Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iquique and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Iquique: $1,009 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

49

Cost of Living Index in Iquique
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Iquique Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Iquique

🇨🇱 Chile

$1,009

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,009 in Iquique versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Iquique $1,009
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,595 in Iquique versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Iquique $1,595
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,181 in Iquique versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Iquique $2,181
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Iquique costs roughly 58% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Iquique is 26% below, Barcelona is 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.52 CLP 7,405

$17.89 €15.92

-57.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.89 CLP 40.3K

$66.2 €58.9

-38.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.09 CLP 6,979

$13.69 €12.18

-48.21%

Cappuccino

$3.45 CLP 3,400

$3.06 €2.72

12.75%

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

$1.24 CLP 1,219

$3.07 €2.73

-59.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.02 CLP 1,002

$1.94 €1.73

-47.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.19 CLP 3,141

$3.87 €3.44

-17.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.62 CLP 3,562

$4.61 €4.10

-21.48%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.12 CLP 1,102

$1.30 €1.16

-13.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 CLP 1,148

$2.10 €1.87

-44.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.30 CLP 1,275

$1.83 €1.62

-28.96%

Eggs

$2.97 CLP 2,928

$4.62 €4.11

-35.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.38 CLP 10.2K

$17.36 €15.44

-40.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.13 CLP 9,973

$9.28 €8.25

9.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

Apples (1kg)

$2.30 CLP 2,263

$3.01 €2.68

-23.59%

Banana (1kg)

$2.24 CLP 2,205

$2.03 €1.81

10.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 CLP 1,466

$2.65 €2.36

-43.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.09 CLP 1,071

$2.87 €2.55

-62.02%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 CLP 722

$2.16 €1.92

-66.20%

Onion (1kg)

$0.58 CLP 574

$2.15 €1.91

-73.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.05 CLP 1,030

$1.47 €1.31

-28.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.35 CLP 1,328

$0.88 €0.79

53.41%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.01 CLP 6,904

$6.93 €6.16

1.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.60 CLP 7,477

$7.83 €6.96

-2.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 CLP 793

$2.63 €2.34

-69.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.68 CLP 666

$2.91 €2.59

-76.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 CLP 1,419

$1.86 €1.65

-22.58%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

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

$31.7K €28.2K

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

$85.7 CLP 84.4K

$183 €163

-53.11%

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

$15.04 CLP 14.8K

$13.61 €12.11

10.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.18 CLP 22.8K

$32.93 €29.29

-29.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.1 CLP 49.3K

$54.7 €48.65

-8.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$6.87 CLP 6,764

$11.23 €9.99

-38.82%

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

$251 CLP 247.1K

$954 €849

-73.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$30.07 CLP 29.6K

$86.0 €76.5

-65.05%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.86 CLP 22.5K

$39.11 €34.78

-41.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$45.02 CLP 44.3K

$104 €92.2

-56.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$57.8 CLP 56.9K

$119 €106

-51.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$413 CLP 406.6K

$1,695 €1,508

-75.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$394 CLP 388.3K

$1,276 €1,135

-69.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$690 CLP 679.5K

$2,576 €2,291

-73.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$781 CLP 769.1K

$1,922 €1,710

-59.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,709 CLP 1.7M

$7,281 €6,477

-76.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,902 CLP 1.9M

$5,010 €4,456

-62.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$934 CLP 919.7K

$2,227 €1,981

-58.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.5

3.28

128.66%

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

Last update for Iquique: October 18, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Iquique

$394 39.1%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 224% $882

Groceries & Markets

Iquique

$199 * 19.7%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 63.7% $126

Eating Out

Iquique

$155 15.4%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 73.8% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iquique

$124 12.3%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 85.1% $105

Clothing & Footwear

Iquique

$70 7%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 123% $86

Sport & Entertainment

Iquique

$64 6.3%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 20.9% $13

Getting Around

Iquique

$2.7 * 0.3%

Barcelona

$47 2% 1646% $45

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 $413 in Iquique and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 138% 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: $41.00 in Iquique vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $325 per month, with Iquique cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇱 Iquique

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

09:31 9:31 AM

14:31 2:31 PM

5 h ahead of Iquique

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

188,003

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Chilean Peso CLP $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 CLP = 10.16 USD

10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CLP – Chilean Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇱 Chilean Peso ($)

Chilean Peso exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 984 CLP (1,000 CLP = 1.02 USD). 1 EUR = 1,107 CLP (10,000 CLP = 9.04 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CLP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Iquique Barcelona 10,100 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Iquique
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

Iquique vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Iquique and Barcelona differ by about 136% in total monthly costs ($1,009 vs $2,381 including rent). Iquique is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 138% lower in Barcelona. 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: $413 in Iquique versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $251 in Iquique versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Iquique – a meal for two runs $41.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,009 in Iquique versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Iquique but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Iquique 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, Iquique 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 Iquique gentler on the wallet – expenses run 136% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.