Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rethymno and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Rethymno: $1,358 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Rethymno
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Rethymno Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Rethymno

🇬🇷 Greece

$1,358

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,358 in Rethymno versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Rethymno $1,358
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,031 in Rethymno versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Rethymno $2,031
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,703 in Rethymno versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Rethymno $2,703
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Rethymno costs roughly 45% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.69 €11.38

$17.59 €15.76

-27.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.1 €50.2

$67.5 €60.5

-16.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.25 €9.18

$13.53 €12.12

-24.24%

Cappuccino

$3.54 €3.18

$3.19 €2.86

10.97%

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

$1.67 €1.50

$2.91 €2.61

-42.61%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.58 €0.52

$1.89 €1.70

-69.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.54 €4.07

$4.01 €3.59

13.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.25 €4.70

$4.53 €4.06

15.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.58 €1.42

$1.31 €1.17

20.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.21 €1.08

$2.02 €1.81

-40.10%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.26 €2.03

$1.85 €1.66

22.16%

Eggs

$4.48 €4.01

$4.83 €4.33

-7.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$15.17 €13.60

$16.74 €15.00

-9.38%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.68 €8.67

$9.12 €8.17

6.14%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.43 €13.83

$19.64 €17.60

-21.44%

Apples (1kg)

$1.99 €1.79

$2.98 €2.67

-33.22%

Banana (1kg)

$1.99 €1.78

$2.02 €1.81

-1.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.24 €1.11

$2.70 €2.42

-54.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.70 €1.52

$2.80 €2.51

-39.29%

Potato (1kg)

$0.96 €0.86

$2.09 €1.87

-54.07%

Onion (1kg)

$1.01 €0.90

$2.07 €1.85

-51.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.69 €0.62

$1.46 €1.31

-52.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 €0.66

$0.94 €0.84

-21.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.38 €3.93

$6.87 €6.16

-36.24%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.89 €6.18

$7.89 €7.07

-12.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 €1.62

$1.41 €1.26

28.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.82 €1.64

$2.54 €2.27

-28.35%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.81 €1.62

$3.14 €2.82

-42.36%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.58 €4.10

$2.99 €2.68

53.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.14 €1.02

$1.49 €1.34

-23.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.38 €10.20

$33.37 €29.91

-65.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.21 €1.98

$1.80 €1.61

22.78%

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

$22.4K €20.1K

$33.2K €29.7K

-32.50%

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

$24.5K €22.0K

$31.7K €28.4K

-22.65%

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

$191 €171

$180 €162

5.73%

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

$18.37 €16.46

$13.84 €12.40

32.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.03 €27.81

$33.70 €30.20

-7.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 €54.8

$51.5 €46.16

18.73%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 €7.58

$10.99 €9.85

-23.02%

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

$366 €328

$917 €821

-60.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,964 €3,552

$16.5K €14.8K

-75.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.2 €79.0

$87.0 €78.0

1.34%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$11.04 €9.89

$38.51 €34.51

-71.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$44.52 €39.89

$106 €94.8

-57.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$44.41 €39.80

$120 €107

-62.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$548 €491

$1,699 €1,523

-67.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$447 €401

$1,355 €1,214

-67.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$913 €818

$2,603 €2,332

-64.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$700 €627

$2,062 €1,848

-66.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,172 €3,738

$6,915 €6,196

-39.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,963 €2,655

$5,128 €4,595

-42.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,201 €1,076

$2,211 €1,981

-45.68%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.3

3.28

31.10%

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

Last update for Rethymno: 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

Rethymno

$447 32.9%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 203% $908

Groceries & Markets

Rethymno

$273 20.1%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 17.7% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rethymno

$240 17.7%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 5.1% $12

Eating Out

Rethymno

$217 16%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 23.4% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Rethymno

$85 6.2%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 86.5% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Rethymno

$78 5.8%

Barcelona

$74 3% 5.9% $4.6

Getting Around

Rethymno

$18 * 1.3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 177% $31

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 $548 in Rethymno and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 84% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $56 in Rethymno vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $273 vs $322 per month, with Rethymno cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇷 Rethymno

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

06:25 6:25 AM

05:25 5:25 AM

1 h behind Rethymno

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,763

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

Rethymno Barcelona 2,050 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Rethymno
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

Rethymno vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,358 in Rethymno and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Rethymno is about 45% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 46% lower in Rethymno. 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: $548 in Rethymno versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $366 in Rethymno 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 Rethymno – 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 $1,358 in Rethymno versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Rethymno but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Rethymno 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, Rethymno and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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