Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilopango and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Ilopango: $1,619 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Ilopango
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Ilopango Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Ilopango

🇸🇻 El Salvador

$1,619

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,619 in Ilopango versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Ilopango $1,619
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,863 in Ilopango versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Ilopango $1,863
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,107 in Ilopango versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Ilopango $2,107
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Ilopango costs roughly 32% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ilopango 19% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.23 $3.23

$17.89 €15.95

-81.95%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.80 $44.80

$66.2 €59.0

-32.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.97 $4.97

$13.69 €12.20

-63.70%

Cappuccino

$2.96 $2.96

$3.06 €2.73

-3.27%

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

$0.87 $0.87

$3.07 €2.74

-71.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.99 $0.99

$1.94 €1.73

-48.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.92 $0.92

$3.87 €3.45

-76.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 $1.75

$4.61 €4.11

-62.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$3.20 $3.20

$1.30 €1.16

146.15%

White Bread (500g)

$1.49 $1.49

$2.10 €1.87

-29.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.06 $3.06

$1.83 €1.63

67.21%

Eggs

$2.95 $2.95

$4.62 €4.12

-36.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.96 $4.96

$17.36 €15.47

-71.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.91 $5.91

$9.28 €8.27

-36.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.20 $10.20

$19.83 €17.68

-48.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 $2.98

$3.01 €2.69

-1.00%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$2.03 €1.81

-3.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 $1.95

$2.65 €2.36

-26.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.04 $2.04

$2.87 €2.56

-28.92%

Potato (1kg)

$2.02 $2.02

$2.16 €1.92

-6.48%

Onion (1kg)

$2.04 $2.04

$2.15 €1.91

-5.12%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.93 $0.93

$1.47 €1.31

-36.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.03 $1.03

$0.88 €0.79

17.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.91 $3.91

$6.93 €6.17

-43.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.84 $11.84

$7.83 €6.98

51.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.39 €1.24

-29.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 $2.05

$2.63 €2.35

-22.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.88 $0.88

$2.91 €2.59

-69.76%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$35.26 $35.26

$25.46 €22.69

38.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.86 $6.86

$3.00 €2.67

128.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.44 €1.29

54.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.66 $4.66

$33.20 €29.59

-85.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.68 $0.68

$1.86 €1.66

-63.44%

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

$19.8K $19.8K

$32.3K €28.8K

-38.68%

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

$25.3K $25.3K

$31.7K €28.3K

-20.09%

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

$35.69 $35.69

$183 €163

-80.47%

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

$9.91 $9.91

$13.61 €12.13

-27.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.70 $40.70

$32.93 €29.35

23.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.29 $40.29

$54.7 €48.75

-26.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.07 $10.07

$16.52 €14.73

-39.04%

Cinema Ticket

$5.14 $5.14

$11.23 €10.01

-54.23%

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

$103 $103

$954 €850

-89.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,882 $1,882

$16.6K €14.8K

-88.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$20.18 $20.18

$86.0 €76.7

-76.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.10 $30.10

$39.11 €34.86

-23.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$74.3 $74.3

$104 €92.4

-28.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$59.0 $59.0

$119 €106

-50.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$672 $672

$1,695 €1,511

-60.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,002 $1,002

$1,276 €1,137

-21.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$592 $592

$2,576 €2,296

-77.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$619 $619

$1,922 €1,713

-67.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,689 $1,689

$7,281 €6,490

-76.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$953 $953

$5,010 €4,465

-80.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,010 $1,010

$2,227 €1,985

-54.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

82.93%

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

Last update for Ilopango: October 20, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ilopango

$1K 61.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 27.4% $274

Groceries & Markets

Ilopango

$249 15.4%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 30.3% $76

Eating Out

Ilopango

$92 5.7%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 194% $178

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilopango

$86 5.3%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 166% $143

Clothing & Footwear

Ilopango

$83 5.1%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 89.3% $74

Getting Around

Ilopango

$57 3.5%

Barcelona

$47 2% 16.6% $9.4

Sport & Entertainment

Ilopango

$51 3.1%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 52.6% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $672 in Ilopango and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $45 in Ilopango vs $66 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $249 vs $325 per month, with Ilopango cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇻 Ilopango

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:24 5:24 AM

12:24 12:24 PM

7 h ahead of Ilopango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,890

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.891 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Ilopango Barcelona 9,110 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Ilopango
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

Ilopango vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ilopango and Barcelona differ by about 47% in total monthly costs ($1,619 vs $2,381 including rent). Ilopango is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 55% lower in Ilopango. 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: $672 in Ilopango versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $103 in Ilopango versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 30% 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.

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