Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Zacatecas and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Zacatecas: $730 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $20,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

35

Cost of Living Index in Zacatecas
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Zacatecas Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Zacatecas

🇲🇽 Mexico

$730

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $730 in Zacatecas versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Zacatecas $730
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,155 in Zacatecas versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Zacatecas $1,155
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,580 in Zacatecas versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Zacatecas $1,580
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Zacatecas costs roughly 70% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Zacatecas is 46% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.06 MX$114

$17.59 €15.76

-65.55%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.91 MX$600

$67.5 €60.5

-52.72%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.17 MX$135

$13.53 €12.12

-47.01%

Cappuccino

$3.01 MX$56.6

$3.19 €2.86

-5.64%

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

$1.25 MX$23.52

$2.91 €2.61

-57.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.72 MX$13.48

$1.89 €1.70

-61.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.84 MX$34.51

$4.01 €3.59

-54.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 MX$77.6

$4.53 €4.06

-8.83%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 MX$25.38

$1.31 €1.17

3.05%

White Bread (500g)

$2.15 MX$40.31

$2.02 €1.81

6.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.53 MX$28.66

$1.85 €1.66

-17.30%

Eggs

$2.21 MX$41.49

$4.83 €4.33

-54.24%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.28 MX$137

$16.74 €15.00

-56.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.96 MX$112

$9.12 €8.17

-34.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.62 MX$181

$19.64 €17.60

-51.02%

Apples (1kg)

$1.78 MX$33.41

$2.98 €2.67

-40.27%

Banana (1kg)

$1.59 MX$29.89

$2.02 €1.81

-21.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.93 MX$36.19

$2.70 €2.42

-28.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.46 MX$27.39

$2.80 €2.51

-47.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 MX$37.31

$2.09 €1.87

-4.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.77 MX$33.27

$2.07 €1.85

-14.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.58 MX$29.72

$1.46 €1.31

8.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 MX$15.01

$0.94 €0.84

-14.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.25 MX$79.8

$6.87 €6.16

-38.14%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.27 MX$193

$7.89 €7.07

30.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.60 MX$30.03

$1.41 €1.26

13.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.35 MX$63.0

$2.54 €2.27

31.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.53 MX$9.91

$3.14 €2.82

-83.12%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.07 MX$302

$25.45 €22.80

-36.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.13 MX$40.07

$2.99 €2.68

-28.76%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.11 MX$20.84

$1.49 €1.34

-25.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.49 MX$178

$33.37 €29.91

-71.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.46 MX$27.42

$1.80 €1.61

-18.89%

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

$20.9K MX$393.1K

$33.2K €29.7K

-36.98%

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

$23.8K MX$446.9K

$31.7K €28.4K

-24.98%

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

$22.72 MX$427

$180 €162

-87.41%

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

$7.97 MX$150

$13.84 €12.40

-42.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$24.73 MX$465

$33.70 €30.20

-26.62%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$24.23 MX$455

$51.5 €46.16

-52.96%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$7.96 MX$150

$15.96 €14.30

-50.13%

Cinema Ticket

$4.24 MX$79.8

$10.99 €9.85

-61.42%

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

$235 MX$4,415

$917 €821

-74.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,243 MX$61.0K

$16.5K €14.8K

-80.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$44.83 MX$842

$87.0 €78.0

-48.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.16 MX$755

$38.51 €34.51

4.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.7 MX$1,704

$106 €94.8

-14.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$42.77 MX$804

$120 €107

-64.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$241 MX$4,534

$1,699 €1,523

-85.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$162 MX$3,049

$1,355 €1,214

-88.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$381 MX$7,154

$2,603 €2,332

-85.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$241 MX$4,526

$2,062 €1,848

-88.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,196

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$563 MX$10.6K

$5,128 €4,595

-89.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$408 MX$7,665

$2,211 €1,981

-81.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.8

3.28

229.27%

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

Last update for Zacatecas: October 26, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Zacatecas

$224 30.7%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 43.4% $97

Accommodation & Living

Zacatecas

$162 22.2%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 735% $1.2K

Eating Out

Zacatecas

$131 18%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 104% $136

Clothing & Footwear

Zacatecas

$98 13.5%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 60.7% $60

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Zacatecas

$55 7.6%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 311% $173

Sport & Entertainment

Zacatecas

$33 4.5%

Barcelona

$74 3% 125% $41

Getting Around

Zacatecas

$26 3.5%

Barcelona

$48 2% 87.5% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $241 in Zacatecas and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 5.4 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $32 in Zacatecas vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $224 vs $322 per month, with Zacatecas cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇽 Zacatecas

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

20:27 8:27 PM

03:27 3:27 AM

7 h ahead of Zacatecas

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

138,444

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Mexican Peso MXN $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MXN = 5.32 USD

100 MXN = 4.77 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MXN – Mexican Peso Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇽 Mexican Peso ($)

Mexican Peso exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 18.79 MXN (100 MXN = 5.32 USD). 1 EUR = 20.98 MXN (100 MXN = 4.77 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MXN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Zacatecas Barcelona 9,500 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

Zacatecas
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

Zacatecas vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $730 in Zacatecas and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Zacatecas is about 70% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 82% lower in Zacatecas. 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: $241 in Zacatecas versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $235 in Zacatecas versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 43% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $730 in Zacatecas versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Zacatecas but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Zacatecas 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, Zacatecas and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Zacatecas gentler on the wallet – expenses run 70% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.