Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rennes and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Rennes: $1,722 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,900 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

84

Cost of Living Index in Rennes
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Rennes Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Rennes

🇫🇷 France

$1,722

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,722 in Rennes versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Rennes $1,722
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,694 in Rennes versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Rennes $2,694
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,666 in Rennes versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Rennes $3,666
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Rennes costs roughly 28% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Rennes 27% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.73 €13.10

$17.89 €15.92

-17.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.2 €60.7

$66.2 €58.9

3.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.30 €11.83

$13.69 €12.18

-2.85%

Cappuccino

$3.53 €3.14

$3.06 €2.72

15.36%

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

$2.60 €2.31

$3.07 €2.73

-15.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 €1.85

$1.94 €1.73

7.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.93 €7.06

$3.87 €3.44

104.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.71 €5.08

$4.61 €4.10

23.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.20 €1.07

$1.30 €1.16

-7.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.10 €1.87

-5.71%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.33 €2.96

$1.83 €1.62

81.97%

Eggs

$3.68 €3.28

$4.62 €4.11

-20.35%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.15 €15.25

$17.36 €15.44

-1.21%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.44 €11.95

$9.28 €8.25

44.83%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.62 €21.01

$19.83 €17.64

19.11%

Apples (1kg)

$3.27 €2.91

$3.01 €2.68

8.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.00 €1.78

$2.03 €1.81

-1.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.50 €2.22

$2.65 €2.36

-5.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.30 €2.94

$2.87 €2.55

14.98%

Potato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.12

$2.16 €1.92

10.19%

Onion (1kg)

$1.44 €1.28

$2.15 €1.91

-33.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.47 €1.31

5.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 €0.80

$0.88 €0.79

2.27%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.25 €11.78

$6.93 €6.16

91.20%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.89 €6.13

$7.83 €6.96

-12.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.41 €3.03

$1.39 €1.24

145.32%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.48 €3.10

$2.63 €2.34

32.32%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.87 €1.66

$2.91 €2.59

-35.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.2 €50.8

$25.46 €22.64

124.51%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.78 €7.81

$3.00 €2.66

192.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.21 €1.08

$1.44 €1.28

-15.97%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.98 €29.34

$33.20 €29.53

-0.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.86 €1.65

15.59%

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

$34.7K €30.9K

$32.3K €28.8K

7.31%

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

$37.6K €33.4K

$31.7K €28.2K

18.54%

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

$156 €139

$183 €163

-14.52%

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

$13.30 €11.83

$13.61 €12.11

-2.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.84 €27.43

$32.93 €29.29

-6.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.83 €36.31

$54.7 €48.65

-25.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$12.48 €11.11

$16.52 €14.70

-24.46%

Cinema Ticket

$13.65 €12.14

$11.23 €9.99

21.55%

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

$904 €805

$954 €849

-5.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,919 €8,823

$16.6K €14.8K

-40.26%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$85.3 €75.9

$86.0 €76.5

-0.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.5 €50.3

$39.11 €34.78

44.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €100.0

$104 €92.2

8.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 €92.3

$119 €106

-12.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$789 €702

$1,695 €1,508

-53.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$574 €511

$1,276 €1,135

-55.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,361 €1,210

$2,576 €2,291

-47.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,048 €932

$1,922 €1,710

-45.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,353 €5,651

$7,281 €6,477

-12.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,149 €2,801

$5,010 €4,456

-37.13%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,873 €2,555

$2,227 €1,981

29.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.91

3.28

19.21%

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

Last update for Rennes: October 18, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Rennes

$574 33.4%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 122% $702

Groceries & Markets

Rennes

$369 21.4%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 11.9% $44

Eating Out

Rennes

$270 15.7%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 0.1% $0.4

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rennes

$200 11.6%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 14.4% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Rennes

$161 9.4%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 3% $4.8

Getting Around

Rennes

$79 4.6%

Barcelona

$47 2% 40.5% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Rennes

$68 4%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 13.3% $9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $789 in Rennes and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Rennes pays 29% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68.0 in Rennes vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $369 vs $325 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Rennes

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

12:48 12:48 PM

Same time as Rennes

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

225,081

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

Rennes Barcelona 810 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Rennes
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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

Rennes vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rennes and Barcelona differ by about 38% in total monthly costs ($1,722 vs $2,381 including rent). Rennes is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 29% higher in Rennes, 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: $789 in Rennes versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $904 in Rennes versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 14% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $1,722 in Rennes versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Rennes but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Rennes 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, Rennes 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 Rennes gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.