Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Labuan and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Labuan: $1,020 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Labuan
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Labuan Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Labuan

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$1,020

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,020 in Labuan versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Labuan $1,020
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,487 in Labuan versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Labuan $1,487
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,953 in Labuan versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Labuan $1,953
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Labuan costs roughly 57% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Labuan is 24% below, Barcelona is 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.52 MYR 22.53

$17.94 €15.96

-69.23%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$24.16 MYR 98.6

$68.1 €60.5

-64.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.66 MYR 27.19

$13.28 €11.81

-49.85%

Cappuccino

$3.93 MYR 16.05

$3.25 €2.89

20.92%

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

$1.06 MYR 4.34

$3.01 €2.67

-64.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.45 MYR 1.83

$1.87 €1.66

-75.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.72 MYR 15.19

$3.85 €3.42

-3.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 MYR 18.48

$4.48 €3.98

1.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.82 MYR 7.43

$1.29 €1.15

41.09%

White Bread (500g)

$1.04 MYR 4.26

$2.04 €1.81

-49.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.49 MYR 6.07

$1.72 €1.53

-13.37%

Eggs

$2.10 MYR 8.58

$4.77 €4.24

-55.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.82 MYR 68.6

$16.77 €14.92

0.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.42 MYR 18.03

$8.93 €7.94

-50.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.50 MYR 38.76

$19.88 €17.68

-52.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 MYR 12.95

$2.98 €2.65

6.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 MYR 7.46

$2.03 €1.80

-9.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.39 MYR 9.75

$2.73 €2.43

-12.45%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 MYR 7.17

$2.68 €2.38

-34.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.39 MYR 5.68

$2.10 €1.87

-33.81%

Onion (1kg)

$1.03 MYR 4.20

$2.08 €1.85

-50.48%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 MYR 4.81

$1.45 €1.29

-18.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.54 MYR 2.20

$0.89 €0.79

-39.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.04 MYR 20.57

$6.94 €6.17

-27.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.29 MYR 66.5

$7.78 €6.92

109.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.21 MYR 13.11

$1.45 €1.29

121.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 MYR 17.90

$2.57 €2.29

70.82%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.78 MYR 3.17

$2.99 €2.66

-73.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$10.66 MYR 43.48

$25.20 €22.41

-57.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.34 MYR 5.47

$3.12 €2.77

-57.05%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.48 MYR 1.97

$1.44 €1.28

-66.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.48 MYR 26.43

$33.50 €29.80

-80.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.88 MYR 3.58

$1.79 €1.59

-50.84%

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

$44.0K MYR 179.5K

$34.6K €30.8K

27.05%

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

$32.5K MYR 132.7K

$30.1K €26.7K

8.19%

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

$48.90 MYR 199

$178 €158

-72.50%

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

$9.68 MYR 39.49

$13.32 €11.85

-27.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.69 MYR 113

$34.88 €31.03

-20.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.60 MYR 170

$53.3 €47.37

-21.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.68 MYR 31.32

$16.01 €14.24

-52.03%

Cinema Ticket

$4.29 MYR 17.51

$11.06 €9.84

-61.21%

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

$208 MYR 849

$957 €851

-78.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,011 MYR 28.6K

$16.6K €14.7K

-57.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.8 MYR 228

$88.2 €78.4

-36.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.07 MYR 123

$39.49 €35.12

-23.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.0 MYR 355

$103 €91.5

-15.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.8 MYR 334

$121 €108

-32.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$433 MYR 1,768

$1,653 €1,470

-73.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$342 MYR 1,397

$1,302 €1,158

-73.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$641 MYR 2,614

$2,557 €2,275

-74.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$464 MYR 1,892

$1,915 €1,703

-75.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,282 MYR 9,308

$7,286 €6,481

-68.68%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,136 MYR 4,636

$5,080 €4,519

-77.63%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$374 MYR 1,525

$2,281 €2,029

-83.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.06

3.28

23.78%

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

Last update for Labuan: October 12, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Labuan

$342 33.6%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 280% $959

Groceries & Markets

Labuan

$264 25.9%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 21.2% $56

Eating Out

Labuan

$145 14.2%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 86.1% $125

Clothing & Footwear

Labuan

$115 11.2%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 38.2% $44

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Labuan

$86 8.5%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 162% $140

Sport & Entertainment

Labuan

$50 4.9%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 50.2% $25

Getting Around

Labuan

$18 1.7%

Barcelona

$47 2% 171% $30

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $433 in Labuan and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 510% 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: $24.00 in Labuan vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $264 vs $320 per month, with Labuan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Labuan

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:06 5:06 AM

23:06 11:06 PM

6 h behind Labuan

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

95,120

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Labuan Barcelona 11,500 km ≈ 15 h nonstop flight

From you

Labuan
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

Labuan vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Labuan and Barcelona differ by about 135% in total monthly costs ($1,020 vs $2,399 including rent). Labuan is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 510% 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: $433 in Labuan versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $208 in Labuan versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 21% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,020 in Labuan versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Labuan but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Labuan 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, Labuan 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 Labuan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 135% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.