Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Saint Charles, IL and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $2,758 in Saint Charles, IL, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. The total is higher in Saint Charles, IL despite lower rent and utilities.

134

Cost of Living Index in Saint Charles, IL
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Saint Charles, IL Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Saint Charles, IL

🇺🇸 United States

$2,758

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,758 in Saint Charles, IL versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Saint Charles, IL $2,758
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,119 in Saint Charles, IL versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Saint Charles, IL $4,119
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,480 in Saint Charles, IL versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Saint Charles, IL $5,480
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Saint Charles, IL is roughly 12% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Saint Charles, IL 103% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$38.06 $38.06

$17.59 €15.71

116.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$98.5 $98.5

$67.5 €60.3

45.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.46 $10.46

$13.53 €12.08

-22.69%

Cappuccino

$6.85 $6.85

$3.19 €2.85

114.73%

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

$3.41 $3.41

$2.91 €2.60

17.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.93 $2.93

$1.89 €1.69

55.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.96 $6.96

$4.01 €3.58

73.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.31 $7.31

$4.53 €4.05

61.37%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.00 $1.00

$1.31 €1.17

-23.66%

White Bread (500g)

$3.56 $3.56

$2.02 €1.80

76.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.85 €1.65

136.76%

Eggs

$4.40 $4.40

$4.83 €4.32

-8.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.26 $12.26

$16.74 €14.95

-26.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.70 $11.70

$9.12 €8.14

28.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.13 $13.13

$19.64 €17.54

-33.15%

Apples (1kg)

$4.95 $4.95

$2.98 €2.66

66.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.03 $1.03

$2.02 €1.80

-49.01%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.22 $4.22

$2.70 €2.41

56.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.77 $4.77

$2.80 €2.50

70.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.77 $2.77

$2.09 €1.86

32.54%

Onion (1kg)

$2.93 $2.93

$2.07 €1.85

41.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 $1.59

$1.46 €1.30

8.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 $2.24

$0.94 €0.84

138.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.00 $10.00

$6.87 €6.14

45.56%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.78 $14.78

$7.89 €7.04

87.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.01 $2.01

$1.41 €1.26

42.55%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.45 $3.45

$2.54 €2.26

35.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.03 $2.03

$3.14 €2.81

-35.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$56.5 $56.5

$25.45 €22.73

121.81%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 $3.12

$2.99 €2.67

4.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.75 $1.75

$1.49 €1.33

17.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.35 $30.35

$33.37 €29.81

-9.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.02 $1.02

$1.80 €1.61

-43.33%

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

$28.4K $28.4K

$33.2K €29.6K

-14.52%

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

$26.1K $26.1K

$31.7K €28.3K

-17.51%

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

$200 $200

$180 €161

11.04%

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

$57.2 $57.2

$13.84 €12.36

313.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.8 $68.8

$33.70 €30.10

104.18%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.10 $42.10

$51.5 €46.01

-18.27%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.26

Cinema Ticket

$13.95 $13.95

$10.99 €9.82

26.93%

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

$1,396 $1,396

$917 €819

52.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.4K $23.4K

$16.5K €14.7K

42.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.2 $52.2

$87.0 €77.7

-39.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.94 $41.94

$38.51 €34.39

8.91%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.9 $89.9

$106 €94.5

-15.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$117 $117

$120 €107

-2.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,601 $1,601

$1,699 €1,518

-5.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 $1,276

$1,355 €1,211

-5.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,547 $2,547

$2,603 €2,325

-2.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,113 $2,113

$2,062 €1,842

2.45%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,724 $2,724

$6,915 €6,176

-60.61%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,361 $2,361

$5,128 €4,580

-53.96%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,975

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.57

3.28

100.30%

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

Last update for Saint Charles, IL: October 27, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Saint Charles, IL

$1.3K 46.3%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 6.2% $79

Eating Out

Saint Charles, IL

$493 17.9%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 45.6% $225

Groceries & Markets

Saint Charles, IL

$381 13.8%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 15.5% $59

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Saint Charles, IL

$326 11.8%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 30.2% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Saint Charles, IL

$135 4.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 16.8% $23

Getting Around

Saint Charles, IL

$76 2.8%

Barcelona

$48 2% 36.6% $28

Sport & Entertainment

Saint Charles, IL

$70 2.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 5% $3.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,601 in Saint Charles, IL and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $98 in Saint Charles, IL vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $381 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Saint Charles, IL

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

00:08 12:08 AM

07:08 7:08 AM

7 h ahead of Saint Charles, IL

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

70,329

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.892 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Saint Charles, IL Barcelona 7,130 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Saint Charles, IL
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

Saint Charles, IL vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,758 in Saint Charles, IL and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 11% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $4,137 in Saint Charles, IL and $3,679 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: $1,601 in Saint Charles, IL versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,396 in Saint Charles, IL versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 18% higher in Saint Charles, IL. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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, Saint Charles, IL and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.