Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Upington and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Upington: $1,111 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

53

Cost of Living Index in Upington
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Upington Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Upington

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,111

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,111 in Upington versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Upington $1,111
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,731 in Upington versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Upington $1,731
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,350 in Upington versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Upington $2,350
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Upington costs roughly 55% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Upington is 18% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.13 R 202

$17.59 €15.80

-31.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.62 R 594

$67.5 €60.6

-47.22%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.83 R 97.2

$13.53 €12.15

-56.91%

Cappuccino

$1.75 R 29.17

$3.19 €2.87

-45.14%

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

$1.02 R 17.06

$2.91 €2.62

-64.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 R 12.87

$1.89 €1.70

-59.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.70 R 28.38

$4.01 €3.60

-57.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 R 45.95

$4.53 €4.07

-39.07%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.93 R 15.45

$1.31 €1.17

-29.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.22 R 20.27

$2.02 €1.81

-39.60%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.61 R 26.83

$1.85 €1.66

-12.97%

Eggs

$2.22 R 36.95

$4.83 €4.34

-54.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.31 R 138

$16.74 €15.03

-50.36%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.40 R 89.9

$9.12 €8.19

-40.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.17 R 136

$19.64 €17.64

-58.40%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 R 34.27

$2.98 €2.68

-30.87%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 R 24.76

$2.02 €1.81

-26.24%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.64 R 27.37

$2.70 €2.43

-39.26%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.76 R 29.31

$2.80 €2.52

-37.14%

Potato (1kg)

$1.34 R 22.33

$2.09 €1.87

-35.89%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 R 23.11

$2.07 €1.86

-32.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 R 18.43

$1.46 €1.31

-23.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 R 20.33

$0.94 €0.84

29.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.76 R 46.01

$6.87 €6.17

-59.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.73 R 62.1

$7.89 €7.08

-52.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.54 R 25.67

$1.41 €1.26

9.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.09 R 34.77

$2.54 €2.28

-17.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 R 24.31

$3.14 €2.82

-53.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 R 10.64

$2.99 €2.69

-78.60%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.79 R 13.16

$1.49 €1.34

-46.98%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.30 R 188

$33.37 €29.98

-66.14%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 R 24.20

$1.80 €1.61

-19.44%

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

$40.3K R 671.8K

$33.2K €29.8K

21.45%

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

$34.8K R 579.4K

$31.7K €28.5K

9.69%

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

$148 R 2,472

$180 €162

-17.76%

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

$39.28 R 655

$13.84 €12.43

183.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$37.62 R 627

$33.70 €30.27

11.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$28.10 R 468

$51.5 €46.27

-45.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.70 R 195

$15.96 €14.34

-26.69%

Cinema Ticket

$8.00 R 133

$10.99 €9.88

-27.21%

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

$103 R 1,709

$917 €823

-88.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,540 R 92.3K

$16.5K €14.8K

-66.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$55.8 R 929

$87.0 €78.2

-35.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$32.07 R 534

$38.51 €34.59

-16.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 R 1,736

$106 €95.1

-1.53%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.3 R 1,405

$120 €108

-29.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$389 R 6,474

$1,699 €1,527

-77.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$358 R 5,958

$1,355 €1,217

-73.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$613 R 10.2K

$2,603 €2,338

-76.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$736 R 12.3K

$2,062 €1,853

-64.31%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$917 R 15.3K

$6,915 €6,211

-86.73%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$739 R 12.3K

$5,128 €4,606

-85.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$781 R 13.0K

$2,211 €1,986

-64.67%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

11.38

3.28

246.95%

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

Last update for Upington: October 24, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Upington

$358 32.2%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 279% $998

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Upington

$225 20.3%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 1.2% $2.7

Groceries & Markets

Upington

$193 17.4%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 66.8% $129

Eating Out

Upington

$157 14.1%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 70.9% $111

Clothing & Footwear

Upington

$124 11.2%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 27% $34

Sport & Entertainment

Upington

$44 4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 66.7% $29

Getting Around

Upington

$10 * 0.9%

Barcelona

$48 2% 365% $38

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 $389 in Upington and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $36 in Upington vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $193 vs $322 per month, with Upington cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Upington

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

22:48 10:48 PM

21:48 9:48 PM

1 h behind Upington

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

74,834

1,660,122

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6 USD

100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 16.66 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6 USD). 1 EUR = 18.55 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.39 EUR).

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

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Upington Barcelona 8,010 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Upington
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

Upington vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,111 in Upington and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Upington is about 55% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 65% lower in Upington. 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: $389 in Upington versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $103 in Upington versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Upington – a meal for two runs $36 versus $67 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Upington is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

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