Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Szeged and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Szeged: $1,223 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $14,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

59

Cost of Living Index in Szeged
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Szeged Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Szeged

🇭🇺 Hungary

$1,223

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,223 in Szeged versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Szeged $1,223
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,918 in Szeged versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Szeged $1,918
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,613 in Szeged versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Szeged $2,613
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Szeged costs roughly 50% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Szeged is 10% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.23 Ft 3,044

$17.59 €15.80

-47.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.0 Ft 19.1K

$67.5 €60.6

-14.05%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.04 Ft 2,981

$13.53 €12.15

-33.19%

Cappuccino

$2.37 Ft 782

$3.19 €2.87

-25.71%

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

$1.57 Ft 519

$2.91 €2.62

-46.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.31 Ft 432

$1.89 €1.70

-30.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.23 Ft 737

$4.01 €3.60

-44.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.31 Ft 760

$4.53 €4.07

-49.01%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 Ft 390

$1.31 €1.17

-9.92%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 Ft 446

$2.02 €1.81

-33.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.43 Ft 803

$1.85 €1.66

31.35%

Eggs

$3.56 Ft 1,175

$4.83 €4.34

-26.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.68 Ft 3,520

$16.74 €15.03

-36.20%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.58 Ft 2,169

$9.12 €8.19

-27.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.85 Ft 5,225

$19.64 €17.64

-19.30%

Apples (1kg)

$2.19 Ft 720

$2.98 €2.68

-26.51%

Banana (1kg)

$2.25 Ft 742

$2.02 €1.81

11.39%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.00 Ft 658

$2.70 €2.43

-25.93%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 Ft 1,100

$2.80 €2.52

19.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.03 Ft 338

$2.09 €1.87

-50.72%

Onion (1kg)

$1.04 Ft 343

$2.07 €1.86

-49.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.59 Ft 525

$1.46 €1.31

8.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 Ft 165

$0.94 €0.84

-46.81%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$7.94 Ft 2,616

$6.87 €6.17

15.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.18 Ft 1,706

$7.89 €7.08

-34.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 Ft 405

$1.41 €1.26

-12.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.98 Ft 651

$2.54 €2.28

-22.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.71 Ft 564

$3.14 €2.82

-45.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.69 Ft 9,457

$25.45 €22.86

12.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.03 Ft 999

$2.99 €2.69

1.34%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.64 Ft 542

$1.49 €1.34

10.07%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.32 Ft 6,039

$33.37 €29.98

-45.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 Ft 599

$1.80 €1.61

1.11%

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

$26.9K Ft 8.9M

$33.2K €29.8K

-18.84%

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

$35.5K Ft 11.7M

$31.7K €28.5K

11.99%

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

$128 Ft 42.1K

$180 €162

-29.20%

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

$21.90 Ft 7,221

$13.84 €12.43

58.24%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$19.74 Ft 6,509

$33.70 €30.27

-41.42%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 Ft 17.0K

$51.5 €46.27

-0.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.38 Ft 9,687

$15.96 €14.34

84.09%

Cinema Ticket

$8.64 Ft 2,849

$10.99 €9.88

-21.38%

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

$250 Ft 82.4K

$917 €823

-72.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,580 Ft 2.2M

$16.5K €14.8K

-60.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$112 Ft 37.0K

$87.0 €78.2

29.06%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.50 Ft 10.7K

$38.51 €34.59

-15.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$93.6 Ft 30.8K

$106 €95.1

-11.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$110 Ft 36.4K

$120 €108

-7.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$518 Ft 170.8K

$1,699 €1,527

-69.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$375 Ft 123.7K

$1,355 €1,217

-72.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$739 Ft 243.6K

$2,603 €2,338

-71.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$615 Ft 202.9K

$2,062 €1,853

-70.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,210 Ft 1.1M

$6,915 €6,211

-53.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,316 Ft 763.7K

$5,128 €4,606

-54.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,224 Ft 403.6K

$2,211 €1,986

-44.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.67

3.28

103.35%

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

Last update for Szeged: 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

Szeged

$375 30.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 261% $980

Groceries & Markets

Szeged

$249 20.4%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 29.3% $73

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Szeged

$169 13.9%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 34.6% $59

Clothing & Footwear

Szeged

$157 12.8%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 0.7% $1.1

Eating Out

Szeged

$157 12.8%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 70.9% $111

Sport & Entertainment

Szeged

$69 5.6%

Barcelona

$74 3% 6.9% $4.8

Getting Around

Szeged

$47 3.8%

Barcelona

$48 2% 3.6% $1.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $518 in Szeged and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 81% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $58 in Szeged vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $249 vs $322 per month, with Szeged cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇭🇺 Szeged

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

13:10 1:10 PM

Same time as Szeged

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

157,930

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Hungarian Forint HUF Ft

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD

1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to HUF – Hungarian Forint Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇭🇺 Hungarian Forint (Ft)

Hungarian Forint exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 330 HUF (1,000 HUF = 3.03 USD). 1 EUR = 367 HUF (1,000 HUF = 2.73 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to HUF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Szeged Barcelona 1,540 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Szeged
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

Szeged vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Szeged and Barcelona differ by about 101% in total monthly costs ($1,223 vs $2,453 including rent). Szeged is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 45% lower in Szeged. 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: $518 in Szeged versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $250 in Szeged 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 29% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,223 in Szeged versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Szeged but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Szeged 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, Szeged 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 – Szeged wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.