Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karlstad and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Karlstad: $1,727 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

83

Cost of Living Index in Karlstad
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Karlstad Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Karlstad

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,727

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,727 in Karlstad versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Karlstad $1,727
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,665 in Karlstad versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Karlstad $2,665
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,603 in Karlstad versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Karlstad $3,603
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Karlstad costs roughly 30% less than in Barcelona.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Karlstad 27% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.14 SEK 149

$17.59 €15.75

-13.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.5 SEK 790

$67.5 €60.5

19.29%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.07 SEK 98.9

$13.53 €12.12

-25.57%

Cappuccino

$4.86 SEK 47.68

$3.19 €2.86

52.35%

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

$2.45 SEK 24.01

$2.91 €2.61

-15.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.16 SEK 21.25

$1.89 €1.70

14.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.08 SEK 79.3

$4.01 €3.59

101.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.60 SEK 64.7

$4.53 €4.06

45.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 SEK 14.22

$1.31 €1.17

10.69%

White Bread (500g)

$2.83 SEK 27.80

$2.02 €1.81

40.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.68 SEK 36.14

$1.85 €1.66

98.92%

Eggs

$4.37 SEK 42.85

$4.83 €4.33

-9.52%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.17 SEK 99.8

$16.74 €14.99

-39.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.96 SEK 137

$9.12 €8.17

53.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.73 SEK 174

$19.64 €17.59

-9.73%

Apples (1kg)

$2.95 SEK 28.91

$2.98 €2.67

-1.01%

Banana (1kg)

$2.68 SEK 26.35

$2.02 €1.81

32.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 SEK 29.71

$2.70 €2.42

12.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.40 SEK 53.0

$2.80 €2.51

92.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.92 SEK 18.80

$2.09 €1.87

-8.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.72 SEK 16.84

$2.07 €1.85

-16.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.64 SEK 25.87

$1.46 €1.31

80.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 SEK 12.74

$0.94 €0.84

38.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.96 SEK 68.3

$6.87 €6.15

1.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.17 SEK 99.8

$7.89 €7.06

28.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 SEK 23.79

$1.41 €1.26

71.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.04 SEK 19.98

$2.54 €2.27

-19.69%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.13 SEK 30.70

$3.14 €2.82

-0.32%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$80.4 SEK 789

$25.45 €22.79

215.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.46 SEK 53.6

$2.99 €2.68

82.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.29 SEK 12.67

$1.49 €1.34

-13.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$60.4 SEK 592

$33.37 €29.89

80.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.72 SEK 16.90

$1.80 €1.61

-4.44%

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

$32.6K SEK 320.4K

$33.2K €29.7K

-1.64%

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

$33.8K SEK 331.2K

$31.7K €28.4K

6.47%

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

$99.4 SEK 975

$180 €162

-44.91%

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

$15.73 SEK 154

$13.84 €12.39

13.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.76 SEK 429

$33.70 €30.18

29.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.27 SEK 444

$51.5 €46.13

-12.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.66 SEK 163

$15.96 €14.29

4.39%

Cinema Ticket

$14.08 SEK 138

$10.99 €9.85

28.12%

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

$126 SEK 1,236

$917 €821

-86.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$106 SEK 1,037

$87.0 €77.9

21.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.85 SEK 391

$38.51 €34.49

3.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.9 SEK 744

$106 €94.8

-28.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$141 SEK 1,384

$120 €107

17.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$868 SEK 8,518

$1,699 €1,522

-48.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$575 SEK 5,638

$1,355 €1,214

-57.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,184 SEK 11.6K

$2,603 €2,331

-54.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$867 SEK 8,504

$2,062 €1,847

-57.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,849 SEK 37.8K

$6,915 €6,193

-44.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,779 SEK 27.3K

$5,128 €4,592

-45.81%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,203 SEK 31.4K

$2,211 €1,980

44.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.09

3.28

24.70%

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

Last update for Karlstad: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Karlstad

$575 33.3%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 136% $781

Groceries & Markets

Karlstad

$370 21.4%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 13.1% $48

Eating Out

Karlstad

$282 16.3%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 4.9% $14

Clothing & Footwear

Karlstad

$163 9.5%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 3.2% $5.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karlstad

$159 9.2%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 43.5% $69

Getting Around

Karlstad

$105 6.1%

Barcelona

$48 2% 53.8% $56

Sport & Entertainment

Karlstad

$73 4.3%

Barcelona

$74 3% 0.1% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $868 in Karlstad and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Karlstad pays 45% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $81 in Karlstad vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $370 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Karlstad

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

04:21 4:21 AM

Same time as Karlstad

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,797

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.13 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 SEK (100 SEK = 9.13 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Karlstad Barcelona 2,150 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Karlstad
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

Karlstad vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,727 in Karlstad and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Karlstad is about 30% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 45% higher in Karlstad, 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: $868 in Karlstad versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $126 in Karlstad versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 13% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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