Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sharm El Sheikh and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Sharm El Sheikh: $442 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $24,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

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Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Sharm El Sheikh

🇪🇬 Egypt

$442

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $442 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Sharm El Sheikh $442
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $674 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Sharm El Sheikh $674
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $905 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Sharm El Sheikh $905
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Sharm El Sheikh costs roughly 82% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sharm El Sheikh is 68% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.76

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$21.07 E£1,180

$67.5 €60.5

-68.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.46 E£249

$13.53 €12.12

-67.04%

Cappuccino

$2.17 E£122

$3.19 €2.86

-31.97%

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

$0.33 E£18.71

$2.91 €2.61

-88.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.51 E£28.57

$1.89 €1.70

-73.02%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.46 E£194

$4.01 €3.59

-13.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 E£244

$4.53 €4.06

-3.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.83 E£46.19

$1.31 €1.17

-36.64%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.42 E£23.72

$1.85 €1.66

-77.30%

Eggs

$1.08 E£60.4

$4.83 €4.33

-77.64%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.00

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.46 E£193

$9.12 €8.17

-62.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.60

Apples (1kg)

$1.39 E£77.8

$2.98 €2.67

-53.36%

Banana (1kg)

$0.45 E£25.39

$2.02 €1.81

-77.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.42 E£23.78

$2.70 €2.42

-84.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.26 E£14.42

$2.80 €2.51

-90.71%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.85

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.06 E£115

$6.87 €6.16

-70.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.07

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 E£78.0

$1.41 €1.26

-1.42%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.27

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.08 E£4.38

$3.14 €2.82

-97.45%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.68

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.91

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.43 E£24.08

$1.80 €1.61

-76.11%

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

$29.6K E£1.7M

$33.2K €29.7K

-10.69%

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

$20.4K E£1.1M

$31.7K €28.4K

-35.67%

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

$180 €162

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

$10.80 E£605

$13.84 €12.40

-21.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$27.30 E£1,528

$33.70 €30.20

-18.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.16

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.30

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.85

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

$917 €821

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.0

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.51

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.8

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €107

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$337 E£18.8K

$1,699 €1,523

-80.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$284 E£15.9K

$1,355 €1,214

-79.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$588 E£32.9K

$2,603 €2,332

-77.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$506 E£28.3K

$2,062 €1,848

-75.44%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$950 E£53.2K

$6,915 €6,196

-86.26%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$663 E£37.1K

$5,128 €4,595

-87.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$141 E£7,910

$2,211 €1,981

-93.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

26.5

3.28

707.93%

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

Last update for Sharm El Sheikh: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Groceries & Markets

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Eating Out

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Clothing & Footwear

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Sport & Entertainment

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$74 3%

Getting Around

Sharm El Sheikh

–

Barcelona

$48 2%

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $337 in Sharm El Sheikh and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 16 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $21 in Sharm El Sheikh vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $51 vs $322 per month, with Sharm El Sheikh cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇬 Sharm El Sheikh

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

09:14 9:14 AM

07:14 7:14 AM

2 h behind Sharm El Sheikh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,478

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Egyptian Pound EGP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 EGP = 1.79 USD

100 EGP = 1.6 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to EGP – Egyptian Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇬 Egyptian Pound (£)

Egyptian Pound exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.97 EGP (100 EGP = 1.79 USD). 1 EUR = 62.31 EGP (100 EGP = 1.6 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to EGP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sharm El Sheikh Barcelona 3,270 km ≈ 4 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Sharm El Sheikh
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

Sharm El Sheikh vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $442 in Sharm El Sheikh and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Sharm El Sheikh is about 82% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 94% lower in Sharm El Sheikh. 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: $337 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Sharm El Sheikh – a meal for two runs $21 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you’ll spend $442 per month in Sharm El Sheikh versus $2,453 in Barcelona – Sharm El Sheikh is about 82% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

At $442 in Sharm El Sheikh versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sharm El Sheikh but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sharm El Sheikh 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, Sharm El Sheikh and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

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