Cost of Living Comparison Between Madrid and Barcelona 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in Barcelona is 4.6% higher than in Madrid (excluding rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Barcelona is 4.0% higher than in Madrid
Rent Prices in Barcelona are 2.8% higher than in Madrid
Restaurant Prices in Barcelona are 1.8% higher than in Madrid
Groceries Prices in Barcelona are 8.8% higher than in Madrid
Local Purchasing Power in Barcelona is 12.9% lower than in Madrid
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit Difference
Meal, Inexpensive Restaurant 15.00 € 15.00 €      0.0 %
Meal for 2 People, Mid-range Restaurant, Three-course 60.00 € 60.00 €      0.0 %
McMeal at McDonalds (or Equivalent Combo Meal) 10.00 € 12.00 €      +20.0 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 3.50 € 3.50 €      0.0 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 4.00 € 4.00 €      0.0 %
Cappuccino (regular) 2.68 € 2.43 €      -9.1 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.68 € 2.40 €      -10.2 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 1.84 € 1.80 €      -2.1 %
Markets
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 4.00 € 4.15 €      +3.8 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 1.31 € 1.57 €      +19.7 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 0.66 € 0.75 €      +14.0 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 2.91 € 2.95 €      +1.3 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 5.52 € 6.83 €      +23.7 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 3.54 € 3.77 €      +6.3 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 6.37 € 7.61 €      +19.5 %
Apples (1 lb) 1.01 € 1.04 €      +3.1 %
Banana (1 lb) 0.84 € 0.96 €      +15.1 %
Oranges (1 lb) 0.96 € 0.88 €      -8.6 %
Tomato (1 lb) 1.03 € 1.07 €      +3.7 %
Potato (1 lb) 0.81 € 0.78 €      -4.0 %
Onion (1 lb) 0.81 € 0.72 €      -11.4 %
Lettuce (1 head) 1.11 € 1.27 €      +14.2 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 0.84 € 0.75 €      -11.1 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 6.70 € 6.00 €      -10.4 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 1.24 € 1.22 €      -2.4 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 1.93 € 2.02 €      +4.5 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 6.00 € 6.00 €      0.0 %
Transportation
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 1.50 € 2.55 €      +70.0 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 33.90 € 23.00 €      -32.2 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 3.50 € 3.88 €      +10.7 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 2.09 € 3.86 €      +84.6 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 25.00 € 25.30 €      +1.2 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 6.22 € 6.17 €      -0.7 %
Volkswagen Golf 1.4 90 KW Trendline (Or Equivalent New Car) 33,365.00 € 33,365.00 €      0.0 %
Toyota Corolla Sedan 1.6l 97kW Comfort (Or Equivalent New Car) 29,245.21 € 28,571.43 €      -2.3 %
Utilities (Monthly)
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 160.00 € 159.64 €      -0.2 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 15.97 € 19.26 €      +20.6 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 29.74 € 33.90 €      +14.0 %
Sports And Leisure
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 41.82 € 47.99 €      +14.8 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 14.78 € 18.60 €      +25.9 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 10.00 € 9.00 €      -10.0 %
Childcare
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 570.00 € 598.53 €      +5.0 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 10,170.59 € 12,553.85 €      +23.4 %
Clothing And Shoes
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 81.10 € 74.05 €      -8.7 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 36.31 € 32.05 €      -11.7 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 91.74 € 91.19 €      -0.6 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 111.30 € 102.94 €      -7.5 %
Rent Per Month
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 1,324.62 € 1,349.62 €      +1.9 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 971.78 € 1,042.14 €      +7.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 2,318.42 € 2,371.03 €      +2.3 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 1,562.62 € 1,590.22 €      +1.8 %
Buy Apartment Price
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 622.16 € 511.12 €      -17.8 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 372.04 € 375.98 €      +1.1 %
Salaries And Financing
Madrid Edit Barcelona Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 1,973.36 € 1,786.66 €      -9.5 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 3.59 3.39      -5.4 %
Last update: May 2025May 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:341357