Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Puerto Rico and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Puerto Rico: $1,716 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $8,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

83

Cost of Living Index in Puerto Rico
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Puerto Rico Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Puerto Rico

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,716

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,716 in Puerto Rico versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Puerto Rico $1,716
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,564 in Puerto Rico versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Puerto Rico $2,564
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,412 in Puerto Rico versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Puerto Rico $3,412
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Puerto Rico costs roughly 30% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Puerto Rico 26% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.45 €18.38

$17.59 €15.80

16.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.0 €54.9

$67.5 €60.6

-9.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.30 €10.15

$13.53 €12.15

-16.48%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.84

$3.19 €2.87

-36.05%

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

$1.89 €1.70

$2.91 €2.62

-35.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.16

$1.89 €1.70

-31.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.72 €2.44

$4.01 €3.60

-32.17%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.42 €3.07

$4.53 €4.07

-24.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.38 €1.24

$1.31 €1.17

5.34%

White Bread (500g)

$2.40 €2.16

$2.02 €1.81

18.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 €1.37

$1.85 €1.66

-17.30%

Eggs

$4.25 €3.82

$4.83 €4.34

-12.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$19.32 €17.36

$16.74 €15.04

15.41%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.01 €8.99

$9.12 €8.19

9.76%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.41 €15.64

$19.64 €17.64

-11.35%

Apples (1kg)

$2.67 €2.40

$2.98 €2.68

-10.40%

Banana (1kg)

$2.32 €2.09

$2.02 €1.81

14.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.15 €1.93

$2.70 €2.43

-20.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.49 €2.24

$2.80 €2.52

-11.07%

Potato (1kg)

$2.17 €1.95

$2.09 €1.87

3.83%

Onion (1kg)

$2.02 €1.82

$2.07 €1.86

-2.42%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 €1.46

$1.46 €1.31

10.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.87

$0.94 €0.84

3.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.63 €4.16

$6.87 €6.17

-32.61%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.87 €7.08

$7.89 €7.09

-0.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.70 €1.53

$1.41 €1.26

20.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.51

$2.54 €2.28

-33.46%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.66 €1.49

$3.14 €2.82

-47.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$32.24 €28.97

$25.45 €22.86

26.68%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.33 €3.89

$2.99 €2.69

44.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.67 €1.50

$1.49 €1.34

12.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$16.83 €15.13

$33.37 €29.99

-49.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 €1.56

$1.80 €1.62

-3.33%

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

$34.9K €31.3K

$33.2K €29.8K

5.07%

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

$31.9K €28.7K

$31.7K €28.5K

0.78%

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

$129 €116

$180 €162

-28.48%

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

$22.38 €20.11

$13.84 €12.43

61.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$35.85 €32.22

$33.70 €30.28

6.38%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.45 €39.94

$51.5 €46.28

-13.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.59 €14.01

$15.96 €14.34

-2.32%

Cinema Ticket

$9.91 €8.90

$10.99 €9.88

-9.83%

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

$403 €362

$917 €824

-56.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,970 €4,466

$16.5K €14.8K

-69.84%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.8 €82.5

$87.0 €78.2

5.46%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.61 €38.28

$38.51 €34.60

10.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.6 €81.4

$106 €95.1

-14.38%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 €102

$120 €108

-5.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$874 €785

$1,699 €1,527

-48.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$679 €610

$1,355 €1,218

-49.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,331 €1,196

$2,603 €2,339

-48.87%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,010 €908

$2,062 €1,853

-51.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,233 €2,905

$6,915 €6,213

-53.24%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,186 €1,964

$5,128 €4,607

-57.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

3.28

8.54%

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

Last update for Puerto Rico: 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

Puerto Rico

$679 39.6%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 99.5% $676

Groceries & Markets

Puerto Rico

$326 19%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 1.2% $4

Eating Out

Puerto Rico

$255 14.9%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 5% $13

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Puerto Rico

$187 10.9%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 21.7% $41

Clothing & Footwear

Puerto Rico

$152 8.9%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 3.7% $5.6

Sport & Entertainment

Puerto Rico

$64 3.8%

Barcelona

$74 3% 14.4% $9.2

Getting Around

Puerto Rico

$52 3%

Barcelona

$48 2% 5.9% $3.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $874 in Puerto Rico and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in Puerto Rico vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $326 vs $322, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Puerto Rico

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

11:35 11:35 AM

12:35 12:35 PM

1 h ahead of Puerto Rico

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,500

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Puerto Rico Barcelona 2,220 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Puerto Rico
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

Puerto Rico vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Puerto Rico and Barcelona differ by about 43% in total monthly costs ($1,716 vs $2,453 including rent). Puerto Rico is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,574 in Puerto Rico 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: $874 in Puerto Rico versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $403 in Puerto Rico versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Puerto Rico – a meal for two runs $61 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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, Puerto Rico 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.