Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ulm and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Ulm: $2,140 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $3,100 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

104

Cost of Living Index in Ulm
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Ulm Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Ulm

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,140

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,140 in Ulm versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Ulm $2,140
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,245 in Ulm versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Ulm $3,245
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,350 in Ulm versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Ulm $4,350
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Ulm costs roughly 11% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ulm 59% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.80 €14.94

$17.94 €15.96

-6.35%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.6 €59.2

$68.1 €60.5

-2.16%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.31 €11.84

$13.28 €11.81

0.23%

Cappuccino

$3.84 €3.42

$3.25 €2.89

18.15%

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

$4.64 €4.13

$3.01 €2.67

54.15%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.92 €1.71

$1.87 €1.66

2.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.62 €4.11

$3.85 €3.42

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 €3.92

$4.48 €3.98

-1.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.47 €1.30

$1.29 €1.15

13.95%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 €1.83

$2.04 €1.81

0.49%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.14 €3.68

$1.72 €1.53

140.70%

Eggs

$3.64 €3.24

$4.77 €4.24

-23.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.34 €12.76

$16.77 €14.92

-14.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.83 €8.74

$8.93 €7.94

10.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$25.54 €22.72

$19.88 €17.68

28.47%

Apples (1kg)

$3.44 €3.06

$2.98 €2.65

15.44%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 €1.96

$2.03 €1.80

8.87%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.92 €1.71

$2.73 €2.43

-29.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.91 €3.48

$2.68 €2.38

45.90%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 €0.96

$2.10 €1.87

-48.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$2.08 €1.85

-46.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.66 €1.48

$1.45 €1.29

14.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.20 €1.06

$0.89 €0.79

34.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.59 €8.53

$6.94 €6.17

38.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.67 €5.04

$7.78 €6.92

-27.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 €1.02

$1.45 €1.29

-20.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 €1.35

$2.57 €2.29

-40.86%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.10 €2.76

$2.99 €2.66

3.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$64.4 €57.3

$25.20 €22.41

155.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.12 €2.77

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.50 €29.80

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.79 €1.59

18.99%

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

$32.2K €28.6K

$34.6K €30.8K

-7.02%

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

$37.9K €33.7K

$30.1K €26.7K

25.92%

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

$377 €336

$178 €158

112.11%

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

$34.04 €30.28

$13.32 €11.85

155.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$52.9 €47.05

$34.88 €31.03

51.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.61 €29.89

$53.3 €47.37

-36.88%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.70 €20.19

$16.01 €14.24

41.79%

Cinema Ticket

$13.44 €11.95

$11.06 €9.84

21.52%

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

$441 €393

$957 €851

-53.87%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K €11.6K

$16.6K €14.7K

-21.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.3 €80.3

$88.2 €78.4

2.36%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.2 €49.08

$39.49 €35.12

39.73%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$89.4 €79.6

$103 €91.5

-13.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$148 €131

$121 €108

21.63%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$931 €828

$1,653 €1,470

-43.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$749 €666

$1,302 €1,158

-42.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,830 €1,628

$2,557 €2,275

-28.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,471 €1,308

$1,915 €1,703

-23.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,901 €5,249

$7,286 €6,481

-19.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,961 €3,524

$5,080 €4,519

-22.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,737 €3,324

$2,281 €2,029

63.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.97

3.28

21.04%

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

Last update for Ulm: October 13, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ulm

$749 35%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 73.8% $553

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ulm

$464 21.7%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 51.3% $238

Groceries & Markets

Ulm

$339 15.9%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 5.7% $19

Eating Out

Ulm

$279 13%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 3.1% $8.5

Clothing & Footwear

Ulm

$172 8%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 8% $14

Getting Around

Ulm

$77 * 3.6%

Barcelona

$47 2% 38.2% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Ulm

$60 2.8%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 24.6% $15

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 $931 in Ulm and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ulm pays 64% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67.0 in Ulm vs $68.0 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $339 vs $320, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Ulm

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:28 11:28 PM

Same time as Ulm

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

121,648

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Ulm Barcelona 990 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Ulm
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

Ulm vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ulm and Barcelona differ by about 12% in total monthly costs ($2,140 vs $2,399 including rent). Ulm is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 64% higher in Ulm, 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: $931 in Ulm versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $441 in Ulm versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Barcelona pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,140 in Ulm versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Ulm but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Ulm 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, Ulm 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 Ulm gentler on the wallet – expenses run 12% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.