Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Osaka and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Osaka: $1,400 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $12,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

67

Cost of Living Index in Osaka
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Osaka Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Osaka

🇯🇵 Japan

$1,400

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,400 in Osaka versus $2,405 in Barcelona.

Osaka $1,400
Barcelona $2,405

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,991 in Osaka versus $3,477 in Barcelona.

Osaka $1,991
Barcelona $3,477

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,582 in Osaka versus $4,550 in Barcelona.

Osaka $2,582
Barcelona $4,550

Living in Osaka costs roughly 42% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Osaka 4% above, Barcelona 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.19 ¥979

$17.98 €16.05

-65.57%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.80 ¥5,032

$67.4 €60.2

-52.83%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.93 ¥781

$13.37 €11.93

-63.13%

Cappuccino

$3.00 ¥474

$3.34 €2.98

-10.18%

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

$1.45 ¥229

$2.95 €2.64

-50.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 ¥113

$1.90 €1.69

-62.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.62 ¥415

$3.88 €3.46

-32.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.91 ¥618

$4.57 €4.08

-14.44%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 ¥230

$1.27 €1.13

14.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.31 ¥207

$1.96 €1.75

-33.16%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.25 ¥831

$1.75 €1.56

200.00%

Eggs

$2.03 ¥321

$4.89 €4.36

-58.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.77 ¥1,545

$17.47 €15.59

-44.08%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.22 ¥1,460

$9.06 €8.09

1.77%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.95 ¥2,841

$20.18 €18.01

-11.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3.29 ¥520

$3.08 €2.75

6.82%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 ¥317

$2.03 €1.81

-1.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 ¥334

$2.60 €2.32

-18.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.11 ¥650

$2.71 €2.42

51.66%

Potato (1kg)

$1.51 ¥239

$2.15 €1.92

-29.77%

Onion (1kg)

$1.19 ¥188

$2.21 €1.97

-46.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 ¥206

$1.54 €1.38

-15.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.86 ¥137

$0.93 €0.83

-7.53%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.82 ¥604

$7.09 €6.32

-46.12%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.74 ¥1,542

$7.63 €6.81

27.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.87 ¥296

$1.49 €1.33

25.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 ¥499

$2.73 €2.43

15.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.34 ¥212

$2.95 €2.63

-54.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.68 ¥5,171

$25.91 €23.13

26.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.85 ¥610

$3.13 €2.80

23.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.19 ¥505

$1.45 €1.29

120.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$21.93 ¥3,470

$34.17 €30.49

-35.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 ¥173

$1.79 €1.60

-38.55%

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

$21.5K ¥3.4M

$34.7K €31.0K

-37.99%

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

$15.1K ¥2.4M

$30.3K €27.0K

-50.05%

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

$140 ¥22.2K

$181 €161

-22.47%

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

$24.14 ¥3,821

$13.56 €12.10

78.02%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.58 ¥4,840

$35.12 €31.34

-12.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.41 ¥7,819

$53.2 €47.44

-7.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.41 ¥2,914

$16.05 €14.33

14.70%

Cinema Ticket

$12.27 ¥1,941

$11.37 €10.14

7.92%

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

$511 ¥80.9K

$939 €838

-45.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.1K ¥2.1M

$16.5K €14.7K

-20.78%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.50 ¥7,517

$88.2 €78.7

-46.15%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.12 ¥4,767

$39.77 €35.49

-24.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$73.4 ¥11.6K

$103 €92.3

-29.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.0 ¥14.4K

$119 €107

-23.82%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$704 ¥111.3K

$1,695 €1,513

-58.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$508 ¥80.4K

$1,301 €1,161

-60.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,751 ¥277.2K

$2,576 €2,299

-32.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$765 ¥121.1K

$1,941 €1,732

-60.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,208 ¥982.3K

$7,470 €6,666

-16.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,938 ¥306.7K

$5,195 €4,636

-62.69%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,346 ¥371.2K

$2,299 €2,052

2.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.21

3.28

-32.62%

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

Last update for Osaka: October 3, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Osaka

$508 36.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54% 156% $793

Groceries & Markets

Osaka

$301 21.9%

Barcelona

$325 13.5% 7.9% $24

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Osaka

$195 14.2%

Barcelona

$229 9.5% 17.7% $35

Eating Out

Osaka

$130 9.5%

Barcelona

$272 11.3% 110% $142

Clothing & Footwear

Osaka

$109 7.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 45% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Osaka

$74 5.4%

Barcelona

$76 3.2% 2.6% $2

Getting Around

Osaka

$58 4.2%

Barcelona

$48 2% 16.8% $9.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $704 in Osaka and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Osaka pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $32.00 in Osaka vs $67.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $301 vs $325 per month, with Osaka cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇯🇵 Osaka

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

11:26 11:26 AM

04:26 4:26 AM

7 h behind Osaka

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,691,185

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Japanese Yen JPY ¥

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD

1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to JPY – Japanese Yen Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇯🇵 Japanese Yen (¥)

Japanese Yen exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 158 JPY (1,000 JPY = 6.32 USD). 1 EUR = 177 JPY (1,000 JPY = 5.63 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to JPY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Osaka Barcelona 10,310 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Osaka
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

Osaka vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Osaka and Barcelona differ by about 72% in total monthly costs ($1,400 vs $2,405 including rent). Osaka is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Osaka, 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: $704 in Osaka versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $511 in Osaka versus $939 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 8% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,400 in Osaka versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Osaka but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Osaka 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, Osaka 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 Osaka gentler on the wallet – expenses run 72% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.