Cost of Living Comparison Between Lake Macquarie and Barcelona Cost of Living Comparison Between Lake Macquarie and Barcelona

๐Ÿ™‚ Solo nomad: Lake Macquarie is 2.1% cheaper than Barcelona without rent, and 13.9% cheaper with rent.
๐Ÿ˜ Family of 3: Lake Macquarie is 5.9% more expensive than Barcelona without rent, and 0.1% cheaper with rent.
Currency
๐Ÿฝ Eating Out
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$12.91 A$19.78
$17.41 โ‚ฌ15.03
-25.85%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$77.1 A$118
$68.7 โ‚ฌ59.3
12.16%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.66 A$14.79
$13.71 โ‚ฌ11.84
-29.54%
Cappuccino
$3.34 A$5.12
$2.78 โ‚ฌ2.4
20.14%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.38 A$3.65
$2.8 โ‚ฌ2.42
-15.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2 A$3.07
$1.98 โ‚ฌ1.71
1.01%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$6.35 A$9.72
$4.43 โ‚ฌ3.83
43.34%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.96 A$10.66
$4.53 โ‚ฌ3.91
53.64%
๐Ÿ›’ Groceries & Markets
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 A$2.1
$1.24 โ‚ฌ1.07
10.48%
White Bread (500g)
$1.44 A$2.2
$2.03 โ‚ฌ1.75
-29.06%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.19 A$1.82
$1.98 โ‚ฌ1.71
-39.90%
Eggs
$3.14 A$4.81
$3.46 โ‚ฌ2.99
-9.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$7.51 A$11.5
$18.32 โ‚ฌ15.82
-59.01%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$6.07 A$9.3
$9.82 โ‚ฌ8.47
-38.19%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$11.78 A$18.05
$19.24 โ‚ฌ16.61
-38.77%
Apples (1kg)
$3.11 A$4.76
$2.61 โ‚ฌ2.25
19.16%
Banana (1kg)
$2.7 A$4.13
$2.34 โ‚ฌ2.02
15.38%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.16 A$4.84
$2.11 โ‚ฌ1.82
49.76%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.33 A$6.64
$2.77 โ‚ฌ2.39
56.32%
Potato (1kg)
$1.95 A$2.98
$2.04 โ‚ฌ1.76
-4.41%
Onion (1kg)
$1.74 A$2.66
$1.77 โ‚ฌ1.53
-1.69%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.35 A$2.07
$1.5 โ‚ฌ1.3
-10.00%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.13 A$1.73
$0.85 โ‚ฌ0.73
32.94%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$27.52 A$42.16
$7 โ‚ฌ6.04
293.14%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.24 A$11.09
$7.13 โ‚ฌ6.16
1.54%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.62 A$4.02
$1.43 โ‚ฌ1.24
83.22%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.15 A$3.3
$2.29 โ‚ฌ1.98
-6.11%
๐ŸšŒ Getting Around
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.07 A$3.17
$3.02 โ‚ฌ2.6
-31.46%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$88.9 A$136
$28.97 โ‚ฌ25.01
206.77%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.87 A$2.86
$4.59 โ‚ฌ3.96
-59.26%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.55 A$2.37
$2.02 โ‚ฌ1.74
-23.27%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$46.5 A$71.2
$29.56 โ‚ฌ25.53
57.31%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.19 A$1.82
$1.81 โ‚ฌ1.56
-34.25%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$24.9K A$38.2K
$38.4K โ‚ฌ33.1K
-35.05%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$20.2K A$30.9K
$32.4K โ‚ฌ28K
-37.75%
๐Ÿงพ Monthly Utilities & Internet
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$204 A$313
$190 โ‚ฌ164
7.83%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$10.26 A$15.72
$22.18 โ‚ฌ19.15
-53.74%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$42.08 A$64.5
$36.37 โ‚ฌ31.4
15.70%
๐ŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$49.44 A$75.7
$57.4 โ‚ฌ49.55
-13.85%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$15.88 A$24.33
$20.95 โ‚ฌ18.09
-24.20%
Cinema Ticket
$9.2 A$14.1
$10.8 โ‚ฌ9.33
-14.81%
๐Ÿงธ Childcare & Education
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,446 A$2,215
$732 โ‚ฌ632
97.49%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$9,951 A$15.2K
$15.1K โ‚ฌ13.1K
-34.20%
๐Ÿ‘•๐Ÿ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$73.4 A$112
$86.8 โ‚ฌ74.9
-15.39%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$33.88 A$51.9
$36.78 โ‚ฌ31.76
-7.88%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$76.6 A$117
$102 โ‚ฌ88.2
-25.05%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$132 A$202
$117 โ‚ฌ101
12.92%
๐Ÿ  Accommodation & Living
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,240 A$1,900
$1,581 โ‚ฌ1,365
-21.57%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$976 A$1,495
$1,230 โ‚ฌ1,062
-20.66%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,007 A$3,074
$2,707 โ‚ฌ2,337
-25.88%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,055 A$3,148
$2,028 โ‚ฌ1,751
1.34%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,582 A$8,552
$6,602 โ‚ฌ5,700
-15.44%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,951 A$7,584
$5,045 โ‚ฌ4,356
-1.88%
๐Ÿ’ต Salaries & Financials
Lake Macquarie
Barcelona
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,783 A$7,327
$2,198 โ‚ฌ1,898
117.55%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.35
3.39
28.32%

Citycost data is based on AI and user input โ€“ minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Lake Macquarie: October 29, 2025

Last update for Barcelona: October 28, 2025

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