Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Geel and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Geel: $2,037 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $5,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

98

Cost of Living Index in Geel
Learn more

Geel Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Geel

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,037

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,037 in Geel versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Geel $2,037
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,915 in Geel versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Geel $2,915
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,793 in Geel versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Geel $3,793
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Geel costs roughly 17% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Geel 50% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.27 €16.41

$17.59 €15.80

3.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.9 €69.1

$67.5 €60.6

13.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.54 €9.47

$13.53 €12.15

-22.10%

Cappuccino

$3.94 €3.54

$3.19 €2.87

23.51%

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

$2.70 €2.43

$2.91 €2.62

-7.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 €2.87

$1.89 €1.70

68.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.52 €4.06

$4.01 €3.60

12.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 €3.07

$4.53 €4.07

-24.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 €1.15

$1.31 €1.17

-2.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.67 €2.40

$2.02 €1.81

32.18%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 €2.43

$1.85 €1.66

46.49%

Eggs

$5.29 €4.76

$4.83 €4.34

9.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.60 €15.81

$16.74 €15.03

5.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.21 €11.86

$9.12 €8.19

44.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.92 €19.69

$19.64 €17.64

11.61%

Apples (1kg)

$3.14 €2.82

$2.98 €2.68

5.37%

Banana (1kg)

$2.47 €2.22

$2.02 €1.81

22.28%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 €2.54

$2.70 €2.43

4.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.15 €3.73

$2.80 €2.52

48.21%

Potato (1kg)

$2.46 €2.21

$2.09 €1.87

17.70%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 €1.92

$2.07 €1.86

3.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.87 €1.68

$1.46 €1.31

28.08%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.69 €0.62

$0.94 €0.84

-26.60%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.61 €12.22

$6.87 €6.17

98.11%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.90 €8.00

$7.89 €7.08

12.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.35

$1.41 €1.26

85.82%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.01 €2.70

$2.54 €2.28

18.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.26 €2.92

$3.14 €2.82

3.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.9 €61.9

$25.45 €22.86

170.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.94 €2.64

$2.99 €2.69

-1.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 €2.00

$1.49 €1.34

48.99%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$40.50 €36.38

$33.37 €29.98

21.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.66

$1.80 €1.61

2.22%

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

$24.2K €21.8K

$33.2K €29.8K

-27.02%

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

$35.7K €32.1K

$31.7K €28.5K

12.68%

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

$168 €151

$180 €162

-6.84%

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

$21.24 €19.08

$13.84 €12.43

53.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.8 €45.63

$33.70 €30.27

50.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.64 €34.71

$51.5 €46.27

-24.99%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

Cinema Ticket

$15.62 €14.03

$10.99 €9.88

42.13%

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

$1,617 €1,453

$917 €823

76.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$36.0K €32.4K

$16.5K €14.8K

118.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 €91.2

$87.0 €78.2

16.64%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.70 €41.05

$38.51 €34.59

18.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €101

$106 €95.1

6.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 €129

$120 €108

20.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,015 €912

$1,699 €1,527

-40.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$789 €708

$1,355 €1,217

-41.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,066 €958

$2,603 €2,338

-59.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$940 €844

$2,062 €1,853

-54.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,968 €3,565

$6,915 €6,211

-42.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,415 €3,068

$5,128 €4,606

-33.40%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,369 €2,128

$2,211 €1,986

7.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

-8.54%

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

Last update for Geel: October 27, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Geel

$789 38.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 71.8% $567

Groceries & Markets

Geel

$383 18.8%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 16% $61

Eating Out

Geel

$278 13.7%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 3.6% $10

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Geel

$240 11.8%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 5.1% $12

Clothing & Footwear

Geel

$182 8.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 13.1% $24

Getting Around

Geel

$96 4.7%

Barcelona

$48 2% 49.5% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Geel

$70 3.4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 5.2% $3.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,015 in Geel and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Geel pays 7% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $77 in Geel vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $383 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Geel

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

18:44 6:44 PM

Same time as Geel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

40,781

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Geel Barcelona 1,110 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Geel
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

Geel vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Geel and Barcelona differ by about 20% in total monthly costs ($2,037 vs $2,453 including rent). Geel is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 7% higher in Geel, 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: $1,015 in Geel versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,617 in Geel versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 16% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Geel gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Geel 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.