Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Worcester, MA and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Barcelona: $2,453 a month against $2,799 in Worcester, MA, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

134

Cost of Living Index in Worcester, MA
Learn more

Worcester, MA Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Worcester, MA

🇺🇸 United States

$2,799

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,799 in Worcester, MA versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Worcester, MA $2,799
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,928 in Worcester, MA versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Worcester, MA $3,928
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,057 in Worcester, MA versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Worcester, MA $5,057
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Worcester, MA is roughly 14% more expensive than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Worcester, MA 106% above, Barcelona 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.27 $22.27

$17.59 €15.76

26.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$72.5 $72.5

$67.5 €60.5

7.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.79 $11.79

$13.53 €12.12

-12.86%

Cappuccino

$4.91 $4.91

$3.19 €2.86

53.92%

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

$2.39 $2.39

$2.91 €2.61

-17.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 $1.66

$1.89 €1.70

-12.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.90 $5.90

$4.01 €3.59

47.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.11 $7.11

$4.53 €4.06

56.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 $1.19

$1.31 €1.17

-9.16%

White Bread (500g)

$3.70 $3.70

$2.02 €1.81

83.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$5.06 $5.06

$1.85 €1.66

173.51%

Eggs

$3.76 $3.76

$4.83 €4.33

-22.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$18.71 $18.71

$16.74 €15.00

11.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.86 $10.86

$9.12 €8.17

19.08%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.47 $20.47

$19.64 €17.60

4.23%

Apples (1kg)

$3.64 $3.64

$2.98 €2.67

22.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 $1.40

$2.02 €1.81

-30.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.45 $3.45

$2.70 €2.42

27.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.91 $4.91

$2.80 €2.51

75.36%

Potato (1kg)

$2.98 $2.98

$2.09 €1.87

42.58%

Onion (1kg)

$3.28 $3.28

$2.07 €1.85

58.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.77 $1.77

$1.46 €1.31

21.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 $1.51

$0.94 €0.84

60.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.03 $13.03

$6.87 €6.16

89.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.12 $12.12

$7.89 €7.07

53.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.69 $1.69

$1.41 €1.26

19.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.34 $3.34

$2.54 €2.27

31.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.80

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.07 $5.07

$2.99 €2.68

69.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 $2.35

$1.49 €1.34

57.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.64 $35.64

$33.37 €29.91

6.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.06 $1.06

$1.80 €1.61

-41.11%

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

$27.3K $27.3K

$33.2K €29.7K

-17.67%

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

$26.4K $26.4K

$31.7K €28.4K

-16.58%

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

$190 $190

$180 €162

5.42%

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

$55.4 $55.4

$13.84 €12.40

300.07%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$60.9 $60.9

$33.70 €30.20

80.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$33.64 $33.64

$51.5 €46.16

-34.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.86 $29.86

$15.96 €14.30

87.09%

Cinema Ticket

$16.61 $16.61

$10.99 €9.85

51.14%

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

$1,694 $1,694

$917 €821

84.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$44.1K $44.1K

$16.5K €14.8K

167.39%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$47.11 $47.11

$87.0 €78.0

-45.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$35.58 $35.58

$38.51 €34.51

-7.61%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.1 $92.1

$106 €94.8

-12.95%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$144 $144

$120 €107

20.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,026 $2,026

$1,699 €1,523

19.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,532 $1,532

$1,355 €1,214

13.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,951 $2,951

$2,603 €2,332

13.37%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,210 $2,210

$2,062 €1,848

7.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,114 $3,114

$6,915 €6,196

-54.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,730 $2,730

$5,128 €4,595

-46.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,225 $4,225

$2,211 €1,981

91.11%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.33

3.28

92.99%

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

Last update for Worcester, MA: 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

Worcester, MA

$1.5K 54.7%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 11.6% $177

Groceries & Markets

Worcester, MA

$401 14.3%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 19.7% $79

Eating Out

Worcester, MA

$332 11.9%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 19.4% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Worcester, MA

$306 11%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 25.6% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Worcester, MA

$143 5.1%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 10.2% $15

Sport & Entertainment

Worcester, MA

$67 2.4%

Barcelona

$74 3% 9.9% $6.6

Getting Around

Worcester, MA

$17 * 0.6%

Barcelona

$48 2% 188% $32

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 $2,026 in Worcester, MA and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Worcester, MA pays 91% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $73 in Worcester, MA vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $401 vs $322 per month, with Barcelona cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇺🇸 Worcester, MA

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

01:09 1:09 AM

07:09 7:09 AM

6 h ahead of Worcester, MA

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

206,518

1,660,122

💱 Currency

United States Dollar USD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.896 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Worcester, MA Barcelona 5,920 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Worcester, MA
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

Worcester, MA vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,799 in Worcester, MA and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Barcelona is about 12% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 91% higher in Worcester, MA, 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: $2,026 in Worcester, MA versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,694 in Worcester, MA 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 Barcelona – a meal for two runs $67 versus $73 in Worcester, MA. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

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 – Barcelona wins on affordability, Worcester, MA on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.