Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamilton and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamilton: $2,253 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $1,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

110

Cost of Living Index in Hamilton
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Hamilton Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

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Hamilton

🇨🇦 Canada

$2,253

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,253 in Hamilton versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Hamilton $2,253
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,331 in Hamilton versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Hamilton $3,331
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,408 in Hamilton versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Hamilton $4,408
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Hamilton costs roughly 6% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Hamilton 67% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.21 CA$24.33

$17.94 €15.96

-4.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.7 CA$92.8

$68.1 €60.5

-3.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.87 CA$16.77

$13.28 €11.81

-10.62%

Cappuccino

$3.37 CA$4.77

$3.25 €2.89

3.69%

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

$2.22 CA$3.14

$3.01 €2.67

-26.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 CA$2.39

$1.87 €1.66

-9.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.99 CA$7.05

$3.85 €3.42

29.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.03 CA$8.52

$4.48 €3.98

34.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.89 CA$2.67

$1.29 €1.15

46.51%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 CA$2.99

$2.04 €1.81

3.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.13 CA$4.43

$1.72 €1.53

81.98%

Eggs

$3.33 CA$4.70

$4.77 €4.24

-30.19%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.88 CA$11.13

$16.77 €14.91

-53.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.30 CA$15.98

$8.93 €7.94

26.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.24 CA$20.13

$19.88 €17.68

-28.37%

Apples (1kg)

$3.81 CA$5.38

$2.98 €2.65

27.85%

Banana (1kg)

$1.27 CA$1.79

$2.03 €1.80

-37.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.98 CA$5.63

$2.73 €2.43

45.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.82 CA$5.40

$2.68 €2.38

42.54%

Potato (1kg)

$2.71 CA$3.83

$2.10 €1.87

29.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.91 CA$2.69

$2.08 €1.85

-8.17%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.95 CA$2.75

$1.45 €1.29

34.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 CA$1.88

$0.89 €0.79

49.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.49 CA$17.65

$6.94 €6.17

79.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.95 CA$19.72

$7.78 €6.92

79.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.65 CA$3.74

$1.45 €1.29

82.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.77 CA$5.33

$2.57 €2.29

46.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.56 CA$3.62

$2.99 €2.66

-14.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$84.1 CA$119

$25.20 €22.41

233.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.36 CA$4.76

$3.12 €2.77

7.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.28 CA$1.82

$1.44 €1.28

-11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.24 CA$32.85

$33.50 €29.80

-30.63%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.21 CA$1.71

$1.79 €1.59

-32.40%

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

$27.6K CA$39.1K

$34.6K €30.8K

-20.21%

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

$19.6K CA$27.7K

$30.1K €26.7K

-34.77%

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

$152 CA$214

$178 €158

-14.75%

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

$41.21 CA$58.3

$13.32 €11.85

209.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.2 CA$70.9

$34.88 €31.02

43.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$36.85 CA$52.1

$53.3 €47.36

-30.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.62 CA$24.91

$16.01 €14.24

10.06%

Cinema Ticket

$10.23 CA$14.46

$11.06 €9.84

-7.50%

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

$600 CA$848

$957 €851

-37.34%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K CA$23.4K

$16.6K €14.7K

-0.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.93 CA$67.8

$88.2 €78.4

-45.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.45 CA$43.05

$39.49 €35.12

-22.89%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.8 CA$118

$103 €91.4

-18.47%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 CA$161

$121 €108

-6.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,251 CA$1,769

$1,653 €1,470

-24.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,123 CA$1,588

$1,302 €1,158

-13.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,042 CA$2,887

$2,557 €2,275

-20.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,873 CA$2,647

$1,915 €1,703

-2.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,695 CA$3,810

$7,286 €6,480

-63.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,668 CA$3,771

$5,080 €4,518

-47.49%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,860 CA$4,044

$2,281 €2,028

25.43%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.6

3.28

40.24%

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

Last update for Hamilton: October 10, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hamilton

$1.1K 49.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 15.9% $178

Groceries & Markets

Hamilton

$335 14.9%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 4.4% $15

Eating Out

Hamilton

$266 11.8%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 1.4% $3.6

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamilton

$243 10.8%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 7% $17

Clothing & Footwear

Hamilton

$124 5.5%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 27.5% $34

Getting Around

Hamilton

$104 4.6%

Barcelona

$47 2% 54.4% $57

Sport & Entertainment

Hamilton

$57 2.5%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 31.5% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,251 in Hamilton and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamilton pays 25% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $66.0 in Hamilton vs $68.0 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $335 vs $320, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Hamilton

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

11:47 11:47 AM

17:47 5:47 PM

6 h ahead of Hamilton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

519,949

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Hamilton Barcelona 6,460 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamilton
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

Hamilton vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hamilton and Barcelona differ by about 6% in total monthly costs ($2,253 vs $2,399 including rent). Hamilton is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 25% higher in Hamilton, 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: $1,251 in Hamilton versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $600 in Hamilton versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 5% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,253 in Hamilton versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Hamilton but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Hamilton 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, Hamilton 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 Hamilton gentler on the wallet – expenses run 6% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.