Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wageningen and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,381 a month against $2,632 in Wageningen, rent and utilities included – about $3,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Wageningen
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Wageningen Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Wageningen

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,632

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,632 in Wageningen versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Wageningen $2,632
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,036 in Wageningen versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Wageningen $4,036
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,441 in Wageningen versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Wageningen $5,441
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Wageningen is roughly 11% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Wageningen 94% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.83 €19.42

$17.89 €15.92

22.02%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.2 €79.3

$66.2 €58.9

34.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.41 €11.92

$13.69 €12.18

-2.05%

Cappuccino

$4.22 €3.75

$3.06 €2.72

37.91%

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

$3.87 €3.44

$3.07 €2.73

26.06%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.65 €2.35

$1.94 €1.73

36.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.68 €5.05

$3.87 €3.44

46.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.10 €4.53

$4.61 €4.10

10.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

White Bread (500g)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.10 €1.87

-6.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.77 €2.47

$1.83 €1.62

51.37%

Eggs

$4.89 €4.35

$4.62 €4.11

5.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.83 €11.41

$17.36 €15.44

-26.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.59 €12.98

$9.28 €8.25

57.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.01 €15.13

$19.83 €17.64

-14.22%

Apples (1kg)

$2.66 €2.36

$3.01 €2.68

-11.63%

Banana (1kg)

$2.48 €2.20

$2.03 €1.81

22.17%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.88 €1.67

$2.65 €2.36

-29.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.52 €4.02

$2.87 €2.55

57.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.80 €1.60

$2.16 €1.92

-16.67%

Onion (1kg)

$2.19 €1.95

$2.15 €1.91

1.86%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.47 €1.31

-14.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 €0.87

$0.88 €0.79

11.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.18 €12.61

$6.93 €6.16

104.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.02 €6.24

$7.83 €6.96

-10.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.32 €1.18

$1.39 €1.24

-5.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.62 €2.33

$2.63 €2.34

-0.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.39 €3.01

$2.91 €2.59

16.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.93 €3.50

$3.00 €2.66

31.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.02 €1.79

$1.44 €1.28

40.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.31 €19.84

$33.20 €29.53

-32.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.40 €2.13

$1.86 €1.65

29.03%

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

$42.0K €37.4K

$32.3K €28.8K

29.95%

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

$39.2K €34.9K

$31.7K €28.2K

23.61%

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

$308 €274

$183 €163

68.72%

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

$24.59 €21.87

$13.61 €12.11

80.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.83 €41.65

$32.93 €29.29

42.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.22 €33.99

$54.7 €48.65

-30.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.18 €19.73

$16.52 €14.70

34.26%

Cinema Ticket

$15.54 €13.82

$11.23 €9.99

38.38%

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

$1,997 €1,776

$954 €849

109.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,866 €6,997

$16.6K €14.8K

-52.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.0 €85.4

$86.0 €76.5

11.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.25 €38.47

$39.11 €34.78

10.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.2

$104 €92.2

2.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 €92.3

$119 €106

-12.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,181 €1,050

$1,695 €1,508

-30.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,332 €1,185

$1,276 €1,135

4.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,698 €2,400

$2,576 €2,291

4.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,553 €2,271

$1,922 €1,710

32.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,357 €3,876

$7,281 €6,477

-40.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,637 €4,124

$5,010 €4,456

-7.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,350 €2,980

$2,227 €1,981

50.45%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

21.95%

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

Last update for Wageningen: October 19, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Wageningen

$1.3K 50.6%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 4.2% $56

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wageningen

$380 14.4%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 39.6% $150

Groceries & Markets

Wageningen

$336 12.8%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 3.4% $11

Eating Out

Wageningen

$330 12.5%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 18.4% $61

Clothing & Footwear

Wageningen

$157 6%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 0.4% $0.6

Sport & Entertainment

Wageningen

$69 2.6%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 11.4% $7.9

Getting Around

Wageningen

$28 * 1.1%

Barcelona

$47 2% 71.6% $20

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 $1,181 in Wageningen and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wageningen pays 50% 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: $89.0 in Wageningen vs $66.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $336 vs $325 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Wageningen

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

15:58 3:58 PM

Same time as Wageningen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

39,664

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

Wageningen Barcelona 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Wageningen
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

Wageningen vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wageningen and Barcelona differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($2,632 vs $2,381 including rent). Barcelona is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 50% higher in Wageningen, 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: $1,181 in Wageningen versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,997 in Wageningen 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 Barcelona – a meal for two runs $66.0 versus $89.0 in Wageningen. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,381 in Barcelona versus $2,632 in Wageningen, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Barcelona but tight or insufficient in Wageningen. 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, Wageningen 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 11% less than in Wageningen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.