Cost of Living Comparison Between Reading and Barcelona Cost of Living Comparison Between Reading and Barcelona

😐 Solo nomad: Reading is 13.7% more expensive than Barcelona without rent, and 16.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Reading is 15.1% more expensive than Barcelona without rent, and 19.4% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$27.14 Β£19.97
$17.41 €15.03
55.89%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$96.6 Β£71.1
$68.7 €59.3
40.49%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.01 Β£7.37
$13.71 €11.84
-26.99%
Cappuccino
$4.83 Β£3.56
$2.78 €2.4
73.74%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.35 Β£2.47
$2.8 €2.42
19.64%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.97 Β£2.18
$1.98 €1.71
50.00%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$8.37 Β£6.16
$4.43 €3.83
88.94%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.94 Β£5.11
$4.53 €3.91
53.20%
πŸ›’ Groceries & Markets
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.37 Β£1.01
$1.24 €1.07
10.48%
White Bread (500g)
$1.31 Β£0.96
$2.03 €1.75
-35.47%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.69 Β£1.98
$1.98 €1.71
35.86%
Eggs
$3.66 Β£2.69
$3.46 €2.99
5.78%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.96 Β£7.33
$18.32 €15.82
-45.63%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$8.29 Β£6.1
$9.82 €8.47
-15.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$12.98 Β£9.55
$19.24 €16.61
-32.54%
Apples (1kg)
$3.07 Β£2.26
$2.61 €2.25
17.62%
Banana (1kg)
$1.52 Β£1.12
$2.34 €2.02
-35.04%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.78 Β£2.05
$2.11 €1.82
31.75%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.28 Β£2.41
$2.77 €2.39
18.41%
Potato (1kg)
$1.5 Β£1.1
$2.04 €1.76
-26.47%
Onion (1kg)
$1.38 Β£1.02
$1.77 €1.53
-22.03%
Lettuce (1 head)
$0.92 Β£0.68
$1.5 €1.3
-38.67%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.56 Β£1.15
$0.85 €0.73
83.53%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$20.3 Β£14.94
$7 €6.04
190.00%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.48 Β£9.92
$7.13 €6.16
89.06%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.24 Β£1.65
$1.43 €1.24
56.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.48 Β£2.56
$2.29 €1.98
51.97%
🚌 Getting Around
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.71 Β£1.99
$3.02 €2.6
-10.26%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$88 Β£64.7
$28.97 €25.01
203.66%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$6.25 Β£4.6
$4.59 €3.96
36.17%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.74 Β£1.28
$2.02 €1.74
-13.86%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$15.12 Β£11.13
$29.56 €25.53
-48.85%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.86 Β£1.37
$1.81 €1.56
2.76%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$39.1K Β£28.8K
$38.4K €33.1K
1.76%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$41.2K Β£30.3K
$32.4K €28K
27.31%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$221 Β£162
$190 €164
16.44%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$19.18 Β£14.11
$22.18 €19.15
-13.53%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$43.33 Β£31.88
$36.37 €31.4
19.14%
πŸŽ‰ Sport & Entertainment
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$47.42 Β£34.9
$57.4 €49.55
-17.37%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.88 Β£14.63
$20.95 €18.09
-5.11%
Cinema Ticket
$13.43 Β£9.88
$10.8 €9.33
24.35%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,930 Β£1,420
$732 €632
163.59%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$25.4K Β£18.7K
$15.1K €13.1K
68.23%
πŸ‘•πŸ‘Ÿ Clothing & Footwear
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$81.4 Β£59.9
$86.8 €74.9
-6.21%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$49.95 Β£36.75
$36.78 €31.76
35.81%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$113 Β£83.3
$102 €88.2
10.75%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$99.1 Β£72.9
$117 €101
-15.36%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,801 Β£1,325
$1,581 €1,365
13.93%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,426 Β£1,050
$1,230 €1,062
15.96%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,036 Β£2,234
$2,707 €2,337
12.14%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,423 Β£1,783
$2,028 €1,751
19.46%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$5,731 Β£4,218
$6,602 €5,700
-13.19%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,414 Β£3,984
$5,045 €4,356
7.30%
πŸ’΅ Salaries & Financials
Reading
Barcelona
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,575 Β£2,631
$2,198 €1,898
62.61%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.53
3.39
63.13%

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

Last update for Reading: October 28, 2025

Last update for Barcelona: October 28, 2025

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