Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malindi and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Malindi: $517 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $23,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Malindi
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Malindi Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Malindi

🇰🇪 Kenya

$517

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $517 in Malindi versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Malindi $517
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $803 in Malindi versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Malindi $803
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,090 in Malindi versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Malindi $1,090
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Malindi costs roughly 79% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Malindi is 62% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.14 KES 277

$17.59 €15.76

-87.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$25.30 KES 3,284

$67.5 €60.5

-62.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.44 KES 1,355

$13.53 €12.12

-22.84%

Cappuccino

$2.70 KES 351

$3.19 €2.86

-15.36%

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

$0.68 KES 88.5

$2.91 €2.61

-76.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.52 KES 67.1

$1.89 €1.70

-72.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.29 KES 298

$4.01 €3.59

-42.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 KES 419

$4.53 €4.06

-28.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 KES 117

$1.31 €1.17

-31.30%

White Bread (500g)

$0.50 KES 64.3

$2.02 €1.81

-75.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.25 KES 162

$1.85 €1.66

-32.43%

Eggs

$1.83 KES 237

$4.83 €4.33

-62.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.40 KES 1,480

$16.74 €15.00

-31.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.98 KES 647

$9.12 €8.17

-45.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$4.89 KES 635

$19.64 €17.60

-75.10%

Apples (1kg)

$2.07 KES 269

$2.98 €2.67

-30.54%

Banana (1kg)

$0.78 KES 101

$2.02 €1.81

-61.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.76 KES 228

$2.70 €2.42

-34.81%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.71 KES 91.7

$2.80 €2.51

-74.64%

Potato (1kg)

$0.72 KES 93.7

$2.09 €1.87

-65.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.65 KES 84.0

$2.07 €1.85

-68.60%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.59 KES 77.1

$1.46 €1.31

-59.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.45 KES 58.8

$0.94 €0.84

-52.13%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.16 KES 540

$6.87 €6.16

-39.45%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.83 KES 1,276

$7.89 €7.07

24.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 KES 261

$1.41 €1.26

42.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.96 KES 384

$2.54 €2.27

16.54%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.14 KES 408

$2.99 €2.68

5.02%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.78 KES 231

$1.49 €1.34

19.46%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.59 KES 596

$33.37 €29.91

-86.25%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.37 KES 178

$1.80 €1.61

-23.89%

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

$12.0K KES 1.6M

$33.2K €29.7K

-63.70%

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

$12.0K KES 1.6M

$31.7K €28.4K

-62.13%

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

$76.0 KES 9,870

$180 €162

-57.85%

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

$8.99 KES 1,166

$13.84 €12.40

-35.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.23 KES 3,924

$33.70 €30.20

-10.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.62 KES 5,013

$51.5 €46.16

-25.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$15.42 KES 2,002

$10.99 €9.85

40.31%

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

$85.5 KES 11.1K

$917 €821

-90.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,381 KES 698.4K

$16.5K €14.8K

-67.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$13.28 KES 1,723

$87.0 €78.0

-84.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$13.38 KES 1,737

$38.51 €34.51

-65.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$23.49 KES 3,049

$106 €94.8

-77.80%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.81 KES 6,076

$120 €107

-60.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,523

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,214

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$379 KES 49.2K

$2,603 €2,332

-85.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

296.34%

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

Last update for Malindi: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Malindi

$173 33.4%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 86.5% $149

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Malindi

$115 22.3%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 97.8% $113

Eating Out

Malindi

$104 20.1%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 159% $164

Sport & Entertainment

Malindi

$69 13.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 5.8% $4

Clothing & Footwear

Malindi

$44 8.5%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 262% $114

Getting Around

Malindi

$12 * 2.3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 303% $36

Accommodation & Living

Malindi

- * 0%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $25 in Malindi vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $173 vs $322 per month, with Malindi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇪 Malindi

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

04:01 4:01 AM

02:01 2:01 AM

2 h behind Malindi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

117,735

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Kenyan Shilling KES Sh

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 KES = 7.7 USD

1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to KES – Kenyan Shilling Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇪 Kenyan Shilling (Sh)

Kenyan Shilling exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 130 KES (1,000 KES = 7.7 USD). 1 EUR = 144 KES (1,000 KES = 6.92 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to KES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Malindi Barcelona 6,270 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Malindi
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

Malindi vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $517 in Malindi and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Malindi is about 79% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $775 in Malindi and $3,679 in Barcelona to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Childcare runs $85 in Malindi versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Malindi – a meal for two runs $25 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $517 in Malindi versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $800 budget is realistic in Malindi but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Malindi 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.