Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Erfurt and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Erfurt: $2,200 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

106

Cost of Living Index in Erfurt
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Erfurt Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Erfurt

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,200

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,200 in Erfurt versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Erfurt $2,200
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,220 in Erfurt versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Erfurt $3,220
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,240 in Erfurt versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Erfurt $4,240
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Erfurt costs roughly 10% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Erfurt 62% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.31 €13.72

$17.59 €15.76

-12.96%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.5

0.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.12 €9.97

$13.53 €12.12

-17.81%

Cappuccino

$3.32 €2.97

$3.19 €2.86

4.08%

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

$4.28 €3.83

$2.91 €2.61

47.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.77 €6.97

$1.89 €1.70

311.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.53 €4.06

$4.01 €3.59

12.97%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.98 €4.47

$4.53 €4.06

9.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.40 €1.26

$1.31 €1.17

6.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.13 €1.91

$2.02 €1.81

5.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.21 €2.88

$1.85 €1.66

73.51%

Eggs

$3.28 €2.94

$4.83 €4.33

-32.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.30 €12.81

$16.74 €15.00

-14.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.53 €9.44

$9.12 €8.17

15.46%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.69 €15.85

$19.64 €17.60

-9.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.30 €2.96

$2.98 €2.67

10.74%

Banana (1kg)

$2.13 €1.91

$2.02 €1.81

5.45%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.43 €3.07

$2.70 €2.42

27.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.75 €3.36

$2.80 €2.51

33.93%

Potato (1kg)

$2.18 €1.95

$2.09 €1.87

4.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 €1.23

$2.07 €1.85

-33.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.41

$1.46 €1.31

7.53%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 €0.73

$0.94 €0.84

-12.77%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.81 €8.79

$6.87 €6.16

42.79%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.51 €5.84

$7.89 €7.07

-17.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 €0.98

$1.41 €1.26

-22.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.33

$2.54 €2.27

-41.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 €2.88

$3.14 €2.82

2.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$70.8 €63.4

$25.45 €22.80

178.19%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.43 €4.87

$2.99 €2.68

81.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.22 €3.78

$1.49 €1.34

183.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$45.08 €40.40

$33.37 €29.91

35.09%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 €1.91

$1.80 €1.61

18.33%

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

$32.3K €29.0K

$33.2K €29.7K

-2.60%

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

$37.7K €33.7K

$31.7K €28.4K

18.80%

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

$673 €603

$180 €162

272.93%

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

$28.27 €25.33

$13.84 €12.40

104.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.04 €30.51

$33.70 €30.20

1.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.65 €36.43

$51.5 €46.16

-21.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.35 €26.30

$15.96 €14.30

83.90%

Cinema Ticket

$15.39 €13.79

$10.99 €9.85

40.04%

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

$442 €396

$917 €821

-51.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$94.4 €84.5

$87.0 €78.0

8.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.66 €28.37

$38.51 €34.51

-17.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$122 €109

$106 €94.8

15.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$120 €107

-5.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$744 €666

$1,699 €1,523

-56.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$526 €471

$1,355 €1,214

-61.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,608 €1,441

$2,603 €2,332

-38.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,086 €973

$2,062 €1,848

-47.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,721 €4,230

$6,915 €6,196

-31.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,455 €2,200

$5,128 €4,595

-52.12%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,032 €2,717

$2,211 €1,981

37.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.95

3.28

20.43%

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

Last update for Erfurt: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Erfurt

$735 33.4%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 69% $507

Accommodation & Living

Erfurt

$526 23.9%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 158% $830

Groceries & Markets

Erfurt

$319 14.5%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 1% $3.3

Eating Out

Erfurt

$276 12.6%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 3.1% $8.5

Clothing & Footwear

Erfurt

$162 7.4%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 2.7% $4.4

Getting Around

Erfurt

$110 5%

Barcelona

$48 2% 56% $62

Sport & Entertainment

Erfurt

$71 3.3%

Barcelona

$74 3% 2.9% $2.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $744 in Erfurt and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Erfurt pays 37% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67 in Erfurt vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $319 vs $322 per month, with Erfurt cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Erfurt

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

18:36 6:36 PM

Same time as Erfurt

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

215,000

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Erfurt Barcelona 1,260 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Erfurt
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

Erfurt vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,200 in Erfurt and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Erfurt is about 10% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Erfurt, 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: $744 in Erfurt versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

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

All in, you’ll spend $2,200 per month in Erfurt versus $2,453 in Barcelona – Erfurt is about 10% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Erfurt 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, Erfurt and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.