Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between San Fernando, La Union and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in San Fernando, La Union: $721 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

34

Cost of Living Index in San Fernando, La Union
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San Fernando, La Union Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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San Fernando, La Union

🇵🇭 Philippines

$721

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $721 in San Fernando, La Union versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

San Fernando, La Union $721
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,102 in San Fernando, La Union versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

San Fernando, La Union $1,102
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,484 in San Fernando, La Union versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

San Fernando, La Union $1,484
Barcelona $4,595

Living in San Fernando, La Union 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: San Fernando, La Union is 47% below, Barcelona is 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.97 ₱253

$17.66 €15.69

-77.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.71 ₱1,062

$67.5 €59.9

-75.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$2.69 ₱171

$13.61 €12.09

-80.24%

Cappuccino

$2.14 ₱136

$3.10 €2.75

-30.97%

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

$0.69 ₱43.67

$3.00 €2.67

-77.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.33 ₱21.23

$1.93 €1.71

-82.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.19 ₱75.4

$3.84 €3.41

-69.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 ₱131

$4.36 €3.87

-52.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 ₱105

$1.25 €1.11

32.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.09 ₱69.6

$2.12 €1.89

-48.58%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.89 ₱56.7

$1.97 €1.75

-54.82%

Eggs

$1.90 ₱121

$4.76 €4.23

-60.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.52 ₱351

$17.07 €15.16

-67.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.09 ₱260

$8.96 €7.96

-54.35%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.11 ₱452

$20.65 €18.34

-65.57%

Apples (1kg)

$2.39 ₱152

$3.16 €2.81

-24.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.57 ₱99.6

$1.97 €1.75

-20.30%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.33 ₱148

$2.65 €2.36

-12.08%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.17 ₱74.6

$2.88 €2.56

-59.38%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 ₱131

$2.06 €1.83

Onion (1kg)

$2.30 ₱146

$2.18 €1.94

5.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.08 ₱68.8

$1.53 €1.36

-29.41%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.53 ₱33.65

$0.97 €0.86

-45.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.82 ₱180

$6.97 €6.19

-59.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.54 ₱479

$7.89 €7.01

-4.44%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 ₱62.9

$1.42 €1.26

-30.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 ₱122

$2.69 €2.39

-28.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.22 ₱13.92

$3.31 €2.94

-93.35%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$12.52 ₱796

$25.61 €22.75

-51.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.80 ₱51.0

$3.08 €2.74

-74.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.20 ₱12.72

$1.48 €1.32

-86.49%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.91 ₱122

$32.87 €29.20

-94.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.03 ₱65.7

$1.87 €1.66

-44.92%

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

$20.8K ₱1.3M

$33.0K €29.3K

-36.91%

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

$19.1K ₱1.2M

$31.9K €28.4K

-40.33%

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

$119 ₱7,589

$183 €162

-34.73%

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

$15.64 ₱994

$14.24 €12.65

9.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$23.84 ₱1,515

$34.56 €30.70

-31.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.64 ₱2,012

$51.4 €45.68

-38.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$5.16 ₱328

$16.38 €14.55

-68.50%

Cinema Ticket

$5.22 ₱332

$11.06 €9.83

-52.80%

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

$130 ₱8,240

$944 €838

-86.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,895 ₱501.9K

$22.3K €19.8K

-64.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$33.12 ₱2,106

$87.7 €77.9

-62.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$19.07 ₱1,213

$38.77 €34.44

-50.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.2 ₱4,402

$105 €92.9

-33.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$55.4 ₱3,520

$118 €105

-52.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$251 ₱16.0K

$1,697 €1,507

-85.21%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$167 ₱10.6K

$1,337 €1,187

-87.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$490 ₱31.1K

$2,692 €2,391

-81.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$350 ₱22.3K

$2,077 €1,845

-83.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,657 ₱168.9K

$7,155 €6,356

-62.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,125 ₱71.5K

$5,079 €4,512

-77.86%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,991

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.92

3.19

116.93%

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

Last update for San Fernando, La Union: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

San Fernando, La Union

$179 24.8%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 83.3% $149

Accommodation & Living

San Fernando, La Union

$167 23.2%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 700% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

San Fernando, La Union

$159 22%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 45.9% $73

Eating Out

San Fernando, La Union

$80 11.1%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 235% $187

Clothing & Footwear

San Fernando, La Union

$80 11%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 97.2% $77

Sport & Entertainment

San Fernando, La Union

$42 5.8%

Barcelona

$74 3% 74.7% $31

Getting Around

San Fernando, La Union

$15 2.1%

Barcelona

$49 2% 225% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $251 in San Fernando, La Union and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $17 in San Fernando, La Union vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $179 vs $328 per month, with San Fernando, La Union cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇭 San Fernando, La Union

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

03:02 3:02 AM

20:02 8:02 PM

7 h behind San Fernando, La Union

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

83,003

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Philippine Peso PHP ₱

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 PHP = 1.57 USD

100 PHP = 1.4 EUR

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to PHP – Philippine Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇭 Philippine Peso (₱)

Philippine Peso exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 63.58 PHP (100 PHP = 1.57 USD). 1 EUR = 71.28 PHP (100 PHP = 1.4 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 4, 2026: 1 USD = 0.888 EUR (1 EUR = 1.13 USD).

USD to PHP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

San Fernando, La Union Barcelona 10,970 km ≈ 14 h nonstop flight

From you

San Fernando, La Union
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

San Fernando, La Union vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $721 in San Fernando, La Union and $2,443 in Barcelona, so San Fernando, La Union is about 70% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $1,082 in San Fernando, La Union and $3,664 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: $251 in San Fernando, La Union versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $130 in San Fernando, La Union versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 83% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $721 in San Fernando, La Union versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in San Fernando, La Union but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes San Fernando, La Union 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, San Fernando, La Union and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find San Fernando, La Union gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.