Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Quetzaltenango and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Quetzaltenango: $1,138 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Quetzaltenango
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Quetzaltenango Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Quetzaltenango

🇬🇹 Guatemala

$1,138

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,138 in Quetzaltenango versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Quetzaltenango $1,138
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,443 in Quetzaltenango versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Quetzaltenango $1,443
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,747 in Quetzaltenango versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Quetzaltenango $1,747
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Quetzaltenango costs roughly 54% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Quetzaltenango is 16% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.77 Q 51.7

$17.59 €15.76

-61.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.9 Q 389

$67.5 €60.5

-24.57%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.68 Q 58.7

$13.53 €12.12

-43.24%

Cappuccino

$3.36 Q 25.69

$3.19 €2.86

5.33%

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

$1.10 Q 8.40

$2.91 €2.61

-62.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.97 Q 7.44

$1.89 €1.70

-48.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.33 Q 25.45

$4.01 €3.59

-16.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.62 Q 35.27

$4.53 €4.06

1.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.10 Q 16.01

$1.31 €1.17

60.31%

White Bread (500g)

$2.57 Q 19.64

$2.02 €1.81

27.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.05 Q 15.69

$1.85 €1.66

10.81%

Eggs

$2.36 Q 18.05

$4.83 €4.33

-51.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.37 Q 48.69

$16.74 €15.00

-61.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.92 Q 60.5

$9.12 €8.17

-13.16%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.09 Q 100

$19.64 €17.60

-33.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 Q 22.58

$2.98 €2.67

-0.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 Q 13.14

$2.02 €1.81

-14.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.92 Q 22.34

$2.70 €2.42

8.15%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.60 Q 12.20

$2.80 €2.51

-42.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 Q 11.73

$2.09 €1.87

-26.32%

Onion (1kg)

$2.20 Q 16.79

$2.07 €1.85

6.28%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.74 Q 5.65

$1.46 €1.31

-49.32%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 Q 8.90

$0.94 €0.84

23.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.35 Q 25.61

$6.87 €6.16

-51.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.04 Q 61.5

$7.89 €7.07

1.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.78 Q 13.57

$1.41 €1.26

26.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.60 Q 19.84

$2.54 €2.27

2.36%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.12 Q 39.12

$2.99 €2.68

71.24%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.72 Q 13.16

$1.49 €1.34

15.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.34 Q 79.0

$33.37 €29.91

-69.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.33 Q 10.14

$1.80 €1.61

-26.11%

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

$27.6K Q 210.6K

$33.2K €29.7K

-16.95%

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

$25.8K Q 197.5K

$31.7K €28.4K

-18.46%

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

$72.2 Q 551

$180 €162

-60.00%

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

$12.97 Q 99.1

$13.84 €12.40

-6.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.36 Q 354

$33.70 €30.20

37.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.27 Q 254

$51.5 €46.16

-35.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 Q 48.46

$10.99 €9.85

-42.31%

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

$342 Q 2,613

$917 €821

-62.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,808 Q 52.0K

$16.5K €14.8K

-58.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$48.78 Q 373

$87.0 €78.0

-43.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.81 Q 365

$38.51 €34.51

24.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$110 Q 839

$106 €94.8

3.83%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$112 Q 853

$120 €107

-6.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$399 Q 3,052

$1,699 €1,523

-76.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$389 Q 2,971

$1,355 €1,214

-71.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,332

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,848

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,595

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.62

3.28

254.27%

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

Last update for Quetzaltenango: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Quetzaltenango

$389 34.2%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 249% $966

Groceries & Markets

Quetzaltenango

$263 23.1%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 22.3% $59

Eating Out

Quetzaltenango

$152 13.3%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 76.6% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Quetzaltenango

$143 12.6%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 10.4% $15

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Quetzaltenango

$131 11.6%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 73.4% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Quetzaltenango

$46 4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 59.9% $28

Getting Around

Quetzaltenango

$14 * 1.2%

Barcelona

$48 2% 253% $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 $399 in Quetzaltenango and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $51 in Quetzaltenango vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $263 vs $322 per month, with Quetzaltenango cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇹 Quetzaltenango

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

20:01 8:01 PM

03:01 3:01 AM

7 h ahead of Quetzaltenango

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

500,000

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Guatemalan Quetzal GTQ Q

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GTQ = 0.131 USD

1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GTQ – Guatemalan Quetzal Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇹 Guatemalan Quetzal (Q)

Guatemalan Quetzal exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 7.64 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.131 USD). 1 EUR = 8.53 GTQ (1 GTQ = 0.117 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GTQ in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Quetzaltenango Barcelona 9,220 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Quetzaltenango
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

Quetzaltenango vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,138 in Quetzaltenango and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Quetzaltenango is about 54% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,707 in Quetzaltenango 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $399 in Quetzaltenango versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $342 in Quetzaltenango versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Quetzaltenango – a meal for two runs $51 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Quetzaltenango is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.