Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sydney, NS and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Sydney, NS: $1,614 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $9,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

78

Cost of Living Index in Sydney, NS
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Sydney, NS Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Sydney, NS

🇨🇦 Canada

$1,614

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,614 in Sydney, NS versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Sydney, NS $1,614
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,535 in Sydney, NS versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Sydney, NS $2,535
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,456 in Sydney, NS versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Sydney, NS $3,456
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Sydney, NS costs roughly 32% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Sydney, NS 19% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.13 CA$15.74

$17.89 €15.92

-37.79%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$62.3 CA$88.0

$66.2 €58.9

-5.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.16 CA$10.12

$13.69 €12.18

-47.70%

Cappuccino

$2.87 CA$4.06

$3.06 €2.72

-6.21%

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

$2.33 CA$3.30

$3.07 €2.73

-24.10%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 CA$2.92

$1.94 €1.73

6.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

Milk (1 liter)

$2.15 CA$3.04

$1.30 €1.16

65.38%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 CA$3.61

$2.10 €1.87

21.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.41 CA$3.41

$1.83 €1.62

31.69%

Eggs

$3.32 CA$4.69

$4.62 €4.11

-28.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.27 CA$8.87

$17.36 €15.44

-63.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.23 CA$11.63

$9.28 €8.25

-11.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.99 CA$18.36

$19.83 €17.64

-34.49%

Apples (1kg)

$7.01 CA$9.91

$3.01 €2.68

132.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.16 CA$1.63

$2.03 €1.81

-42.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

Tomato (1kg)

$1.38 CA$1.95

$2.87 €2.55

-51.92%

Potato (1kg)

$0.84 CA$1.18

$2.16 €1.92

-61.11%

Onion (1kg)

$1.90 CA$2.68

$2.15 €1.91

-11.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$6.30 CA$8.90

$1.47 €1.31

328.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$17.78 CA$25.14

$6.93 €6.16

156.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.18 CA$5.92

$2.63 €2.34

58.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.08 CA$1.53

$2.91 €2.59

-62.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.48 CA$68.5

$25.46 €22.64

90.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.15 CA$5.87

$3.00 €2.66

38.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.20 CA$1.70

$1.86 €1.65

-35.48%

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

$25.7K CA$36.4K

$32.3K €28.8K

-20.39%

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

$19.1K CA$27.1K

$31.7K €28.2K

-39.60%

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

$86.3 CA$122

$183 €163

-52.79%

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

$36.04 CA$51.0

$13.61 €12.11

164.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$73.3 CA$104

$32.93 €29.29

122.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.94 CA$70.6

$54.7 €48.65

-8.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$3.45 CA$4.88

$16.52 €14.70

-79.12%

Cinema Ticket

$7.04 CA$9.96

$11.23 €9.99

-37.31%

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

$721 CA$1,020

$954 €849

-24.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$68.1 CA$96.3

$86.0 €76.5

-20.81%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$67.2 CA$95.1

$39.11 €34.78

71.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.7 CA$141

$104 €92.2

-3.85%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 CA$148

$119 €106

-11.50%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 CA$1,262

$1,695 €1,508

-47.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$724 CA$1,024

$1,276 €1,135

-43.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,753 CA$2,479

$2,576 €2,291

-31.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,374 CA$1,943

$1,922 €1,710

-28.50%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,527 CA$3,573

$2,227 €1,981

13.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.8

3.28

76.83%

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

Last update for Sydney, NS: October 17, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sydney, NS

$724 44.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 76.2% $552

Groceries & Markets

Sydney, NS

$258 * 16%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 26.2% $67

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sydney, NS

$196 12.1%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 17.2% $34

Eating Out

Sydney, NS

$163 * 10.1%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 65.7% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Sydney, NS

$153 9.5%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 2.2% $3.3

Sport & Entertainment

Sydney, NS

$64 4%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 20.5% $13

Getting Around

Sydney, NS

$57 * 3.5%

Barcelona

$47 2% 16.9% $9.6

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $893 in Sydney, NS and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Sydney, NS pays 13% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $62.0 in Sydney, NS vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $258 vs $325 per month, with Sydney, NS cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇦 Sydney, NS

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

01:14 1:14 AM

06:14 6:14 AM

5 h ahead of Sydney, NS

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

30,960

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Canadian Dollar CAD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 CAD = 0.707 USD

1 CAD = 0.629 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to CAD – Canadian Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇦 Canadian Dollar ($)

Canadian Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 1.41 CAD (1 CAD = 0.707 USD). 1 EUR = 1.59 CAD (1 CAD = 0.629 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to CAD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Sydney, NS Barcelona 4,910 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Sydney, NS
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

Sydney, NS vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sydney, NS and Barcelona differ by about 48% in total monthly costs ($1,614 vs $2,381 including rent). Sydney, NS is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 13% higher in Sydney, NS, 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: $893 in Sydney, NS versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $721 in Sydney, NS versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 26% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,614 in Sydney, NS versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sydney, NS but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sydney, NS 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, Sydney, NS 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.

Expats usually find Sydney, NS gentler on the wallet – expenses run 48% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.