Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Seoul and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Seoul: $1,848 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

89

Cost of Living Index in Seoul
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Seoul Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Seoul

🇰🇷 South Korea

$1,848

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,848 in Seoul versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Seoul $1,848
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,986 in Seoul versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Seoul $2,986
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,125 in Seoul versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Seoul $4,125
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Seoul costs roughly 25% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Seoul 36% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.05 ₩12.1K

$17.59 €15.75

-48.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$68.3 ₩91.2K

$67.5 €60.5

1.26%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.35 ₩9,812

$13.53 €12.12

-45.68%

Cappuccino

$4.12 ₩5,498

$3.19 €2.86

29.15%

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

$1.64 ₩2,195

$2.91 €2.61

-43.64%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.81 ₩1,077

$1.89 €1.70

-57.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.71 ₩4,952

$4.01 €3.59

-7.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.13 ₩8,188

$4.53 €4.06

35.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.04 ₩2,726

$1.31 €1.17

55.73%

White Bread (500g)

$3.21 ₩4,286

$2.02 €1.81

58.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.39 ₩5,858

$1.85 €1.66

137.30%

Eggs

$3.59 ₩4,795

$4.83 €4.33

-25.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.23 ₩24.3K

$16.74 €14.99

8.90%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.51 ₩14.0K

$9.12 €8.17

15.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.89 ₩35.9K

$19.64 €17.59

36.91%

Apples (1kg)

$7.86 ₩10.5K

$2.98 €2.67

163.76%

Banana (1kg)

$3.53 ₩4,712

$2.02 €1.81

74.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.70 ₩7,616

$2.70 €2.42

111.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.18 ₩8,249

$2.80 €2.51

120.71%

Potato (1kg)

$3.76 ₩5,024

$2.09 €1.87

79.90%

Onion (1kg)

$2.51 ₩3,354

$2.07 €1.85

21.26%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.82 ₩3,758

$1.46 €1.31

93.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 ₩1,482

$0.94 €0.84

18.09%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.30 ₩4,406

$6.87 €6.15

-51.97%

Wine (Bottle)

$18.64 ₩24.9K

$7.89 €7.06

136.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.42 ₩3,229

$1.41 €1.26

71.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 ₩4,483

$2.54 €2.27

32.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.19 ₩1,591

$3.14 €2.82

-62.10%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.13 ₩61.6K

$25.45 €22.79

81.26%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.55 ₩4,742

$2.99 €2.68

18.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 ₩806

$1.49 €1.34

-59.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.08 ₩12.1K

$33.37 €29.89

-72.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.44 ₩1,920

$1.80 €1.61

-20.00%

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

$30.3K ₩40.4M

$33.2K €29.7K

-8.82%

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

$28.9K ₩38.6M

$31.7K €28.4K

-8.84%

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

$213 ₩283.7K

$180 €162

17.80%

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

$35.83 ₩47.8K

$13.84 €12.39

158.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$21.39 ₩28.6K

$33.70 €30.18

-36.53%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.6 ₩82.3K

$51.5 €46.13

19.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.41 ₩21.9K

$15.96 €14.29

2.82%

Cinema Ticket

$11.42 ₩15.2K

$10.99 €9.85

3.91%

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

$1,948 ₩2.6M

$917 €821

112.51%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.8K ₩30.4M

$16.5K €14.8K

38.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$59.8 ₩79.8K

$87.0 €77.9

-31.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.19 ₩45.7K

$38.51 €34.49

-11.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.0 ₩88.1K

$106 €94.8

-37.63%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$81.9 ₩109.3K

$120 €107

-31.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$924 ₩1.2M

$1,699 €1,522

-45.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$659 ₩880.0K

$1,355 €1,214

-51.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,012 ₩4.0M

$2,603 €2,331

15.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 ₩1.9M

$2,062 €1,847

-30.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$27.2K ₩36.3M

$6,915 €6,193

292.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.3K ₩15.1M

$5,128 €4,592

120.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,570 ₩4.8M

$2,211 €1,980

61.46%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.08

3.28

24.39%

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

Last update for Seoul: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Seoul

$659 35.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 106% $696

Groceries & Markets

Seoul

$483 26.2%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 33.4% $162

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Seoul

$270 14.6%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 15.5% $42

Eating Out

Seoul

$184 10%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 45.3% $83

Clothing & Footwear

Seoul

$109 5.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 45.2% $49

Sport & Entertainment

Seoul

$84 4.6%

Barcelona

$74 3% 13% $11

Getting Around

Seoul

$57 3.1%

Barcelona

$48 2% 15.6% $9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $924 in Seoul and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Seoul pays 61% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $68 in Seoul vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $483 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇰🇷 Seoul

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

08:00 8:00 AM

00:00 12:00 AM

8 h behind Seoul

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

9,509,458 Capital

1,660,122

💱 Currency

South Korean Won KRW ₩

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD

10,000 KRW = 6.71 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to KRW – South Korean Won Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇰🇷 South Korean Won (₩)

South Korean Won exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 1,335 KRW (10,000 KRW = 7.49 USD). 1 EUR = 1,491 KRW (10,000 KRW = 6.71 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to KRW in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Seoul Barcelona 9,600 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Seoul
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

Seoul vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,848 in Seoul and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Seoul is about 25% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 61% higher in Seoul, 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: $924 in Seoul versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,948 in Seoul versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

A monthly transit pass in Barcelona runs roughly 45% less than in Seoul. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your 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, Seoul and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.