Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Longyearbyen and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $2,753 in Longyearbyen, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. The total is higher in Longyearbyen despite lower rent and utilities.

133

Cost of Living Index in Longyearbyen
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Longyearbyen Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Longyearbyen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,753

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,753 in Longyearbyen versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Longyearbyen $2,753
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,188 in Longyearbyen versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Longyearbyen $4,188
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,624 in Longyearbyen versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Longyearbyen $5,624
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Longyearbyen is roughly 16% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Longyearbyen 103% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.60 NOK 194

$17.89 €15.92

15.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$104 NOK 980

$66.2 €58.9

57.41%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.21 NOK 171

$13.69 €12.18

33.02%

Cappuccino

$6.99 NOK 65.8

$3.06 €2.72

128.43%

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

$6.02 NOK 56.7

$3.07 €2.73

96.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.54 NOK 52.1

$1.94 €1.73

185.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.36 NOK 69.2

$3.87 €3.44

90.18%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.23 NOK 86.9

$4.61 €4.10

100.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.39 NOK 22.48

$1.30 €1.16

83.85%

White Bread (500g)

$3.59 NOK 33.84

$2.10 €1.87

70.95%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.37 NOK 41.13

$1.83 €1.62

138.80%

Eggs

$4.89 NOK 46.05

$4.62 €4.11

5.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.26 NOK 134

$17.36 €15.44

-17.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$20.14 NOK 190

$9.28 €8.25

117.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$31.12 NOK 293

$19.83 €17.64

56.93%

Apples (1kg)

$6.72 NOK 63.2

$3.01 €2.68

123.26%

Banana (1kg)

$2.67 NOK 25.14

$2.03 €1.81

31.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$6.80 NOK 64.0

$2.65 €2.36

156.60%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.57 NOK 61.9

$2.87 €2.55

128.92%

Potato (1kg)

$5.46 NOK 51.4

$2.16 €1.92

152.78%

Onion (1kg)

$4.47 NOK 42.05

$2.15 €1.91

107.91%

Lettuce (1 head)

$4.37 NOK 41.12

$1.47 €1.31

197.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$3.54 NOK 33.36

$0.88 €0.79

302.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.10 NOK 161

$6.93 €6.16

146.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.34 NOK 135

$7.83 €6.96

83.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.40 NOK 32.01

$1.39 €1.24

144.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.20 NOK 39.52

$2.63 €2.34

59.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.68 NOK 44.07

$2.91 €2.59

60.82%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.2 NOK 783

$25.46 €22.64

226.75%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$9.19 NOK 86.5

$3.00 €2.66

206.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.88 NOK 17.73

$1.44 €1.28

30.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 NOK 667

$33.20 €29.53

113.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 NOK 20.73

$1.86 €1.65

18.28%

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

$47.2K NOK 444.5K

$32.3K €28.8K

46.01%

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

$43.0K NOK 404.9K

$31.7K €28.2K

35.66%

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

$266 NOK 2,501

$183 €163

45.38%

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

$33.76 NOK 318

$13.61 €12.11

148.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.8 NOK 497

$32.93 €29.29

60.46%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.32 NOK 464

$54.7 €48.65

-9.82%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$37.00 NOK 348

$16.52 €14.70

123.97%

Cinema Ticket

$17.11 NOK 161

$11.23 €9.99

52.36%

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

$234 NOK 2,201

$954 €849

-75.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K NOK 124.2K

$16.6K €14.8K

-20.51%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.3 NOK 925

$86.0 €76.5

14.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.6 NOK 533

$39.11 €34.78

44.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 NOK 1,198

$104 €92.2

22.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$157 NOK 1,482

$119 €106

32.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,107 NOK 10.4K

$1,695 €1,508

-34.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,011 NOK 9,518

$1,276 €1,135

-20.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,947 NOK 18.3K

$2,576 €2,291

-24.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,675 NOK 15.8K

$1,922 €1,710

-12.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,182 NOK 58.2K

$7,281 €6,477

-15.10%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,028 NOK 37.9K

$5,010 €4,456

-19.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,904 NOK 27.3K

$2,227 €1,981

30.42%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.94

3.28

50.61%

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

Last update for Longyearbyen: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Longyearbyen

$1K 36.7%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 26.2% $265

Groceries & Markets

Longyearbyen

$583 21.2%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 44.2% $258

Eating Out

Longyearbyen

$405 14.7%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 33.4% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Longyearbyen

$352 12.8%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 34.9% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Longyearbyen

$198 7.2%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 21% $41

Getting Around

Longyearbyen

$121 4.4%

Barcelona

$47 2% 60.7% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Longyearbyen

$84 3%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 7.6% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,107 in Longyearbyen and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Longyearbyen pays 30% 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: $104 in Longyearbyen vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $583 vs $325 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Longyearbyen

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

12:49 12:49 PM

Same time as Longyearbyen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,400

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

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

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Longyearbyen Barcelona 4,140 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Longyearbyen
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

Longyearbyen vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Longyearbyen and Barcelona differ by about 16% in total monthly costs ($2,753 vs $2,381 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 30% higher in Longyearbyen, 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: $1,107 in Longyearbyen versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $234 in Longyearbyen versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 79% higher in Longyearbyen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Barcelona is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Longyearbyen 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 Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 16% less than in Longyearbyen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.