1.42 €1.26

97.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 CHF 2.52

$2.69 €2.39

14.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.97 CHF 4.05

$3.31 €2.94

50.15%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 CHF 84.3

$25.61 €22.79

303.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.07 CHF 5.77

$3.08 €2.74

129.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.56 CHF 3.73

$1.48 €1.32

208.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$87.0 CHF 71.0

$32.87 €29.25

164.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.28 CHF 1.86

$1.87 €1.66

21.93%

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

$43.5K CHF 35.5K

$33.0K €29.3K

31.92%

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

$35.7K CHF 29.2K

$31.9K €28.4K

11.78%

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

$284 CHF 232

$183 €163

55.17%

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

$32.92 CHF 26.88

$14.24 €12.67

131.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 CHF 45.73

$34.56 €30.76

62.07%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$84.5 CHF 68.9

$51.4 €45.76

64.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.47 CHF 37.13

$16.38 €14.58

177.59%

Cinema Ticket

$23.65 CHF 19.31

$11.06 €9.85

113.83%

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

$2,564 CHF 2,093

$944 €840

171.74%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.7K CHF 29.9K

$22.3K €19.8K

64.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$147 CHF 120

$87.7 €78.0

68.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$66.1 CHF 53.9

$38.77 €34.51

70.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$161 CHF 132

$105 €93.0

54.06%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$188 CHF 153

$118 €105

59.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,805 CHF 1,474

$1,697 €1,510

6.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,580 CHF 1,290

$1,337 €1,190

18.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,024 CHF 2,469

$2,692 €2,396

12.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,573 CHF 2,100

$2,077 €1,848

23.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$15.0K CHF 12.3K

$7,155 €6,367

110.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.0K CHF 8,992

$5,079 €4,520

116.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,698 CHF 5,469

$2,241 €1,995

198.85%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.03

3.19

-36.36%

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

Last update for Embrach: November 1, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Embrach

$1.6K 44.3%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 15.4% $243

Groceries & Markets

Embrach

$601 16.9%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 45.4% $273

Eating Out

Embrach

$473 13.3%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 43.5% $206

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Embrach

$373 10.5%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 37.8% $141

Clothing & Footwear

Embrach

$253 7.1%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 38% $96

Getting Around

Embrach

$153 4.3%

Barcelona

$49 2% 67.8% $104

Sport & Entertainment

Embrach

$132 3.7%

Barcelona

$74 3% 44.2% $58

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,805 in Embrach and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Embrach pays about 3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $124 in Embrach vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $601 vs $328 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Embrach

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:26 11:26 PM

Same time as Embrach

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,300

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.22 USD

1 CHF = 1.09 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.816 CHF (1 CHF = 1.22 USD). 1 EUR = 0.917 CHF (1 CHF = 1.09 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Embrach Barcelona 850 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Embrach
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

Embrach vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $3,563 in Embrach and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 31% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Embrach is about 3 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: $1,805 in Embrach versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,564 in Embrach versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 83% higher in Embrach. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,443 in Barcelona versus $3,563 in Embrach, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Embrach. 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.

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

Expats usually find Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 31% less than in Embrach. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.