Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quarteira and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Quarteira: $1,662 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

79

Cost of Living Index in Quarteira
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Quarteira Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Quarteira

🇵🇹 Portugal

$1,662

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,662 in Quarteira versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Quarteira $1,662
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,414 in Quarteira versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Quarteira $2,414
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,166 in Quarteira versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Quarteira $3,166
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Quarteira costs roughly 32% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Quarteira 23% above, Barcelona 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$13.93 €12.42

$17.66 €15.75

-21.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.5 €50.4

$67.5 €60.2

-16.27%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.02 €9.83

$13.61 €12.14

-19.03%

Cappuccino

$1.85 €1.65

$3.10 €2.77

-40.32%

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

$1.55 €1.39

$3.00 €2.68

-48.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.09

$1.93 €1.72

-36.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.84 €2.53

$3.84 €3.43

-26.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.57 €2.29

$4.36 €3.89

-41.06%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 €0.91

$1.25 €1.11

-18.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.26 €1.12

$2.12 €1.90

-40.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$1.97 €1.76

-22.34%

Eggs

$3.47 €3.10

$4.76 €4.25

-27.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.00 €8.03

$17.07 €15.22

-47.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.21 €5.54

$8.96 €7.99

-30.69%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.25 €10.04

$20.65 €18.42

-45.52%

Apples (1kg)

$2.50 €2.23

$3.16 €2.82

-20.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.97 €1.75

-34.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.58 €1.41

$2.65 €2.37

-40.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.52 €2.25

$2.88 €2.57

-12.50%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 €1.78

$2.06 €1.84

-3.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 €1.44

$2.18 €1.95

-26.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 €1.24

$1.53 €1.37

-8.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.64 €0.57

$0.97 €0.87

-34.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.06 €5.40

$6.97 €6.21

-13.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.83 €3.42

$7.89 €7.04

-51.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 €0.86

$1.42 €1.26

-32.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.52 €2.25

$2.69 €2.40

-6.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.42 €4.84

$3.31 €2.95

63.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.84

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.66 €3.27

$3.08 €2.75

18.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.66 €0.59

$1.48 €1.32

-55.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.87 €15.05

$32.87 €29.32

-48.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 €1.90

$1.87 €1.66

13.90%

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

$33.9K €30.2K

$33.0K €29.4K

2.79%

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

$38.1K €34.0K

$31.9K €28.5K

19.34%

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

$113 €101

$183 €163

-38.28%

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

$21.94 €19.57

$14.24 €12.70

54.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.23 €31.42

$34.56 €30.83

1.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.2 €81.4

$51.4 €45.87

77.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.62

Cinema Ticket

$8.92 €7.96

$11.06 €9.87

-19.35%

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

$458 €408

$944 €842

-51.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.1K

$22.3K €19.9K

-49.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.6 €63.9

$87.7 €78.2

-18.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.13 €39.36

$38.77 €34.59

13.83%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €93.1

$105 €93.3

-0.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$103 €92.0

$118 €105

-12.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$841 €750

$1,697 €1,514

-50.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$798 €711

$1,337 €1,192

-40.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,430 €1,275

$2,692 €2,401

-46.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,173 €1,046

$2,077 €1,853

-43.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,382

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,530

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,372 €1,224

$2,241 €1,999

-38.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.54

3.19

10.97%

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

Last update for Quarteira: November 1, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quarteira

$798 48%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 67.6% $539

Groceries & Markets

Quarteira

$214 12.9%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 53.3% $114

Eating Out

Quarteira

$197 11.9%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 35.5% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quarteira

$170 10.2%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 36.3% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Quarteira

$145 8.8%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 7.9% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Quarteira

$109 6.6%

Barcelona

$74 3% 32.6% $36

Getting Around

Quarteira

$29 * 1.7%

Barcelona

$49 2% 72.2% $21

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 $841 in Quarteira and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 63% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $56 in Quarteira vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $214 vs $328 per month, with Quarteira cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇹 Quarteira

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

01:16 1:16 AM

02:16 2:16 AM

1 h ahead of Quarteira

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

24,421

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Quarteira Barcelona 1,010 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Quarteira
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

Quarteira vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,662 in Quarteira and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Quarteira is about 32% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 39% lower in Quarteira. 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: $841 in Quarteira versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $458 in Quarteira versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Quarteira – a meal for two runs $56 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,662 in Quarteira versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Quarteira but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Quarteira 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, Quarteira and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

It comes down to priorities – Quarteira wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.