Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Maracaibo and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Maracaibo: $784 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

38

Cost of Living Index in Maracaibo
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Maracaibo Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Maracaibo

🇻🇪 Venezuela

$784

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $784 in Maracaibo versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Maracaibo $784
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,297 in Maracaibo versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Maracaibo $1,297
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,811 in Maracaibo versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Maracaibo $1,811
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Maracaibo costs roughly 68% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Maracaibo is 42% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.33 VES 9,159

$17.59 €15.76

-41.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$39.75 VES 35.2K

$67.5 €60.5

-41.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.77 VES 7,774

$13.53 €12.12

-35.18%

Cappuccino

$2.75 VES 2,441

$3.19 €2.86

-13.79%

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

$1.15 VES 1,020

$2.91 €2.61

-60.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 VES 1,159

$1.89 €1.70

-30.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.21 VES 1,963

$4.01 €3.59

-44.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 VES 2,728

$4.53 €4.06

-32.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 VES 1,744

$1.31 €1.17

50.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.11 VES 1,874

$2.02 €1.81

4.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.07 VES 953

$1.85 €1.66

-42.16%

Eggs

$3.78 VES 3,350

$4.83 €4.33

-21.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.55 VES 5,808

$16.74 €15.00

-60.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.38 VES 5,660

$9.12 €8.17

-30.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.37 VES 6,532

$19.64 €17.60

-62.47%

Apples (1kg)

$4.82 VES 4,277

$2.98 €2.67

61.74%

Banana (1kg)

$1.36 VES 1,202

$2.02 €1.81

-32.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 VES 1,385

$2.70 €2.42

-42.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.36 VES 1,205

$2.80 €2.51

-51.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.23 VES 1,095

$2.09 €1.87

-41.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 VES 1,543

$2.07 €1.85

-15.94%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.02 VES 903

$1.46 €1.31

-30.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.98 VES 1,757

$0.94 €0.84

110.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.93 VES 2,597

$6.87 €6.16

-57.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.08 VES 8,054

$7.89 €7.07

15.08%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 VES 967

$1.41 €1.26

-22.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 VES 2,325

$2.54 €2.27

3.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.47 VES 416

$3.14 €2.82

-85.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$42.53 VES 37.7K

$25.45 €22.80

67.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.08 VES 3,621

$2.99 €2.68

36.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.95 VES 1,729

$1.49 €1.34

30.87%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.66 VES 15.7K

$33.37 €29.91

-47.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.74 VES 657

$1.80 €1.61

-58.89%

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

$15.2K VES 13.4M

$33.2K €29.7K

-54.34%

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

$27.6K VES 24.5M

$31.7K €28.4K

-12.96%

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

$62.5 VES 55.4K

$180 €162

-65.38%

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

$7.45 VES 6,604

$13.84 €12.40

-46.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$25.27 VES 22.4K

$33.70 €30.20

-25.01%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.17 VES 29.4K

$51.5 €46.16

-35.60%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.71 VES 25.5K

$15.96 €14.30

79.89%

Cinema Ticket

$4.89 VES 4,332

$10.99 €9.85

-55.51%

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

$148 VES 131.0K

$917 €821

-83.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,133 VES 6.3M

$16.5K €14.8K

-56.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$27.31 VES 24.2K

$87.0 €78.0

-68.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.34 VES 28.7K

$38.51 €34.51

-16.02%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.9 VES 54.9K

$106 €94.8

-41.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$56.7 VES 50.2K

$120 €107

-52.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$159 VES 141.2K

$1,699 €1,523

-90.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$95.2 VES 84.4K

$1,355 €1,214

-92.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$301 VES 266.8K

$2,603 €2,332

-88.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$196 VES 174.0K

$2,062 €1,848

-90.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$765 VES 678.3K

$6,915 €6,196

-88.94%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$508 VES 450.0K

$5,128 €4,595

-90.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$215 VES 190.8K

$2,211 €1,981

-90.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

509.76%

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

Last update for Maracaibo: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Maracaibo

$243 31%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 32.4% $79

Eating Out

Maracaibo

$169 21.6%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 58.5% $99

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maracaibo

$95 12.1%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 140% $133

Accommodation & Living

Maracaibo

$95 12.1%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 1324% $1.3K

Clothing & Footwear

Maracaibo

$80 10.2%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 97% $78

Getting Around

Maracaibo

$58 7.4%

Barcelona

$48 2% 16.8% $9.8

Sport & Entertainment

Maracaibo

$43 5.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 71.2% $31

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $159 in Maracaibo and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 10 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $40 in Maracaibo vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $243 vs $322 per month, with Maracaibo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇻🇪 Maracaibo

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

04:19 4:19 AM

09:19 9:19 AM

5 h ahead of Maracaibo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,000,000

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Venezuelan Bolívar VES Bs.S

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 VES = 1.13 USD

1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to VES – Venezuelan Bolívar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇻🇪 Venezuelan Bolívar (Bs.S)

Venezuelan Bolívar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 887 VES (1,000 VES = 1.13 USD). 1 EUR = 989 VES (1,000 VES = 1.01 EUR).

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

USD to VES in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Maracaibo Barcelona 7,880 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Maracaibo
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

Maracaibo vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $784 in Maracaibo and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Maracaibo is about 68% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 90% lower in Maracaibo. 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: $159 in Maracaibo versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $148 in Maracaibo versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 32% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $784 in Maracaibo versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Maracaibo but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Maracaibo 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.

It comes down to priorities – Maracaibo wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.