Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Voorburg and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,399 a month against $2,613 in Voorburg, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

126

Cost of Living Index in Voorburg
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Voorburg Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Voorburg

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,613

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,613 in Voorburg versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Voorburg $2,613
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,697 in Voorburg versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Voorburg $3,697
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,782 in Voorburg versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Voorburg $4,782
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Voorburg is roughly 9% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Voorburg 94% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.52 €18.25

$17.94 €15.96

14.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.4 €73.3

$68.1 €60.5

21.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.19 €11.73

$13.28 €11.81

-0.68%

Cappuccino

$4.25 €3.78

$3.25 €2.89

30.77%

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

$3.80 €3.38

$3.01 €2.67

26.25%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.36 €2.98

$1.87 €1.66

79.68%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.08 €6.30

$3.85 €3.42

83.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.78 €5.14

$4.48 €3.98

29.02%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 €1.30

$1.29 €1.15

13.18%

White Bread (500g)

$2.41 €2.14

$2.04 €1.81

18.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.95 €2.62

$1.72 €1.53

71.51%

Eggs

$5.19 €4.62

$4.77 €4.24

8.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.89 €10.58

$16.77 €14.92

-29.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.28 €11.81

$8.93 €7.94

48.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$18.54 €16.49

$19.88 €17.68

-6.74%

Apples (1kg)

$3.32 €2.95

$2.98 €2.65

11.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.62 €2.33

$2.03 €1.80

29.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.53 €2.25

$2.73 €2.43

-7.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.32 €2.95

$2.68 €2.38

23.88%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 €1.50

$2.10 €1.87

-19.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.47 €1.31

$2.08 €1.85

-29.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.45 €1.29

-1.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 €1.10

$0.89 €0.79

39.33%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.60 €12.99

$6.94 €6.17

110.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.51 €5.79

$7.78 €6.92

-16.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.31

$1.45 €1.29

2.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.49 €2.22

$2.57 €2.29

-3.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.95

$2.99 €2.66

10.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$92.8 €82.6

$25.20 €22.41

268.29%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.70 €4.18

$3.12 €2.77

50.64%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.49 €3.10

$1.44 €1.28

142.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$67.6 €60.1

$33.50 €29.80

101.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.79 €1.59

41.90%

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

$40.6K €36.1K

$34.6K €30.8K

17.13%

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

$39.7K €35.3K

$30.1K €26.7K

31.87%

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

$296 €264

$178 €158

66.69%

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

$21.38 €19.01

$13.32 €11.85

60.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.6 €49.42

$34.88 €31.03

59.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.81 €36.30

$53.3 €47.37

-23.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.92 €23.06

$16.01 €14.24

61.90%

Cinema Ticket

$15.38 €13.68

$11.06 €9.84

39.06%

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

$2,633 €2,342

$957 €851

175.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.9K €11.4K

$16.6K €14.7K

-22.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.6 €81.5

$88.2 €78.4

3.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.53 €34.28

$39.49 €35.12

-2.43%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 €96.3

$103 €91.5

5.34%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 €128

$121 €108

18.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,201 €1,068

$1,653 €1,470

-27.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,196 €1,064

$1,302 €1,158

-8.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,599 €2,311

$2,557 €2,275

1.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,689 €1,502

$1,915 €1,703

-11.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,232 €4,654

$7,286 €6,481

-28.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,284 €3,810

$5,080 €4,519

-15.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,281 €2,029

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.49

3.28

6.40%

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

Last update for Voorburg: October 11, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Voorburg

$1.2K 45.8%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 8.9% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Voorburg

$373 14.3%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 39.5% $147

Groceries & Markets

Voorburg

$342 13.1%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 6.4% $22

Eating Out

Voorburg

$330 12.6%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 18.2% $60

Clothing & Footwear

Voorburg

$172 6.6%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 7.8% $13

Getting Around

Voorburg

$128 4.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 63% $81

Sport & Entertainment

Voorburg

$72 2.7%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 5.3% $3.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,201 in Voorburg and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $82.0 in Voorburg vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $342 vs $320 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Voorburg

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:44 5:44 AM

Same time as Voorburg

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

45,945

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Voorburg Barcelona 1,200 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Voorburg
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

Voorburg vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Voorburg and Barcelona differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($2,613 vs $2,399 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $3,920 in Voorburg and $3,599 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: $1,201 in Voorburg versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,633 in Voorburg versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 7% higher in Voorburg. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,399 in Barcelona versus $2,613 in Voorburg, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Voorburg. The gap between the two cities makes Barcelona 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, Voorburg 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 Barcelona gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Voorburg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.