Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Johnson City, TN and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Johnson City, TN: $2,138 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

102

Cost of Living Index in Johnson City, TN
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Johnson City, TN Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Johnson City, TN

🇺🇸 United States

$2,138

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,138 in Johnson City, TN versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Johnson City, TN $2,138
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,133 in Johnson City, TN versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Johnson City, TN $3,133
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,129 in Johnson City, TN versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Johnson City, TN $4,129
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Johnson City, TN costs roughly 13% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Johnson City, TN 57% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.78 $13.78

$17.59 €15.80

-21.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$53.9 $53.9

$67.5 €60.6

-20.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.88 $9.88

$13.53 €12.15

-26.98%

Cappuccino

$5.14 $5.14

$3.19 €2.87

61.13%

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

$2.88 $2.88

$2.91 €2.62

-1.03%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.03 $2.03

$1.89 €1.70

7.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.93 $4.93

$4.01 €3.60

22.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.04 $6.04

$4.53 €4.07

33.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.98 $0.98

$1.31 €1.17

-25.19%

White Bread (500g)

$3.75 $3.75

$2.02 €1.81

85.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.97 $3.97

$1.85 €1.66

114.59%

Eggs

$3.11 $3.11

$4.83 €4.34

-35.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.53 $7.53

$16.74 €15.03

-55.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.67 $13.67

$9.12 €8.19

49.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.09 $13.09

$19.64 €17.64

-33.35%

Apples (1kg)

$7.59 $7.59

$2.98 €2.68

154.70%

Banana (1kg)

$1.73 $1.73

$2.02 €1.81

-14.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.10 $4.10

$2.70 €2.43

51.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 $3.65

$2.80 €2.52

30.36%

Potato (1kg)

$3.40 $3.40

$2.09 €1.87

62.68%

Onion (1kg)

$4.34 $4.34

$2.07 €1.86

109.66%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.46 €1.31

50.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.36 $2.36

$0.94 €0.84

151.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.01 $9.01

$6.87 €6.17

31.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.14 $13.14

$7.89 €7.08

66.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.61 $1.61

$1.41 €1.26

14.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 $4.42

$2.54 €2.28

74.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.97 $0.97

$3.14 €2.82

-69.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.13 $25.13

$25.45 €22.86

-1.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 $5.58

$2.99 €2.69

86.62%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 $1.44

$1.49 €1.34

-3.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$15.19 $15.19

$33.37 €29.98

-54.48%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.83 $0.83

$1.80 €1.61

-53.89%

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

$30.0K $30.0K

$33.2K €29.8K

-9.61%

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

$24.7K $24.7K

$31.7K €28.5K

-22.04%

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

$172 $172

$180 €162

-4.57%

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

$51.9 $51.9

$13.84 €12.43

274.78%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.5 $62.5

$33.70 €30.27

85.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.20 $47.20

$51.5 €46.27

-8.37%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.14 $20.14

$15.96 €14.34

26.19%

Cinema Ticket

$11.88 $11.88

$10.99 €9.88

8.10%

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

$1,185 $1,185

$917 €823

29.23%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K $14.6K

$16.5K €14.8K

-11.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$37.41 $37.41

$87.0 €78.2

-57.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.80 $30.80

$38.51 €34.59

-20.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.4 $87.4

$106 €95.1

-17.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.4 $94.4

$120 €108

-21.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,178 $1,178

$1,699 €1,527

-30.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$980 $980

$1,355 €1,217

-27.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,992 $1,992

$2,603 €2,338

-23.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,616 $1,616

$2,062 €1,853

-21.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,444 $2,444

$6,915 €6,211

-64.65%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,033 $2,033

$5,128 €4,606

-60.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,584 $3,584

$2,211 €1,986

62.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.49

3.28

97.87%

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

Last update for Johnson City, TN: 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

Johnson City, TN

$980 45.9%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 38.3% $375

Groceries & Markets

Johnson City, TN

$388 18.1%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 17% $66

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Johnson City, TN

$287 13.4%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 20.4% $59

Eating Out

Johnson City, TN

$258 12.1%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 3.9% $10

Clothing & Footwear

Johnson City, TN

$113 5.3%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 40.4% $45

Sport & Entertainment

Johnson City, TN

$71 3.3%

Barcelona

$74 3% 3.6% $2.5

Getting Around

Johnson City, TN

$42 2%

Barcelona

$48 2% 16% $6.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,178 in Johnson City, TN and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Johnson City, TN pays 62% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $54 in Johnson City, TN vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $388 vs $322, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Johnson City, TN

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

21:23 9:23 PM

02:23 2:23 AM

5 h ahead of Johnson City, TN

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

66,027

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Johnson City, TN Barcelona 7,040 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Johnson City, TN
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

Johnson City, TN vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,138 in Johnson City, TN and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Johnson City, TN is about 13% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 62% higher in Johnson City, TN, 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: $1,178 in Johnson City, TN versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,185 in Johnson City, TN versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Johnson City, TN – a meal for two runs $54 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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