Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Rui'an and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Rui'an: $714 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Rui'an
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Rui'an Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Rui'an

🇨🇳 China

$714

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $714 in Rui'an versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Rui'an $714
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,133 in Rui'an versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Rui'an $1,133
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,552 in Rui'an versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Rui'an $1,552
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Rui'an costs roughly 70% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Rui'an is 47% below, Barcelona is 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.83 ¥18.91

$17.89 €15.92

-84.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.42 ¥143

$66.2 €58.9

-67.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.92 ¥32.91

$13.69 €12.18

-64.06%

Cappuccino

$3.11 ¥20.77

$3.06 €2.72

1.63%

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

$0.43 ¥2.89

$3.07 €2.73

-85.99%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 ¥1.96

$1.94 €1.73

-85.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.92 ¥6.17

$3.87 €3.44

-76.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ¥13.79

$4.61 €4.10

-55.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 ¥12.39

$1.30 €1.16

42.31%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 ¥10.73

$2.10 €1.87

-23.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.95 ¥6.34

$1.83 €1.62

-48.09%

Eggs

$1.55 ¥10.38

$4.62 €4.11

-66.45%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.91 ¥86.3

$17.36 €15.44

-25.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.24 ¥21.64

$9.28 €8.25

-65.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.13 ¥67.7

$19.83 €17.64

-48.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.79 ¥11.95

$3.01 €2.68

-40.53%

Banana (1kg)

$1.20 ¥8.03

$2.03 €1.81

-40.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 ¥10.32

$2.65 €2.36

-41.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.14 ¥7.64

$2.87 €2.55

-60.28%

Potato (1kg)

$0.69 ¥4.61

$2.16 €1.92

-68.06%

Onion (1kg)

$0.92 ¥6.14

$2.15 €1.91

-57.21%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.60 ¥4.00

$1.47 €1.31

-59.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 ¥3.70

$0.88 €0.79

-37.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.22 ¥21.50

$6.93 €6.16

-53.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.43 ¥69.7

$7.83 €6.96

33.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.74 ¥4.93

$1.39 €1.24

-46.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.65 ¥11.04

$2.63 €2.34

-37.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.27 ¥1.80

$2.91 €2.59

-90.72%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.57 ¥111

$25.46 €22.64

-34.92%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.38 ¥9.21

$3.00 €2.66

-54.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.32 ¥2.17

$1.44 €1.28

-77.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.72 ¥44.95

$33.20 €29.53

-79.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.13 ¥7.53

$1.86 €1.65

-39.25%

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

$19.4K ¥130.0K

$32.3K €28.8K

-39.90%

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

$17.4K ¥116.1K

$31.7K €28.2K

-45.21%

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

$44.23 ¥296

$183 €163

-75.80%

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

$10.04 ¥67.1

$13.61 €12.11

-26.23%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.61 ¥77.6

$32.93 €29.29

-64.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.34 ¥276

$54.7 €48.65

-24.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.91 ¥93.0

$16.52 €14.70

-15.80%

Cinema Ticket

$5.77 ¥38.60

$11.23 €9.99

-48.62%

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

$341 ¥2,279

$954 €849

-64.28%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K ¥110.6K

$16.6K €14.8K

-0.35%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$43.27 ¥289

$86.0 €76.5

-49.70%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$30.29 ¥203

$39.11 €34.78

-22.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$71.0 ¥475

$104 €92.2

-31.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$72.3 ¥484

$119 €106

-39.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$275 ¥1,839

$1,695 €1,508

-83.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$192 ¥1,285

$1,276 €1,135

-84.94%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$600 ¥4,010

$2,576 €2,291

-76.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$362 ¥2,418

$1,922 €1,710

-81.19%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,056 ¥20.4K

$7,281 €6,477

-58.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,008 ¥13.4K

$5,010 €4,456

-59.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.89

3.28

18.60%

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

Last update for Rui'an: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Rui'an

$199 27.8%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 63.6% $126

Accommodation & Living

Rui'an

$192 26.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 564% $1.1K

Clothing & Footwear

Rui'an

$98 13.7%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 60.2% $59

Eating Out

Rui'an

$86 12.1%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 212% $183

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Rui'an

$66 9.2%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 248% $163

Sport & Entertainment

Rui'an

$53 7.4%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 45.9% $24

Getting Around

Rui'an

$21 2.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 129% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $275 in Rui'an and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $21.00 in Rui'an vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $199 vs $325 per month, with Rui'an cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇳 Rui'an

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

18:49 6:49 PM

12:49 12:49 PM

6 h behind Rui'an

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

213,600

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Chinese Yuan CNY ¥

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CNY = 0.15 USD

1 CNY = 0.133 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CNY – Chinese Yuan Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇳 Chinese Yuan (¥)

Chinese Yuan exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 6.69 CNY (1 CNY = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.52 CNY (1 CNY = 0.133 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CNY in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Rui'an Barcelona 10,060 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Rui'an
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

Rui'an vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Rui'an and Barcelona differ by about 233% in total monthly costs ($714 vs $2,381 including rent). Rui'an is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,071 in Rui'an and $3,571 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: $275 in Rui'an versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $341 in Rui'an versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 64% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $714 in Rui'an versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Rui'an but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Rui'an 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, Rui'an 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 Rui'an gentler on the wallet – expenses run 233% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.