Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Heraklion and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Heraklion: $1,612 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Heraklion
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Heraklion Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Heraklion

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,612

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,612 in Heraklion versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Heraklion $1,612
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,516 in Heraklion versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Heraklion $2,516
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,420 in Heraklion versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Heraklion $3,420
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Heraklion costs roughly 34% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Heraklion 18% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.90 €11.56

$17.59 €15.76

-26.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.5 €49.75

$67.5 €60.5

-17.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.19 €9.13

$13.53 €12.12

-24.69%

Cappuccino

$3.69 €3.31

$3.19 €2.86

15.67%

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

$2.45 €2.19

$2.91 €2.61

-15.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.75 €0.67

$1.89 €1.70

-60.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.47 €4.90

$4.01 €3.59

36.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.27 €4.72

$4.53 €4.06

16.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.73 €1.55

$1.31 €1.17

32.06%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 €1.30

$2.02 €1.81

-28.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.57 €2.30

$1.85 €1.66

38.92%

Eggs

$4.50 €4.03

$4.83 €4.33

-6.83%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.89 €14.24

$16.74 €15.00

-5.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.49 €9.40

$9.12 €8.17

15.02%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.31 €13.72

$19.64 €17.60

-22.05%

Apples (1kg)

$2.13 €1.91

$2.98 €2.67

-28.52%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

$2.02 €1.81

2.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 €1.26

$2.70 €2.42

-47.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.68 €1.51

$2.80 €2.51

-40.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.18 €1.06

$2.09 €1.87

-43.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.17 €1.05

$2.07 €1.85

-43.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.95 €0.86

$1.46 €1.31

-34.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.75 €0.67

$0.94 €0.84

-20.21%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.88 €4.37

$6.87 €6.16

-28.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.04 €7.21

$7.89 €7.07

1.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.22 €1.99

$1.41 €1.26

57.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.88 €2.58

$2.54 €2.27

13.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 €1.31

$3.14 €2.82

-53.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$68.9 €61.7

$25.45 €22.80

170.65%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.36 €3.90

$2.99 €2.68

45.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.10 €0.99

$1.49 €1.34

-26.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.35 €10.17

$33.37 €29.91

-65.99%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 €1.97

$1.80 €1.61

22.22%

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

$28.5K €25.5K

$33.2K €29.7K

-14.27%

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

$24.5K €22.0K

$31.7K €28.4K

-22.64%

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

$194 €174

$180 €162

7.51%

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

$29.91 €26.80

$13.84 €12.40

116.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$38.16 €34.20

$33.70 €30.20

13.23%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €49.03

$51.5 €46.16

6.21%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$39.02 €34.97

$15.96 €14.30

144.49%

Cinema Ticket

$9.07 €8.13

$10.99 €9.85

-17.47%

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

$412 €370

$917 €821

-55.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,013 €3,596

$16.5K €14.8K

-75.65%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.0 €81.5

$87.0 €78.0

4.50%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.15 €38.67

$38.51 €34.51

12.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$83.2 €74.6

$106 €94.8

-21.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 €119

$120 €107

11.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$666 €597

$1,699 €1,523

-60.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$511 €458

$1,355 €1,214

-62.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,209 €1,084

$2,603 €2,332

-53.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$997 €893

$2,062 €1,848

-51.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,562 €3,192

$6,915 €6,196

-48.49%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,653 €2,378

$5,128 €4,595

-48.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,108 €993

$2,211 €1,981

-49.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.44

3.28

35.37%

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

Last update for Heraklion: 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

Heraklion

$511 31.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 165% $844

Groceries & Markets

Heraklion

$295 18.3%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 9.1% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Heraklion

$262 16.3%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 13% $34

Eating Out

Heraklion

$229 14.2%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 17.1% $39

Clothing & Footwear

Heraklion

$158 9.8%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 0.1% $0.2

Getting Around

Heraklion

$85 5.3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 42.7% $36

Sport & Entertainment

Heraklion

$73 4.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 0.9% $0.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $666 in Heraklion and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 100% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $56 in Heraklion vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $295 vs $322 per month, with Heraklion cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Heraklion

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

09:11 9:11 AM

08:11 8:11 AM

1 h behind Heraklion

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

140,730

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Heraklion Barcelona 2,100 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Heraklion
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

Heraklion vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,612 in Heraklion and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Heraklion is about 34% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 50% lower in Heraklion. 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: $666 in Heraklion versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $412 in Heraklion 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 9% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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, Heraklion and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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