Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monterey Park, CA and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,443 a month against $2,949 in Monterey Park, CA, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

140

Cost of Living Index in Monterey Park, CA
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Monterey Park, CA Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Monterey Park, CA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,949

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,949 in Monterey Park, CA versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Monterey Park, CA $2,949
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,287 in Monterey Park, CA versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Monterey Park, CA $4,287
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,625 in Monterey Park, CA versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Monterey Park, CA $5,625
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Monterey Park, CA is roughly 21% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monterey Park, CA 118% above, Barcelona 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$28.42 $28.42

$17.66 €15.71

60.93%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.7 $82.7

$67.5 €60.0

22.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.16 $15.16

$13.61 €12.12

11.39%

Cappuccino

$5.92 $5.92

$3.10 €2.76

90.97%

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

$3.04 $3.04

$3.00 €2.67

1.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.73 $2.73

$1.93 €1.71

41.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.55 $8.55

$3.84 €3.42

122.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.86 $9.86

$4.36 €3.88

126.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 $1.27

$1.25 €1.11

1.60%

White Bread (500g)

$4.87 $4.87

$2.12 €1.89

129.72%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.64 $4.64

$1.97 €1.76

135.53%

Eggs

$5.42 $5.42

$4.76 €4.24

13.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.88 $10.88

$17.07 €15.19

-36.26%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.59 $8.59

$8.96 €7.97

-4.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.16 $20.16

$20.65 €18.38

-2.37%

Apples (1kg)

$4.67 $4.67

$3.16 €2.81

47.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.20 $2.20

$1.97 €1.75

11.68%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.09 $4.09

$2.65 €2.36

54.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.64 $5.64

$2.88 €2.57

95.83%

Potato (1kg)

$3.41 $3.41

$2.06 €1.83

65.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.80 $2.80

$2.18 €1.94

28.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.95 $1.95

$1.53 €1.37

27.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.62 $2.62

$0.97 €0.86

170.10%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$11.84 $11.84

$6.97 €6.20

69.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.73 $14.73

$7.89 €7.02

86.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.52 $2.52

$1.42 €1.26

77.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.78 $2.78

$2.69 €2.39

3.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.76 $1.76

$3.31 €2.94

-46.83%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.7 $56.7

$25.61 €22.79

121.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.75 $3.75

$3.08 €2.74

21.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.22 $2.22

$1.48 €1.32

50.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$38.53 $38.53

$32.87 €29.25

17.22%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.50 $1.50

$1.87 €1.66

-19.79%

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

$28.4K $28.4K

$33.0K €29.3K

-13.97%

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

$26.6K $26.6K

$31.9K €28.4K

-16.66%

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

$269 $269

$183 €163

46.89%

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

$85.7 $85.7

$14.24 €12.67

501.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$78.1 $78.1

$34.56 €30.76

125.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.33 $44.33

$51.4 €45.76

-13.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.58

Cinema Ticket

$18.34 $18.34

$11.06 €9.85

65.82%

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

$1,186 $1,186

$944 €840

25.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K $13.0K

$22.3K €19.8K

-41.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.2 $63.2

$87.7 €78.0

-27.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.4 $55.4

$38.77 €34.51

42.97%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 $121

$105 €93.0

15.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$215 $215

$118 €105

82.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,565 $1,565

$1,697 €1,510

-7.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,302 $1,302

$1,337 €1,190

-2.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,619 $2,619

$2,692 €2,396

-2.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 $2,077

$2,077 €1,848

0.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,585 $2,585

$7,155 €6,367

-63.87%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,343 $2,343

$5,079 €4,520

-53.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,626 $1,626

$2,241 €1,995

-27.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.31

3.19

97.81%

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

Last update for Monterey Park, CA: October 31, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monterey Park, CA

$1.3K 44.1%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 2.7% $35

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monterey Park, CA

$432 14.7%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 46.4% $201

Eating Out

Monterey Park, CA

$429 14.6%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 37.8% $163

Groceries & Markets

Monterey Park, CA

$421 14.3%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 22.2% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Monterey Park, CA

$205 6.9%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 23.3% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Monterey Park, CA

$81 2.8%

Barcelona

$74 3% 9.2% $7.5

Getting Around

Monterey Park, CA

$79 2.7%

Barcelona

$49 2% 37.3% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,565 in Monterey Park, CA and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 38% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $83 in Monterey Park, CA vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $421 vs $328 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Monterey Park, CA

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

01:27 1:27 AM

10:27 10:27 AM

9 h ahead of Monterey Park, CA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

60,269

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Monterey Park, CA Barcelona 9,650 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Monterey Park, CA
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

Monterey Park, CA vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,949 in Monterey Park, CA and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 17% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 27% lower in Monterey Park, CA. 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: $1,565 in Monterey Park, CA versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,186 in Monterey Park, CA versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 29% higher in Monterey Park, CA. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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, Monterey Park, CA and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.