Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Tapachula and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Tapachula: $1,164 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $14,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

54

Cost of Living Index in Tapachula
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Tapachula Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Tapachula

🇲🇽 Mexico

$1,164

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,164 in Tapachula versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Tapachula $1,164
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,828 in Tapachula versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Tapachula $1,828
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,493 in Tapachula versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Tapachula $2,493
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Tapachula costs roughly 51% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Tapachula is 14% below, Barcelona is 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.44 MX$193

$17.89 €15.92

-41.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.58 MX$750

$66.2 €58.9

-38.66%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.90 MX$146

$13.69 €12.18

-42.29%

Cappuccino

$3.71 MX$68.6

$3.06 €2.72

21.24%

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

$1.27 MX$23.45

$3.07 €2.73

-58.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.16 MX$21.35

$1.94 €1.73

-40.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.41 MX$44.58

$3.87 €3.44

-37.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.75 MX$69.3

$4.61 €4.10

-18.66%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 MX$28.77

$1.30 €1.16

20.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.65 MX$49.05

$2.10 €1.87

26.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.62 MX$29.96

$1.83 €1.62

-11.48%

Eggs

$2.43 MX$44.94

$4.62 €4.11

-47.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.09 MX$149

$17.36 €15.44

-53.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.32 MX$154

$9.28 €8.25

-10.34%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.49 MX$212

$19.83 €17.64

-42.06%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 MX$42.72

$3.01 €2.68

-23.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.58 MX$29.23

$2.03 €1.81

-22.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.08 MX$38.50

$2.65 €2.36

-21.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 MX$33.81

$2.87 €2.55

-36.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.89 MX$34.94

$2.16 €1.92

-12.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 MX$33.37

$2.15 €1.91

-15.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.62 MX$29.91

$1.47 €1.31

10.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.09 MX$20.12

$0.88 €0.79

23.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.27 MX$79.0

$6.93 €6.16

-38.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.18 MX$170

$7.83 €6.96

17.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.71 MX$31.66

$1.39 €1.24

23.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.05 MX$56.4

$2.63 €2.34

15.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.61 MX$11.19

$2.91 €2.59

-79.04%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 MX$49.11

$3.00 €2.66

-11.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.70 MX$31.45

$1.44 €1.28

18.06%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.99 MX$185

$33.20 €29.53

-69.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.34 MX$24.73

$1.86 €1.65

-27.96%

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

$25.3K MX$467.0K

$32.3K €28.8K

-21.85%

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

$23.0K MX$424.7K

$31.7K €28.2K

-27.51%

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

$54.4 MX$1,006

$183 €163

-70.21%

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

$23.70 MX$438

$13.61 €12.11

74.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.93 MX$498

$32.93 €29.29

-18.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.17 MX$687

$54.7 €48.65

-32.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.73 MX$346

$16.52 €14.70

13.38%

Cinema Ticket

$5.01 MX$92.6

$11.23 €9.99

-55.39%

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

$245 MX$4,528

$954 €849

-74.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,825 MX$89.2K

$16.6K €14.8K

-70.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$57.4 MX$1,060

$86.0 €76.5

-33.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.06 MX$759

$39.11 €34.78

4.99%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.5 MX$1,820

$104 €92.2

-5.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$91.8 MX$1,696

$119 €106

-22.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 MX$12.4K

$1,695 €1,508

-60.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$428 MX$7,904

$1,276 €1,135

-66.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,080 MX$20.0K

$2,576 €2,291

-58.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$770 MX$14.2K

$1,922 €1,710

-59.94%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,952 MX$36.1K

$7,281 €6,477

-73.20%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,087 MX$20.1K

$5,010 €4,456

-78.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.3

3.28

244.51%

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

Last update for Tapachula: October 18, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Tapachula

$428 36.8%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 198% $849

Groceries & Markets

Tapachula

$259 22.3%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 25.5% $66

Eating Out

Tapachula

$181 15.6%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 48.9% $88

Clothing & Footwear

Tapachula

$130 11.2%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 20.3% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Tapachula

$105 9%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 118% $124

Sport & Entertainment

Tapachula

$47 4.1%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 63.5% $30

Getting Around

Tapachula

$14 * 1.2%

Barcelona

$47 2% 248% $34

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 $673 in Tapachula and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $41.00 in Tapachula vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $259 vs $325 per month, with Tapachula cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Tapachula

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:42 5:42 AM

13:42 1:42 PM

8 h ahead of Tapachula

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

217,550

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.41 USD

100 MXN = 4.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 18.48 MXN (100 MXN = 5.41 USD). 1 EUR = 20.77 MXN (100 MXN = 4.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Tapachula Barcelona 9,280 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Tapachula
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

Tapachula vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Tapachula and Barcelona differ by about 105% in total monthly costs ($1,164 vs $2,381 including rent). Tapachula is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $1,745 in Tapachula and $3,571 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: $673 in Tapachula versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $245 in Tapachula versus $954 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Tapachula – a meal for two runs $41.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,164 in Tapachula versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Tapachula but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Tapachula 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, Tapachula 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 Tapachula gentler on the wallet – expenses run 105% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.