Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Perez Zeledon and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Perez Zeledon: $1,317 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Perez Zeledon, Costa Rica
Barcelona, Spain
Perez Zeledon
🇨🇷 Costa Rica
$1,317
/mo nomad
Barcelona
🇪🇸 Spain
$2,453
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,317 in Perez Zeledon versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

  • Perez Zeledon $1,317
  • Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,364 in Perez Zeledon versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

  • Perez Zeledon $2,364
  • Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,410 in Perez Zeledon versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

  • Perez Zeledon $3,410
  • Barcelona $4,564

Living in Perez Zeledon costs roughly 46% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Perez Zeledon is 3% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$9.09 ₡4,102
$17.59 €15.75
-48.32%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$37.24 ₡16.8K
$67.5 €60.5
-44.82%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.19 ₡3,699
$13.53 €12.12
-39.47%
Cappuccino
$2.70 ₡1,217
$3.19 €2.86
-15.36%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.97 ₡887
$2.91 €2.61
-32.30%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.78 ₡805
$1.89 €1.70
-5.82%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$1.73 ₡780
$4.01 €3.59
-56.86%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.21 ₡1,447
$4.53 €4.06
-29.14%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.60 ₡724
$1.31 €1.17
22.14%
White Bread (500g)
$3.13 ₡1,413
$2.02 €1.81
54.95%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.49 ₡1,122
$1.85 €1.66
34.59%
Eggs
$2.49 ₡1,126
$4.83 €4.33
-48.45%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.73 ₡4,846
$16.74 €14.99
-35.90%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.28 ₡4,639
$9.12 €8.17
12.72%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.14 ₡6,384
$19.64 €17.59
-28.00%
Apples (1kg)
$5.24 ₡2,365
$2.98 €2.67
75.84%
Banana (1kg)
$1.08 ₡488
$2.02 €1.81
-46.53%
Oranges (1kg)
$4.89 ₡2,206
$2.70 €2.42
81.11%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.85 ₡1,737
$2.80 €2.51
37.50%
Potato (1kg)
$3.72 ₡1,680
$2.09 €1.87
77.99%
Onion (1kg)
$3.59 ₡1,622
$2.07 €1.85
73.43%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.45 ₡205
$1.46 €1.31
-69.18%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$3.09 ₡1,394
$0.94 €0.84
228.72%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$5.57 ₡2,516
$6.87 €6.15
-18.92%
Wine (Bottle)
$19.80 ₡8,937
$7.89 €7.06
150.95%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.87 ₡1,297
$1.41 €1.26
103.55%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.63 ₡1,638
$2.54 €2.27
42.91%
🚌 Getting Around
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$0.81 ₡364
$3.14 €2.82
-74.20%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
-
$25.45 €22.79
-
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$2.49 ₡1,126
$2.99 €2.68
-16.72%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.63 ₡737
$1.49 €1.34
9.40%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.76 ₡3,955
$33.37 €29.89
-73.75%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.52 ₡688
$1.80 €1.61
-15.56%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$33.8K ₡15.2M
$33.2K €29.7K
1.69%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$42.1K ₡19.0M
$31.7K €28.4K
32.84%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$93.6 ₡42.2K
$180 €162
-48.13%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$23.99 ₡10.8K
$13.84 €12.39
73.34%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$59.2 ₡26.7K
$33.70 €30.18
75.52%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$67.9 ₡30.7K
$51.5 €46.13
31.88%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$15.96 €14.29
-
Cinema Ticket
$7.67 ₡3,464
$10.99 €9.85
-30.21%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$498 ₡224.8K
$917 €821
-45.66%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$17.3K ₡7.8M
$16.5K €14.8K
5.05%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$71.8 ₡32.4K
$87.0 €77.9
-17.49%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.0 ₡24.8K
$38.51 €34.49
42.82%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$128 ₡57.7K
$106 €94.8
20.86%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$133 ₡60.0K
$120 €107
10.98%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$402 ₡181.3K
$1,699 €1,522
-76.37%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$326 ₡147.1K
$1,355 €1,214
-75.95%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,133 ₡963.0K
$2,603 €2,331
-18.05%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,260 ₡568.7K
$2,062 €1,847
-38.92%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$6,915 €6,193
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$5,128 €4,592
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Perez Zeledon
Barcelona
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
-
$2,211 €1,980
-
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
8.62
3.28
162.80%

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

Last update for Perez Zeledon: 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
Perez Zeledon
$383
Barcelona
$322 16% $61
Accommodation & Living
Perez Zeledon
$326
Barcelona
$1.4K 316% $1K
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Perez Zeledon
$177
Barcelona
$228 29% $51
Clothing & Footwear
Perez Zeledon
$174
Barcelona
$158 9.4% $16
Eating Out
Perez Zeledon
$160
Barcelona
$268 67.8% $108
Sport & Entertainment
Perez Zeledon
$83
Barcelona
$74 11.7% $9.8
Getting Around
Perez Zeledon
$14 *
Barcelona
$48 249% $35

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $402 in Perez Zeledon and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $37 in Perez Zeledon vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $383 vs $322, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇨🇷 Perez Zeledon
🇪🇸 Barcelona
🕒 Local time
05:11 5:11 AM
12:11 12:11 PM
7 h ahead of Perez Zeledon
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
135,000
1,660,122
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CRC – Costa Rican Colón Converter

Costa Rican Colón exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 451 CRC (1,000 CRC = 2.22 USD). 1 EUR = 504 CRC (1,000 CRC = 1.98 EUR).

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

On the map
Between locations
  • Perez Zeledon Barcelona 8,970 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Perez Zeledon
  • 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
Perez Zeledon vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
What is the total cost difference between living in Perez Zeledon and in Barcelona?
Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,317 in Perez Zeledon and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Perez Zeledon is about 46% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.
What salary covers living expenses in Perez Zeledon compared to Barcelona?
You’d need roughly $1,975 in Perez Zeledon and $3,679 in Barcelona to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.
How do apartment prices compare in Perez Zeledon and in Barcelona?
Rent for a central apartment: $402 in Perez Zeledon versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
What is the difference in childcare costs between Perez Zeledon and Barcelona?
Childcare runs $498 in Perez Zeledon versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
Dining out is cheaper in Perez Zeledon – a meal for two runs $37 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.
Which city is more doable on $1,500 per month?
At $1,317 in Perez Zeledon versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Perez Zeledon but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Perez Zeledon the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
How does quality of life compare between Perez Zeledon and Barcelona?
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.

Perez Zeledon vs other spots: cost of living compared

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