Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sabadell and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Sabadell: $1,828 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Sabadell
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Sabadell Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Sabadell

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,828

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,828 in Sabadell versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Sabadell $1,828
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,513 in Sabadell versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Sabadell $2,513
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,197 in Sabadell versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Sabadell $3,197
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Sabadell costs roughly 23% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sabadell 35% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.34 €12.76

$17.89 €15.92

-19.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.3 €49.16

$66.2 €58.9

-16.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.97 €8.87

$13.69 €12.18

-27.17%

Cappuccino

$2.40 €2.14

$3.06 €2.72

-21.57%

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

$2.41 €2.14

$3.07 €2.73

-21.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.68

$1.94 €1.73

-2.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.35 €2.98

$3.87 €3.44

-13.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.37 €3.00

$4.61 €4.10

-26.90%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.30 €1.16

-11.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 €1.86

$2.10 €1.87

-0.48%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.40 €1.24

$1.83 €1.62

-23.50%

Eggs

$3.09 €2.75

$4.62 €4.11

-33.12%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.79 €13.16

$17.36 €15.44

-14.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.59 €7.64

$9.28 €8.25

-7.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.86 €17.66

$19.83 €17.64

0.15%

Apples (1kg)

$2.50 €2.23

$3.01 €2.68

-16.94%

Banana (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.03 €1.81

1.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.58 €2.30

$2.65 €2.36

-2.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 €2.20

$2.87 €2.55

-13.59%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 €1.63

$2.16 €1.92

-15.28%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$2.15 €1.91

-4.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.52 €1.35

$1.47 €1.31

3.40%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 €0.84

$0.88 €0.79

7.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.80 €6.05

$6.93 €6.16

-1.88%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.53 €4.92

$7.83 €6.96

-29.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.14 €1.01

$1.39 €1.24

-17.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.40 €2.13

$2.63 €2.34

-8.75%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.40 €2.13

$2.91 €2.59

-17.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.16 €20.61

$25.46 €22.64

-9.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.15 €2.80

$3.00 €2.66

5.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.34 €1.20

$1.44 €1.28

-6.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.93 €21.29

$33.20 €29.53

-27.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.77 €1.57

$1.86 €1.65

-4.84%

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

$33.3K €29.6K

$32.3K €28.8K

2.83%

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

$29.0K €25.8K

$31.7K €28.2K

-8.48%

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

$127 €113

$183 €163

-30.47%

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

$13.65 €12.14

$13.61 €12.11

0.29%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.43 €29.74

$32.93 €29.29

1.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.56 €27.19

$54.7 €48.65

-44.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.49 €7.55

$16.52 €14.70

-48.61%

Cinema Ticket

$10.07 €8.96

$11.23 €9.99

-10.33%

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

$505 €449

$954 €849

-47.12%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.0K €8,898

$16.6K €14.8K

-39.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.7 €70.0

$86.0 €76.5

-8.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.25 €30.47

$39.11 €34.78

-12.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 €95.2

$104 €92.2

3.28%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.1 €80.1

$119 €106

-24.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,012 €900

$1,695 €1,508

-40.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$914 €813

$1,276 €1,135

-28.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,443 €1,283

$2,576 €2,291

-43.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,091 €971

$1,922 €1,710

-43.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,477 €3,093

$7,281 €6,477

-52.25%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,574 €2,290

$5,010 €4,456

-48.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,163 €1,924

$2,227 €1,981

-2.87%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.3

3.28

0.61%

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

Last update for Sabadell: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sabadell

$914 50%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 39.7% $363

Groceries & Markets

Sabadell

$293 16.1%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 10.8% $32

Eating Out

Sabadell

$214 11.7%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 25.8% $55

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sabadell

$174 9.5%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 31.7% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Sabadell

$140 7.6%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 12% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Sabadell

$51 2.8%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 52.2% $26

Getting Around

Sabadell

$43 2.3%

Barcelona

$47 2% 11% $4.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,012 in Sabadell and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 3% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $55.0 in Sabadell vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $293 vs $325 per month, with Sabadell cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Sabadell

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

02:14 2:14 AM

Same time as Sabadell

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

218,300

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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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

Sabadell vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sabadell and Barcelona differ by about 30% in total monthly costs ($1,828 vs $2,381 including rent). Sabadell is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 3% lower in Barcelona. 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: $1,012 in Sabadell versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $505 in Sabadell 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 11% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,828 in Sabadell versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Sabadell but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sabadell 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, Sabadell 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 Sabadell gentler on the wallet – expenses run 30% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.