Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Essaouira and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Essaouira: $781 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Essaouira
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Essaouira Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Essaouira

🇲🇦 Morocco

$781

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $781 in Essaouira versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Essaouira $781
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,172 in Essaouira versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Essaouira $1,172
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,563 in Essaouira versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Essaouira $1,563
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Essaouira costs roughly 67% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Essaouira is 42% below, Barcelona is 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$4.52 MAD 44.11

$17.89 €15.92

-74.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$18.78 MAD 183

$66.2 €58.9

-71.61%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.36 MAD 71.8

$13.69 €12.18

-46.24%

Cappuccino

$1.33 MAD 12.92

$3.06 €2.72

-56.54%

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

$0.46 MAD 4.49

$3.07 €2.73

-85.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.37 MAD 3.64

$1.94 €1.73

-80.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.10 MAD 49.73

$3.87 €3.44

31.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MAD 42.83

$4.61 €4.10

-4.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.91 MAD 8.87

$1.30 €1.16

-30.00%

White Bread (500g)

$0.52 MAD 5.08

$2.10 €1.87

-75.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.67 MAD 16.33

$1.83 €1.62

-8.74%

Eggs

$1.62 MAD 15.76

$4.62 €4.11

-64.94%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.12 MAD 79.1

$17.36 €15.44

-53.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.92 MAD 57.8

$9.28 €8.25

-36.21%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.67 MAD 104

$19.83 €17.64

-46.19%

Apples (1kg)

$1.28 MAD 12.50

$3.01 €2.68

-57.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.17 MAD 11.45

$2.03 €1.81

-42.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.66 MAD 6.45

$2.65 €2.36

-75.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.77 MAD 7.48

$2.87 €2.55

-73.17%

Potato (1kg)

$0.58 MAD 5.67

$2.16 €1.92

-73.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.70 MAD 6.79

$2.15 €1.91

-67.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.35 MAD 3.41

$1.47 €1.31

-76.19%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 MAD 5.72

$0.88 €0.79

-32.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.85 MAD 37.58

$6.93 €6.16

-44.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.98 MAD 58.3

$7.83 €6.96

-23.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 MAD 16.58

$1.39 €1.24

22.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 MAD 20.34

$2.63 €2.34

-20.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 MAD 8.32

$2.91 €2.59

-70.79%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.62 MAD 6.09

$3.00 €2.66

-79.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.64 MAD 6.23

$1.44 €1.28

-55.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.48 MAD 14.46

$1.86 €1.65

-20.43%

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

$31.0K MAD 302.6K

$32.3K €28.8K

-4.04%

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

$32.1K MAD 313.0K

$31.7K €28.2K

1.26%

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

$24.14 MAD 235

$183 €163

-86.79%

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

$16.96 MAD 165

$13.61 €12.11

24.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$29.95 MAD 292

$32.93 €29.29

-9.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$5.10 MAD 49.70

$11.23 €9.99

-54.59%

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

$67.8 MAD 661

$954 €849

-92.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,803 MAD 17.6K

$16.6K €14.8K

-89.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$29.33 MAD 286

$86.0 €76.5

-65.91%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.93 MAD 419

$39.11 €34.78

9.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$59.1 MAD 576

$104 €92.2

-43.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$40.42 MAD 394

$119 €106

-65.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$386 MAD 3,760

$1,695 €1,508

-77.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$334 MAD 3,259

$1,276 €1,135

-73.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$913 MAD 8,905

$2,576 €2,291

-64.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$569 MAD 5,547

$1,922 €1,710

-70.40%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$254 MAD 2,479

$2,227 €1,981

-88.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.5

3.28

98.17%

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

Last update for Essaouira: October 18, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Essaouira

$334 42.8%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 282% $942

Groceries & Markets

Essaouira

$170 21.7%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 91.7% $155

Eating Out

Essaouira

$112 14.3%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 141% $158

Clothing & Footwear

Essaouira

$77 9.9%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 102% $79

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Essaouira

$71 9.1%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 223% $158

Sport & Entertainment

Essaouira

$10 * 1.3%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 657% $67

Getting Around

Essaouira

$7.2 * 0.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 554% $40

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $386 in Essaouira and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 776% 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: $19.00 in Essaouira vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $170 vs $325 per month, with Essaouira cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇦 Essaouira

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

14:17 2:17 PM

15:17 3:17 PM

1 h ahead of Essaouira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

77,966

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Moroccan Dirham MAD د.م.

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MAD = 10.26 USD

100 MAD = 9.12 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MAD – Moroccan Dirham Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇦 Moroccan Dirham (د.م.)

Moroccan Dirham exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 9.75 MAD (1 MAD = 0.103 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 MAD (100 MAD = 9.12 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Essaouira Barcelona 1,530 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Essaouira
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

Essaouira vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Essaouira and Barcelona differ by about 205% in total monthly costs ($781 vs $2,381 including rent). Essaouira is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 776% 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: $386 in Essaouira versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $67.8 in Essaouira versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Essaouira – a meal for two runs $19.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $781 in Essaouira versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Essaouira but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Essaouira 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, Essaouira 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 Essaouira gentler on the wallet – expenses run 205% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.