Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Schaffhausen and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $3,139 in Schaffhausen, rent and utilities included – about $8,200 less a year. The total is higher in Schaffhausen despite lower rent and utilities.

150

Cost of Living Index in Schaffhausen
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Schaffhausen Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Schaffhausen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,139

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,139 in Schaffhausen versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Schaffhausen $3,139
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,010 in Schaffhausen versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Schaffhausen $5,010
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,882 in Schaffhausen versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Schaffhausen $6,882
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Schaffhausen is roughly 28% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Schaffhausen 131% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.45 CHF 25.24

$17.59 €15.80

73.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$122 CHF 101

$67.5 €60.6

80.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.19 CHF 15.08

$13.53 €12.15

34.44%

Cappuccino

$6.01 CHF 4.98

$3.19 €2.87

88.40%

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

$5.32 CHF 4.41

$2.91 €2.62

82.82%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.78 CHF 3.96

$1.89 €1.70

152.91%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.39 CHF 6.96

$4.01 €3.60

109.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.11 CHF 5.89

$4.53 €4.07

56.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 CHF 1.79

$1.31 €1.17

64.89%

White Bread (500g)

$4.00 CHF 3.32

$2.02 €1.81

98.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.25 CHF 3.52

$1.85 €1.66

129.73%

Eggs

$7.81 CHF 6.47

$4.83 €4.34

61.70%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$27.90 CHF 23.13

$16.74 €15.04

66.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$30.45 CHF 25.24

$9.12 €8.19

233.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.66 CHF 35.36

$19.64 €17.64

117.21%

Apples (1kg)

$3.84 CHF 3.18

$2.98 €2.68

28.86%

Banana (1kg)

$2.07 CHF 1.72

$2.02 €1.81

2.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.17 CHF 2.63

$2.70 €2.43

17.41%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.49 CHF 4.55

$2.80 €2.52

96.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.38 CHF 1.97

$2.09 €1.87

13.88%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.77

$2.07 €1.86

3.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.31 CHF 1.91

$1.46 €1.31

58.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 CHF 0.96

$0.94 €0.84

23.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.82 CHF 8.97

$6.87 €6.17

57.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.00 CHF 9.94

$7.89 €7.09

52.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.89 CHF 2.40

$1.41 €1.26

104.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.59 CHF 2.97

$2.54 €2.28

41.34%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.01 CHF 3.32

$3.14 €2.82

27.71%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.0 CHF 81.2

$25.45 €22.86

285.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.10 CHF 5.06

$2.99 €2.69

104.01%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.86 CHF 2.37

$1.49 €1.34

91.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$59.6 CHF 49.39

$33.37 €29.99

78.54%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 CHF 1.84

$1.80 €1.62

23.33%

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

$38.4K CHF 31.8K

$33.2K €29.8K

15.56%

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

$39.4K CHF 32.7K

$31.7K €28.5K

24.35%

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

$229 CHF 190

$180 €162

27.09%

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

$28.98 CHF 24.02

$13.84 €12.43

109.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.0 CHF 51.4

$33.70 €30.28

83.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$110 CHF 91.2

$51.5 €46.28

113.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$46.30 CHF 38.37

$15.96 €14.34

190.10%

Cinema Ticket

$23.59 CHF 19.55

$10.99 €9.88

114.65%

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

$3,157 CHF 2,616

$917 €824

244.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$24.5K CHF 20.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

48.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$163 CHF 135

$87.0 €78.2

86.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.9 CHF 45.47

$38.51 €34.60

42.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$172 CHF 142

$106 €95.1

62.30%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$150 CHF 124

$120 €108

25.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,272 CHF 1,054

$1,699 €1,527

-25.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,192 CHF 988

$1,355 €1,218

-12.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,689 CHF 2,228

$2,603 €2,339

3.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,317 CHF 1,921

$2,062 €1,853

12.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,110 CHF 6,723

$6,915 €6,213

17.29%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,439 CHF 6,995

$5,128 €4,607

64.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,148 CHF 5,925

$2,211 €1,986

223.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.41

3.28

-26.52%

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

Last update for Schaffhausen: 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

Schaffhausen

$1.2K 38%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 13.7% $163

Groceries & Markets

Schaffhausen

$626 19.9%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 48.6% $304

Eating Out

Schaffhausen

$467 14.9%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 42.6% $199

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Schaffhausen

$320 10.2%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 28.8% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Schaffhausen

$243 7.7%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 34.9% $85

Sport & Entertainment

Schaffhausen

$157 5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 53.2% $84

Getting Around

Schaffhausen

$134 4.3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 63.9% $86

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,272 in Schaffhausen and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Schaffhausen pays about 3.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $122 in Schaffhausen vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $626 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Schaffhausen

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

12:58 12:58 PM

Same time as Schaffhausen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,927

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.829 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.923 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Schaffhausen Barcelona 870 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Schaffhausen
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

Schaffhausen vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Schaffhausen and Barcelona differ by about 28% in total monthly costs ($3,139 vs $2,453 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Schaffhausen is about 3.2 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,272 in Schaffhausen versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $3,157 in Schaffhausen 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 94% higher in Schaffhausen. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,453 in Barcelona versus $3,139 in Schaffhausen, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Schaffhausen. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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, Schaffhausen 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.

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