Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wilkes-Barre, PA and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Wilkes-Barre, PA: $2,190 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $2,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Barcelona outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

106

Cost of Living Index in Wilkes-Barre, PA
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Wilkes-Barre, PA Living Index
115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Wilkes-Barre, PA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,190

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,190 in Wilkes-Barre, PA versus $2,381 in Barcelona.

Wilkes-Barre, PA $2,190
Barcelona $2,381

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,358 in Wilkes-Barre, PA versus $3,406 in Barcelona.

Wilkes-Barre, PA $3,358
Barcelona $3,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,526 in Wilkes-Barre, PA versus $4,431 in Barcelona.

Wilkes-Barre, PA $4,526
Barcelona $4,431

Living in Wilkes-Barre, PA costs roughly 8% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Wilkes-Barre, PA 62% above, Barcelona 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$18.15 $18.15

$17.89 €15.92

1.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$49.37 $49.37

$66.2 €58.9

-25.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.40 $10.40

$13.69 €12.18

-24.03%

Cappuccino

$3.91 $3.91

$3.06 €2.72

27.78%

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

$0.99 $0.99

$3.07 €2.73

-67.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 $1.99

$1.94 €1.73

2.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.85 $6.85

$3.87 €3.44

77.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.31 $7.31

$4.61 €4.10

58.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.90 $0.90

$1.30 €1.16

-30.77%

White Bread (500g)

$3.25 $3.25

$2.10 €1.87

54.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.38 $4.38

$1.83 €1.62

139.34%

Eggs

$4.02 $4.02

$4.62 €4.11

-12.99%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.82 $10.82

$17.36 €15.44

-37.67%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$13.33 $13.33

$9.28 €8.25

43.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.75 $17.75

$19.83 €17.64

-10.49%

Apples (1kg)

$6.42 $6.42

$3.01 €2.68

113.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.39 $1.39

$2.03 €1.81

-31.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$5.39 $5.39

$2.65 €2.36

103.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.79 $6.79

$2.87 €2.55

136.59%

Potato (1kg)

$2.90 $2.90

$2.16 €1.92

34.26%

Onion (1kg)

$3.77 $3.77

$2.15 €1.91

75.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.97 $2.97

$1.47 €1.31

102.04%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.74 $2.74

$0.88 €0.79

211.36%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$15.11 $15.11

$6.93 €6.16

118.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.83 $14.83

$7.83 €6.96

89.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.06 $3.06

$1.39 €1.24

120.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.70 $4.70

$2.63 €2.34

78.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.47 $1.47

$2.91 €2.59

-49.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.83 $3.83

$3.00 €2.66

27.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.19 $2.19

$1.44 €1.28

52.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$29.91 $29.91

$33.20 €29.53

-9.91%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.10 $1.10

$1.86 €1.65

-40.86%

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

$30.9K $30.9K

$32.3K €28.8K

-4.32%

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

$26.8K $26.8K

$31.7K €28.2K

-15.31%

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

$238 $238

$183 €163

30.23%

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

$57.5 $57.5

$13.61 €12.11

322.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$74.2 $74.2

$32.93 €29.29

125.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.49 $49.49

$54.7 €48.65

-9.51%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

Cinema Ticket

$14.75 $14.75

$11.23 €9.99

31.34%

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

$1,732 $1,732

$954 €849

81.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$17.7K $17.7K

$16.6K €14.8K

6.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$54.5 $54.5

$86.0 €76.5

-36.60%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.05 $48.05

$39.11 €34.78

22.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.1 $96.1

$104 €92.2

-7.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 $124

$119 €106

4.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,253 $1,253

$1,695 €1,508

-26.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$852 $852

$1,276 €1,135

-33.22%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,736 $1,736

$2,576 €2,291

-32.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,752 $1,752

$1,922 €1,710

-8.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,296 $4,296

$2,227 €1,981

92.92%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.67

3.28

103.35%

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

Last update for Wilkes-Barre, PA: October 20, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$852 38.9%

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6% 49.7% $424

Groceries & Markets

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$439 20%

Barcelona

$325 13.7% 25.9% $114

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$370 16.9%

Barcelona

$229 9.6% 38% $140

Eating Out

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$284 13%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 5.1% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$145 6.6%

Barcelona

$156 6.6% 7.7% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$79 3.6%

Barcelona

$77 3.2% 2.3% $1.8

Getting Around

Wilkes-Barre, PA

$21 * 0.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 129% $27

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 $1,253 in Wilkes-Barre, PA and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Wilkes-Barre, PA pays 93% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $49.00 in Wilkes-Barre, PA vs $66.0 in Barcelona. Groceries flip the comparison at $439 vs $325, with Barcelona cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Wilkes-Barre, PA

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:18 11:18 PM

05:18 5:18 AM

6 h ahead of Wilkes-Barre, PA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

41,288

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Wilkes-Barre, PA Barcelona 6,280 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Wilkes-Barre, PA
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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

Wilkes-Barre, PA vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Wilkes-Barre, PA and Barcelona differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($2,190 vs $2,381 including rent). Wilkes-Barre, PA is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 93% higher in Wilkes-Barre, PA, 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: $1,253 in Wilkes-Barre, PA versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,732 in Wilkes-Barre, PA 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 Wilkes-Barre, PA – a meal for two runs $49.00 versus $66.0 in Barcelona. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,190 in Wilkes-Barre, PA versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Wilkes-Barre, PA but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Wilkes-Barre, PA 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, Wilkes-Barre, PA 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 Wilkes-Barre, PA gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.