Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Split and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Split: $1,851 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $7,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

89

Cost of Living Index in Split
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Split Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Split

🇭🇷 Croatia

$1,851

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,851 in Split versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Split $1,851
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,848 in Split versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Split $2,848
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,844 in Split versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Split $3,844
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Split costs roughly 25% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

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

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.02 €15.30

$17.59 €15.80

-3.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$75.1 €67.4

$67.5 €60.6

11.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.40 €10.24

$13.53 €12.15

-15.74%

Cappuccino

$2.70 €2.43

$3.19 €2.87

-15.36%

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

$4.11 €3.69

$2.91 €2.62

41.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.81 €2.52

$1.89 €1.70

48.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.67 €4.20

$4.01 €3.60

16.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.18 €4.65

$4.53 €4.07

14.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.29 €1.16

$1.31 €1.17

-1.53%

White Bread (500g)

$2.13 €1.92

$2.02 €1.81

5.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.73 €3.35

$1.85 €1.66

101.62%

Eggs

$4.16 €3.74

$4.83 €4.34

-13.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.71 €12.32

$16.74 €15.04

-18.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.50 €8.54

$9.12 €8.19

4.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.88 €11.57

$19.64 €17.64

-34.42%

Apples (1kg)

$2.19 €1.97

$2.98 €2.68

-26.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 €1.64

$2.02 €1.81

-9.41%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.91 €1.72

$2.70 €2.43

-29.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.59

$2.80 €2.52

2.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 €1.42

$2.09 €1.87

-24.40%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.04

$2.07 €1.86

-44.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.29 €1.16

$1.46 €1.31

-11.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 €1.15

$0.94 €0.84

36.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.71 €5.13

$6.87 €6.17

-16.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.14 €8.21

$7.89 €7.09

15.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.56

$1.41 €1.26

22.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 €1.98

$2.54 €2.28

-13.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.66 €1.49

$3.14 €2.82

-47.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$38.84 €34.89

$25.45 €22.86

52.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.80 €3.42

$2.99 €2.69

27.09%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.11 €1.90

$1.49 €1.34

41.61%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.30 €26.33

$33.37 €29.99

-12.20%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.95 €1.75

$1.80 €1.62

8.33%

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

$28.0K €25.2K

$33.2K €29.8K

-15.50%

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

$24.7K €22.2K

$31.7K €28.5K

-22.00%

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

$212 €191

$180 €162

17.64%

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

$20.36 €18.29

$13.84 €12.43

47.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.88 €36.73

$33.70 €30.28

21.31%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 €53.9

$51.5 €46.28

16.52%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.12 €11.78

$15.96 €14.34

-17.79%

Cinema Ticket

$10.60 €9.53

$10.99 €9.88

-3.55%

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

$604 €543

$917 €824

-34.09%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.8K €10.6K

$16.5K €14.8K

-28.34%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.2 €83.8

$87.0 €78.2

7.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.54 €35.53

$38.51 €34.60

2.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 €102

$106 €95.1

7.22%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$98.0 €88.0

$120 €108

-18.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,016 €913

$1,699 €1,527

-40.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 €648

$1,355 €1,218

-46.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,906 €1,713

$2,603 €2,339

-26.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,322 €1,188

$2,062 €1,853

-35.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,099 €6,379

$6,915 €6,213

2.67%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,158 €4,634

$5,128 €4,607

0.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,575 €1,415

$2,211 €1,986

-28.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.44

3.28

4.88%

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

Last update for Split: 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

Split

$722 39%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 87.8% $634

Groceries & Markets

Split

$296 16%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 8.7% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Split

$273 14.8%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 16.6% $46

Eating Out

Split

$264 14.3%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 1.4% $3.7

Clothing & Footwear

Split

$155 8.4%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 2% $3.1

Sport & Entertainment

Split

$81 4.4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 9.5% $7.7

Getting Around

Split

$60 3.2%

Barcelona

$48 2% 19% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,016 in Split and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 40% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $75 in Split vs $67 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $296 vs $322, with Split cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇭🇷 Split

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

08:44 8:44 AM

Same time as Split

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,830

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Split Barcelona 1,190 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Split
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

Split vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Split and Barcelona differ by about 32% in total monthly costs ($1,851 vs $2,453 including rent). Split is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 29% lower in Split. 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: $1,016 in Split versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $604 in Split 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 9% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

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