Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nottingham and Barcelona

For one person, living costs are similar in Nottingham and in Barcelona: $2,312 and $2,399 a month, rent and utilities included.

113

Cost of Living Index in Nottingham
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Nottingham Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Nottingham

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,312

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,312 in Nottingham versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Nottingham $2,312
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,326 in Nottingham versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Nottingham $3,326
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,341 in Nottingham versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Nottingham $4,341
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Nottingham costs roughly 4% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Nottingham 71% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.89 £14.92

$17.94 €15.96

10.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$77.1 £57.8

$68.1 €60.5

13.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.66 £8.00

$13.28 €11.81

-19.73%

Cappuccino

$4.48 £3.36

$3.25 €2.89

37.85%

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

$2.42 £1.82

$3.01 €2.67

-19.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.87 €1.66

-9.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.52 £4.89

$3.85 €3.42

69.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.57 £4.93

$4.48 €3.98

46.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 £1.42

$1.29 €1.15

47.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.48 £1.11

$2.04 €1.81

-27.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.23 £1.67

$1.72 €1.53

29.65%

Eggs

$4.85 £3.64

$4.77 €4.24

1.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.22 £6.17

$16.77 €14.92

-50.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.97 £6.73

$8.93 €7.94

0.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.99 £11.25

$19.88 €17.68

-24.60%

Apples (1kg)

$2.93 £2.20

$2.98 €2.65

-1.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.84 £1.38

$2.03 €1.80

-9.36%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.66 £2.75

$2.73 €2.43

34.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.42 £2.56

$2.68 €2.38

27.61%

Potato (1kg)

$2.10 £1.58

$2.10 €1.87

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 £1.47

$2.08 €1.85

-5.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 £0.97

$1.45 €1.29

-11.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 £1.35

$0.89 €0.79

103.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.19 £16.65

$6.94 €6.17

219.74%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.38 £10.04

$7.78 €6.92

71.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.44 £2.58

$1.45 €1.29

137.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.38 £4.04

$2.57 €2.29

109.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.86 £2.89

$2.99 €2.66

29.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$106 £79.7

$25.20 €22.41

321.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.69 £2.02

$3.12 €2.77

-13.78%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.44 €1.28

5.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$25.00 £18.76

$33.50 €29.80

-25.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.60

$1.79 €1.59

19.55%

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

$38.0K £28.5K

$34.6K €30.8K

9.79%

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

$40.1K £30.1K

$30.1K €26.7K

33.26%

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

$287 £216

$178 €158

61.63%

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

$19.23 £14.43

$13.32 €11.85

44.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.01 £30.77

$34.88 €31.03

17.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.93 £31.46

$53.3 €47.37

-21.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.64 £15.48

$16.01 €14.24

28.92%

Cinema Ticket

$15.92 £11.94

$11.06 €9.84

43.94%

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

$1,747 £1,310

$957 €851

82.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$26.8K £20.1K

$16.6K €14.7K

61.99%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.9 £65.2

$88.2 €78.4

-1.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.6 £46.21

$39.49 €35.12

55.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.2

$103 €91.5

5.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 £78.4

$121 €108

-13.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,202 £901

$1,653 €1,470

-27.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$963 £722

$1,302 €1,158

-26.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,952 £1,464

$2,557 €2,275

-23.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,422 £1,067

$1,915 €1,703

-25.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,112 £3,085

$7,286 €6,481

-43.56%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,807 £3,606

$5,080 €4,519

-5.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,119 £2,340

$2,281 €2,029

36.76%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.09

3.28

55.18%

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

Last update for Nottingham: October 12, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Nottingham

$963 41.7%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 35.2% $339

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nottingham

$348 15%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 35% $122

Groceries & Markets

Nottingham

$326 14.1%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 1.7% $5.6

Eating Out

Nottingham

$307 13.3%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 12.1% $37

Clothing & Footwear

Nottingham

$163 7%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 2.6% $4.2

Getting Around

Nottingham

$132 5.7%

Barcelona

$47 2% 64% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Nottingham

$74 3.2%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 2.2% $1.6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,202 in Nottingham and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Nottingham pays 37% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $77.0 in Nottingham vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $326 vs $320 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Nottingham

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

07:20 7:20 AM

08:20 8:20 AM

1 h ahead of Nottingham

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

305,700

1,660,122

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nottingham Barcelona 1,310 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Nottingham
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

Nottingham vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Nottingham and Barcelona differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($2,312 vs $2,399 including rent). Nottingham is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 37% higher in Nottingham, 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: $1,202 in Nottingham versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,747 in Nottingham versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 2% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,312 in Nottingham versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Nottingham but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Nottingham 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.

Safety-wise, Nottingham and Barcelona are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Nottingham gentler on the wallet – expenses run 4% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.