Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gyeongju and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Gyeongju: $1,236 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $14,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Gyeongju
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Gyeongju Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Gyeongju

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,236

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,236 in Gyeongju versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Gyeongju $1,236
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,053 in Gyeongju versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Gyeongju $2,053
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,871 in Gyeongju versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Gyeongju $2,871
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Gyeongju costs roughly 49% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gyeongju is 9% below, Barcelona is 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.38 ₩9,922

$17.66 €15.73

-58.21%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$47.59 ₩63.9K

$67.5 €60.1

-29.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.45 ₩8,673

$13.61 €12.13

-52.61%

Cappuccino

$2.99 ₩4,015

$3.10 €2.76

-3.55%

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

$1.13 ₩1,522

$3.00 €2.67

-62.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.36 ₩483

$1.93 €1.72

-81.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ₩3,516

$3.84 €3.42

-31.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.21 ₩5,654

$4.36 €3.88

-3.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.33 ₩3,124

$1.25 €1.11

86.40%

White Bread (500g)

$2.53 ₩3,402

$2.12 €1.89

19.34%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.07 ₩4,132

$1.97 €1.76

55.84%

Eggs

$2.57 ₩3,459

$4.76 €4.24

-46.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.82 ₩14.5K

$17.07 €15.20

-36.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.34 ₩13.9K

$8.96 €7.98

15.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.74 ₩25.2K

$20.65 €18.39

-9.25%

Apples (1kg)

$4.42 ₩5,944

$3.16 €2.82

39.87%

Banana (1kg)

$2.67 ₩3,585

$1.97 €1.75

35.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.73 ₩5,015

$2.65 €2.36

40.75%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 ₩4,908

$2.88 €2.57

26.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.54 ₩3,414

$2.06 €1.83

23.30%

Onion (1kg)

$2.27 ₩3,050

$2.18 €1.94

4.13%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.18 ₩2,928

$1.53 €1.37

42.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.31 ₩1,765

$0.97 €0.86

35.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.40 ₩4,567

$6.97 €6.21

-51.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.95 ₩20.1K

$7.89 €7.03

89.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 ₩1,466

$1.42 €1.26

-23.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 ₩2,908

$2.69 €2.39

-19.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.03 ₩1,382

$3.31 €2.95

-68.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.81

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 ₩4,024

$3.08 €2.75

-2.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 ₩830

$1.48 €1.32

-58.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.01 ₩20.2K

$32.87 €29.28

-54.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 ₩1,420

$1.87 €1.66

-43.32%

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

$38.5K ₩51.8M

$33.0K €29.4K

16.86%

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

$33.9K ₩45.6M

$31.9K €28.5K

6.15%

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

$79.4 ₩106.7K

$183 €163

-56.56%

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

$36.57 ₩49.1K

$14.24 €12.69

156.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.28 ₩36.7K

$34.56 €30.79

-21.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.4 ₩73.1K

$51.4 €45.81

5.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.33 ₩20.6K

$16.38 €14.60

-6.41%

Cinema Ticket

$11.20 ₩15.1K

$11.06 €9.86

1.27%

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

$639 ₩858.7K

$944 €841

-32.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K ₩29.6M

$22.3K €19.8K

-1.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.27 ₩59.5K

$87.7 €78.1

-49.51%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.44 ₩30.1K

$38.77 €34.54

-42.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.0 ₩126.3K

$105 €93.1

-10.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 ₩167.0K

$118 €105

5.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$430 ₩577.4K

$1,697 €1,512

-74.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$376 ₩505.9K

$1,337 €1,191

-71.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,151 ₩1.5M

$2,692 €2,398

-57.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$858 ₩1.2M

$2,077 €1,850

-58.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,043 ₩8.1M

$7,155 €6,373

-15.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,003 ₩8.1M

$5,079 €4,524

18.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,851 ₩2.5M

$2,241 €1,997

-17.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.22

3.19

32.29%

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

Last update for Gyeongju: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gyeongju

$376 30.5%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 255% $960

Groceries & Markets

Gyeongju

$359 29.1%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 8.8% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gyeongju

$143 11.6%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 61.7% $88

Eating Out

Gyeongju

$142 11.5%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 88.3% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Gyeongju

$128 10.4%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 22.4% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Gyeongju

$77 6.2%

Barcelona

$74 3% 4.2% $3.2

Getting Around

Gyeongju

$10 * 0.8%

Barcelona

$49 2% 384% $39

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 $430 in Gyeongju and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 21% 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: $48 in Gyeongju vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $359 vs $328, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Gyeongju

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:22 11:22 PM

15:22 3:22 PM

8 h behind Gyeongju

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

258,156

1,660,122

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.44 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.62 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 1,344 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.44 USD). 1 EUR = 1,510 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.62 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.891 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Gyeongju Barcelona 9,870 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Gyeongju
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

Gyeongju vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,236 in Gyeongju and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Gyeongju is about 49% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Gyeongju. 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: $430 in Gyeongju versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $639 in Gyeongju versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Gyeongju – a meal for two runs $48 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,236 in Gyeongju versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Gyeongju but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Gyeongju 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, Gyeongju and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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