Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gaborone and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Gaborone: $845 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Gaborone
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Gaborone Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Gaborone

🇧🇼 Botswana

$845

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $845 in Gaborone versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Gaborone $845
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,307 in Gaborone versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Gaborone $1,307
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,768 in Gaborone versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Gaborone $1,768
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Gaborone costs roughly 66% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gaborone is 38% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.88 P 147

$17.59 €15.80

-38.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.05 P 392

$67.5 €60.6

-56.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.76 P 77.8

$13.53 €12.15

-57.43%

Cappuccino

$2.35 P 31.67

$3.19 €2.87

-26.33%

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

$0.68 P 9.24

$2.91 €2.62

-76.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.40 P 5.46

$1.89 €1.70

-78.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.01 P 27.17

$4.01 €3.60

-49.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.48 P 33.44

$4.53 €4.07

-45.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 P 19.94

$1.31 €1.17

12.98%

White Bread (500g)

$0.84 P 11.30

$2.02 €1.81

-58.42%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 P 24.04

$1.85 €1.66

-3.78%

Eggs

$2.44 P 32.90

$4.83 €4.34

-49.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.52 P 88.0

$16.74 €15.03

-61.05%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.43 P 59.8

$9.12 €8.19

-51.43%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.99 P 67.3

$19.64 €17.64

-74.59%

Apples (1kg)

$1.59 P 21.40

$2.98 €2.68

-46.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.45 P 19.49

$2.02 €1.81

-28.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.98 P 26.74

$2.70 €2.43

-26.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.67 P 22.47

$2.80 €2.52

-40.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 P 17.47

$2.09 €1.87

-37.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.21 P 16.29

$2.07 €1.86

-41.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 P 17.27

$1.46 €1.31

-12.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 P 13.10

$0.94 €0.84

3.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.60 P 48.56

$6.87 €6.17

-47.60%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.25 P 57.3

$7.89 €7.08

-46.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 P 18.68

$1.41 €1.26

-2.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.78 P 24.04

$2.54 €2.28

-29.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 P 8.40

$3.14 €2.82

-80.25%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.95 P 404

$25.45 €22.86

17.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 P 8.14

$2.99 €2.69

-79.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.46 P 33.24

$1.49 €1.34

65.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.93 P 39.52

$33.37 €29.98

-91.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.32 P 17.84

$1.80 €1.61

-26.67%

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

$30.0K P 404.8K

$33.2K €29.8K

-9.59%

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

$20.1K P 271.2K

$31.7K €28.5K

-36.57%

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

$61.0 P 823

$180 €162

-66.20%

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

$18.34 P 247

$13.84 €12.43

32.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.67 P 589

$33.70 €30.27

29.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$34.07 P 460

$51.5 €46.27

-33.86%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.29 P 220

$15.96 €14.34

2.07%

Cinema Ticket

$6.23 P 84.1

$10.99 €9.88

-43.31%

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

$129 P 1,744

$917 €823

-85.89%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,545 P 34.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

-84.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.15 P 650

$87.0 €78.2

-44.67%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$16.72 P 226

$38.51 €34.59

-56.58%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$72.1 P 972

$106 €95.1

-31.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$78.6 P 1,060

$120 €108

-34.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 P 4,763

$1,699 €1,527

-79.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$209 P 2,824

$1,355 €1,217

-84.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$534 P 7,198

$2,603 €2,338

-79.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$356 P 4,802

$2,062 €1,853

-82.74%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,034 P 27.4K

$6,915 €6,211

-70.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,260 P 17.0K

$5,128 €4,606

-75.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$451 P 6,087

$2,211 €1,986

-79.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.33

3.28

245.43%

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

Last update for Gaborone: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gaborone

$209 24.8%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 548% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Gaborone

$172 20.3%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 87.5% $150

Eating Out

Gaborone

$152 18%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 76.4% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gaborone

$123 14.6%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 85.4% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Gaborone

$97 11.5%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 62.9% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Gaborone

$47 5.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 58% $27

Getting Around

Gaborone

$45 5.4%

Barcelona

$48 2% 6.8% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $353 in Gaborone and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 4.9 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $29 in Gaborone vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $172 vs $322 per month, with Gaborone cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇼 Gaborone

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

00:07 12:07 AM

23:07 11:07 PM

1 h behind Gaborone

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

231,626 Capital

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Botswana Pula BWP P

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 BWP = 7.41 USD

100 BWP = 6.66 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to BWP – Botswana Pula Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇼 Botswana Pula (P)

Botswana Pula exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 13.49 BWP (100 BWP = 7.41 USD). 1 EUR = 15.02 BWP (100 BWP = 6.66 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to BWP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Gaborone Barcelona 7,740 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Gaborone
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

Gaborone vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $845 in Gaborone and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Gaborone is about 66% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 80% lower in Gaborone. 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: $353 in Gaborone versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $129 in Gaborone 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 88% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $845 in Gaborone versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Gaborone but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Gaborone 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, Gaborone and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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