Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Madrid and Stafford

For one person, living is cheaper in Stafford: $2,238 a month against $2,326 in Madrid, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Madrid outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

111

Cost of Living Index in Madrid
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Madrid Living Index
108

Cost of Living Index in Stafford
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Stafford Living Index

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Madrid

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,326

/mo nomad

Stafford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,238

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Madrid and in Stafford

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Madrid and in Stafford actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,326 in Madrid versus $2,238 in Stafford.

Madrid $2,326
Stafford $2,238

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,414 in Madrid versus $3,350 in Stafford.

Madrid $3,414
Stafford $3,350

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,502 in Madrid versus $4,461 in Stafford.

Madrid $4,502
Stafford $4,461

Living in Madrid is roughly 4% more expensive than in Stafford, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Madrid 72% above, Stafford 66% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.67 €16.59

$21.50 £15.95

-13.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.0

$75.0 £55.6

-9.95%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.44 €11.05

$10.54 £7.82

18.03%

Cappuccino

$3.20 €2.84

$4.71 £3.50

-32.06%

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

$3.29 €2.92

$2.07 £1.53

58.94%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.08

$1.75 £1.30

34.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.85 €3.42

$6.65 £4.93

-42.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.71 €4.19

$5.21 £3.87

-9.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.80 £1.33

-22.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.64 €1.46

$1.55 £1.15

5.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.69 €1.50

$2.10 £1.56

-19.52%

Eggs

$4.04 €3.59

$3.56 £2.64

13.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.48 €14.64

$10.25 £7.60

60.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.16 €8.14

$9.07 £6.73

0.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.27 €15.34

$12.79 £9.49

35.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$2.89 £2.14

-13.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.75 £1.30

24.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 €2.24

$3.67 £2.72

-31.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 €2.21

$3.43 £2.55

-27.70%

Potato (1kg)

$2.31 €2.06

$2.07 £1.54

11.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.05 €1.82

$1.81 £1.34

13.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 €1.32

$1.18 £0.88

26.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 €0.93

$1.66 £1.23

-36.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.85 €6.09

$21.78 £16.15

-68.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.80 €6.93

$9.50 £7.04

-17.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.21 €1.08

$3.39 £2.51

-64.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.24 €1.99

$3.87 £2.87

-42.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.72 €1.52

$4.73 £3.50

-63.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.26 €33.10

$92.5 £68.6

-59.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.21 €2.85

$2.75 £2.04

16.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.36 £1.01

18.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.80 €27.36

$25.75 £19.10

19.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 €1.61

$2.10 £1.56

-13.33%

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

$33.2K €29.5K

$38.4K £28.5K

-13.61%

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

$32.3K €28.7K

$40.7K £30.2K

-20.56%

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

$182 €161

$294 £218

-38.17%

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

$17.24 €15.31

$20.19 £14.97

-14.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.81 €30.92

$42.52 £31.53

-18.13%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$47.26 €41.98

$40.64 £30.14

16.29%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.30 €16.26

$19.57 £14.51

-6.49%

Cinema Ticket

$11.18 €9.93

$15.81 £11.72

-29.29%

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

$696 €619

$1,250 £927

-44.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.9K €15.9K

$7,719 £5,724

132.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.4

$75.5 £56.0

13.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.09 €38.28

$47.03 £34.88

-8.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 €97.5

$84.7 £62.8

29.54%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 €99.2

$98.2 £72.8

13.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,525 €1,354

$1,149 £852

32.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,229 €1,092

$926 £687

32.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,815 €2,501

$1,596 £1,184

76.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,013 €1,788

$1,639 £1,215

22.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,105 €8,088

$3,986 £2,956

128.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,699 €4,174

$3,330 £2,470

41.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,487 €2,209

$2,998 £2,224

-17.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.15

5.37

-41.34%

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

Last update for Madrid: November 1, 2026

Last update for Stafford: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Madrid

$1.2K 52.9%

Stafford

$926 41.4% 24.7% $303

Groceries & Markets

Madrid

$304 13.1%

Stafford

$306 13.7% 0.5% $1.5

Eating Out

Madrid

$276 11.9%

Stafford

$319 14.3% 15.5% $43

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Madrid

$234 10.1%

Stafford

$357 15.9% 52.6% $123

Clothing & Footwear

Madrid

$158 6.8%

Stafford

$137 6.1% 12.8% $20

Sport & Entertainment

Madrid

$70 3%

Stafford

$72 3.2% 3.8% $2.7

Getting Around

Madrid

$55 2.4%

Stafford

$121 5.4% 119% $66

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,525 in Madrid and $1,149 in Stafford. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stafford pays 21% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68 in Madrid vs $75 in Stafford for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $304 vs $306 per month, with Madrid cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Madrid

🇬🇧 Stafford

🕒 Local time

16:35 4:35 PM

15:35 3:35 PM

1 h behind Madrid

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

3,332,035 Capital

71,673

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Madrid Stafford 1,380 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Madrid
Stafford

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

Madrid vs Stafford: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Stafford wins on cost – living expenses run 4% lower than in Madrid. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Stafford the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 17% lower in Madrid. 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: $1,525 in Madrid versus $1,149 in Stafford. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $696 in Madrid versus $1,250 in Stafford. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Madrid – a meal for two runs $68 versus $75 in Stafford. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Stafford 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, Madrid and Stafford are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.