Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lucca and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Lucca: $2,017 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

99

Cost of Living Index in Lucca
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Lucca Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Lucca

🇮🇹 Italy

$2,017

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,017 in Lucca versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Lucca $2,017
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,004 in Lucca versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Lucca $3,004
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,990 in Lucca versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Lucca $3,990
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Lucca costs roughly 16% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Lucca 49% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.78 €17.59

$17.94 €15.96

10.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$80.6 €71.7

$68.1 €60.5

18.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.84 €10.53

$13.28 €11.81

-10.84%

Cappuccino

$2.02 €1.79

$3.25 €2.89

-37.85%

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

$3.30 €2.93

$3.01 €2.67

9.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.87 €1.66

-23.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.73 €5.99

$3.85 €3.42

74.81%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.08 €4.52

$4.48 €3.98

13.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.29 €1.15

27.13%

White Bread (500g)

$2.42 €2.15

$2.04 €1.81

18.63%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.99 €2.66

$1.72 €1.53

73.84%

Eggs

$4.01 €3.56

$4.77 €4.24

-15.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$20.76 €18.46

$16.77 €14.92

23.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.43 €12.83

$8.93 €7.94

61.59%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.07 €18.74

$19.88 €17.68

5.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.38 €2.12

$2.98 €2.65

-20.13%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.03 €1.80

5.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 €2.24

$2.73 €2.43

-7.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.20 €2.84

$2.68 €2.38

19.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.69

$2.10 €1.87

-9.52%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 €1.91

$2.08 €1.85

2.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.82 €1.62

$1.45 €1.29

25.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.57 €0.50

$0.89 €0.79

-35.96%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.05 €6.28

$6.94 €6.17

1.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$7.78 €6.92

0.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.72

$1.45 €1.29

33.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 €2.50

$2.57 €2.29

9.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.95 €1.74

$2.99 €2.66

-34.78%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$34.12 €30.35

$25.20 €22.41

35.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.53 €4.03

$3.12 €2.77

45.19%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.62 €1.44

$1.44 €1.28

12.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.76 €24.69

$33.50 €29.80

-17.13%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.79 €1.59

17.88%

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

$36.5K €32.4K

$34.6K €30.8K

5.30%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$30.1K €26.7K

15.39%

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

$336 €299

$178 €158

88.91%

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

$11.93 €10.62

$13.32 €11.85

-10.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.27 €28.70

$34.88 €31.03

-7.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$65.8 €58.6

$53.3 €47.37

23.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$50.0 €44.47

$16.01 €14.24

212.30%

Cinema Ticket

$9.86 €8.77

$11.06 €9.84

-10.85%

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

$645 €574

$957 €851

-32.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$16.6K €14.7K

-32.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$101 €89.6

$88.2 €78.4

14.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.80 €42.52

$39.49 €35.12

21.04%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.5 €80.5

$103 €91.5

-11.97%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$165 €146

$121 €108

35.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$796 €708

$1,653 €1,470

-51.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$663 €589

$1,302 €1,158

-49.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 €1,273

$2,557 €2,275

-44.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 €900

$1,915 €1,703

-47.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,989 €3,549

$7,286 €6,481

-45.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,088 €1,857

$5,080 €4,519

-58.90%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,765 €1,570

$2,281 €2,029

-22.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.7

3.28

12.80%

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

Last update for Lucca: October 11, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lucca

$663 32.8%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 96.5% $639

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lucca

$380 18.9%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 40.5% $154

Groceries & Markets

Lucca

$372 18.5%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 14% $52

Eating Out

Lucca

$281 13.9%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 3.8% $11

Clothing & Footwear

Lucca

$182 9%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 12.8% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Lucca

$86 4.2%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 11.9% $10

Getting Around

Lucca

$55 2.7%

Barcelona

$47 2% 13% $7.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $796 in Lucca and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 29% 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: $81.0 in Lucca vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $372 vs $320 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Lucca

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

21:24 9:24 PM

Same time as Lucca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

89,046

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lucca Barcelona 730 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Lucca
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

Lucca vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lucca and Barcelona differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($2,017 vs $2,399 including rent). Lucca is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 29% 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: $796 in Lucca versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $645 in Lucca versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 16% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,017 in Lucca versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Lucca but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Lucca 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, Lucca 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 Lucca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.