Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Medicine Hat and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Medicine Hat: $1,814 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Medicine Hat
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Medicine Hat Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Medicine Hat

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,814

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,814 in Medicine Hat versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Medicine Hat $1,814
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,712 in Medicine Hat versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Medicine Hat $2,712
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,611 in Medicine Hat versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Medicine Hat $3,611
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Medicine Hat costs roughly 26% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Medicine Hat 33% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.23 CA$21.28

$17.59 €15.76

-13.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$69.9 CA$97.7

$67.5 €60.5

3.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.82 CA$13.72

$13.53 €12.12

-27.42%

Cappuccino

$3.76 CA$5.26

$3.19 €2.86

17.87%

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

$2.04 CA$2.85

$2.91 €2.61

-29.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.72 CA$2.40

$1.89 €1.70

-8.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.09 CA$7.11

$4.01 €3.59

26.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.95 CA$5.52

$4.53 €4.06

-12.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.55 CA$2.16

$1.31 €1.17

18.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.77 CA$2.47

$2.02 €1.81

-12.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.46 CA$4.84

$1.85 €1.66

87.03%

Eggs

$2.98 CA$4.16

$4.83 €4.33

-38.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.44 CA$13.19

$16.74 €15.00

-43.61%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.03 CA$15.41

$9.12 €8.17

20.94%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.82 CA$17.91

$19.64 €17.60

-34.73%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 CA$4.43

$2.98 €2.67

6.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.46 CA$2.04

$2.02 €1.81

-27.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.86 CA$3.99

$2.70 €2.42

5.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.72 CA$5.20

$2.80 €2.51

32.86%

Potato (1kg)

$2.71 CA$3.79

$2.09 €1.87

29.67%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 CA$2.07

$2.07 €1.85

-28.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.61 CA$3.65

$1.46 €1.31

78.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.57 CA$2.20

$0.94 €0.84

67.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.51 CA$16.08

$6.87 €6.16

67.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.61 CA$17.61

$7.89 €7.07

59.82%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.38 CA$3.33

$1.41 €1.26

68.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.19 CA$4.45

$2.54 €2.27

25.59%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.26 CA$3.15

$3.14 €2.82

-28.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$50.9 CA$71.2

$25.45 €22.80

100.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.19 CA$4.46

$2.99 €2.68

6.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.34 CA$1.87

$1.49 €1.34

-10.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.41 CA$38.29

$33.37 €29.91

-17.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.03 CA$1.44

$1.80 €1.61

-42.78%

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

$24.3K CA$34.0K

$33.2K €29.7K

-26.64%

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

$20.0K CA$28.0K

$31.7K €28.4K

-36.80%

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

$165 CA$231

$180 €162

-8.50%

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

$38.32 CA$53.5

$13.84 €12.40

176.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.6 CA$70.7

$33.70 €30.20

50.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$53.8 CA$75.1

$51.5 €46.16

4.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.27 CA$49.27

$15.96 €14.30

120.99%

Cinema Ticket

$14.39 CA$20.10

$10.99 €9.85

30.94%

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

$541 CA$756

$917 €821

-40.93%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.1K CA$22.5K

$16.5K €14.8K

-2.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$50.5 CA$70.5

$87.0 €78.0

-42.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$26.44 CA$36.94

$38.51 €34.51

-31.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.2 CA$92.4

$106 €94.8

-37.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$67.6 CA$94.5

$120 €107

-43.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$901 CA$1,258

$1,699 €1,523

-47.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$749 CA$1,046

$1,355 €1,214

-44.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,483 CA$2,071

$2,603 €2,332

-43.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,198 CA$1,673

$2,062 €1,848

-41.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,369 CA$1,912

$6,915 €6,196

-80.21%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,930 CA$2,696

$5,128 €4,595

-62.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,973 CA$4,154

$2,211 €1,981

34.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.51

3.28

37.50%

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

Last update for Medicine Hat: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Medicine Hat

$749 41.3%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 81% $607

Groceries & Markets

Medicine Hat

$319 17.6%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 0.7% $2.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Medicine Hat

$254 14%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 10.2% $26

Eating Out

Medicine Hat

$245 13.5%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 9.4% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Medicine Hat

$95 5.2%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 66.6% $63

Sport & Entertainment

Medicine Hat

$83 4.6%

Barcelona

$74 3% 10.9% $9

Getting Around

Medicine Hat

$70 3.9%

Barcelona

$48 2% 30.6% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $901 in Medicine Hat and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Medicine Hat pays 34% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $70 in Medicine Hat vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $319 vs $322, with Medicine Hat cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Medicine Hat

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

21:56 9:56 PM

04:56 4:56 AM

7 h ahead of Medicine Hat

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,997

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.716 USD

1 CAD = 0.641 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 1.4 CAD (1 CAD = 0.716 USD). 1 EUR = 1.56 CAD (1 CAD = 0.641 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Medicine Hat Barcelona 7,940 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Medicine Hat
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

Medicine Hat vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,814 in Medicine Hat and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Medicine Hat is about 26% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 34% higher in Medicine Hat, 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: $901 in Medicine Hat versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $541 in Medicine Hat 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 Barcelona – a meal for two runs $67 versus $70 in Medicine Hat. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,814 in Medicine Hat versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Medicine Hat but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Medicine Hat 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.