Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hasselt and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Hasselt: $2,021 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $5,200 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

98

Cost of Living Index in Hasselt
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Hasselt Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Hasselt

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,021

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,021 in Hasselt versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Hasselt $2,021
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,042 in Hasselt versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Hasselt $3,042
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,063 in Hasselt versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Hasselt $4,063
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Hasselt costs roughly 18% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Hasselt 49% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.32 €20.05

$17.59 €15.80

26.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.7 €87.8

$67.5 €60.6

44.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.60 €12.22

$13.53 €12.15

0.52%

Cappuccino

$3.80 €3.41

$3.19 €2.87

19.12%

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

$3.51 €3.16

$2.91 €2.62

20.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.25 €2.92

$1.89 €1.70

71.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 €4.87

$4.01 €3.60

35.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.16 €4.63

$4.53 €4.07

13.91%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 €1.21

$1.31 €1.17

2.29%

White Bread (500g)

$2.42 €2.17

$2.02 €1.81

19.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.28 €2.04

$1.85 €1.66

23.24%

Eggs

$3.23 €2.91

$4.83 €4.34

-33.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.01 €7.19

$16.74 €15.03

-52.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.71 €10.52

$9.12 €8.19

28.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.25 €19.98

$19.64 €17.64

13.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.03 €1.82

$2.98 €2.68

-31.88%

Banana (1kg)

$1.66 €1.49

$2.02 €1.81

-17.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.61 €2.35

$2.70 €2.43

-3.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.69 €2.42

$2.80 €2.52

-3.93%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$2.09 €1.87

-11.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.37 €1.23

$2.07 €1.86

-33.82%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 €0.90

$1.46 €1.31

-31.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 €0.97

$0.94 €0.84

14.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.64 €11.36

$6.87 €6.17

83.99%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.84 €7.94

$7.89 €7.08

12.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.62 €1.45

$1.41 €1.26

14.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 €1.84

$2.54 €2.28

-19.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.15 €2.83

$3.14 €2.82

0.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.27 €28.99

$25.45 €22.86

26.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 €5.13

$2.99 €2.69

90.97%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.62 €2.35

$1.49 €1.34

75.84%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$36.45 €32.74

$33.37 €29.98

9.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 €1.77

$1.80 €1.61

10.00%

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

$34.9K €31.4K

$33.2K €29.8K

5.27%

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

$33.8K €30.4K

$31.7K €28.5K

6.61%

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

$212 €191

$180 €162

17.57%

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

$19.34 €17.37

$13.84 €12.43

39.74%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.00 €42.22

$33.70 €30.27

39.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$27.97 €25.12

$51.5 €46.27

-45.70%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.18 €8.25

$15.96 €14.34

-42.48%

Cinema Ticket

$15.00 €13.47

$10.99 €9.88

36.49%

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

$1,664 €1,494

$917 €823

81.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$33.0K €29.7K

$16.5K €14.8K

100.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$115 €104

$87.0 €78.2

32.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.3 €47.87

$38.51 €34.59

38.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.3

$106 €95.1

0.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 €120

$120 €108

11.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$906 €814

$1,699 €1,527

-46.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$800 €719

$1,355 €1,217

-40.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,457 €1,308

$2,603 €2,338

-44.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,218 €1,095

$2,062 €1,853

-40.92%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,588 €4,122

$6,915 €6,211

-33.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,398 €2,154

$5,128 €4,606

-53.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,045 €2,735

$2,211 €1,986

37.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.53

3.28

7.62%

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

Last update for Hasselt: October 24, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Hasselt

$800 39.6%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 69.4% $555

Eating Out

Hasselt

$329 16.3%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 18.7% $62

Groceries & Markets

Hasselt

$308 15.2%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 4.5% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hasselt

$278 13.8%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 18.1% $50

Clothing & Footwear

Hasselt

$184 9.1%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 14.1% $26

Getting Around

Hasselt

$64 3.2%

Barcelona

$48 2% 23.8% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Hasselt

$58 2.9%

Barcelona

$74 3% 26.8% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $906 in Hasselt and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hasselt pays 38% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $98 in Hasselt vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $308 vs $322, with Hasselt cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇧🇪 Hasselt

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

21:32 9:32 PM

Same time as Hasselt

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,694

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Hasselt Barcelona 1,090 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Hasselt
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

Hasselt vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,021 in Hasselt and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Hasselt is about 18% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 38% higher in Hasselt, 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: $906 in Hasselt versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,664 in Hasselt 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 4% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Hasselt 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, Hasselt and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.