Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Madrid 

Indices DifferenceInfo
Cost of Living in Madrid is 5.2% lower than in Barcelona (without rent)
Cost of Living Including Rent in Madrid is 3.1% lower than in Barcelona
Rent Prices in Madrid are 1.5% higher than in Barcelona
Restaurant Prices in Madrid are 2.5% lower than in Barcelona
Groceries Prices in Madrid are 9.2% lower than in Barcelona
Local Purchasing Power in Madrid is 16.3% higher than in Barcelona
Currency: Sticky Currency      Switch to metric measurement units
Restaurants
Barcelona Edit Madrid 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) 12.00 € 10.00 €      -16.7 %
Domestic Beer (1 pint draught) 3.75 € 3.50 €      -6.7 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 4.00 € 4.00 €      0.0 %
Cappuccino (regular) 2.32 € 2.45 €      +5.7 %
Coke/Pepsi (12 oz small bottle) 2.35 € 2.63 €      +11.9 %
Water (12 oz small bottle) 1.75 € 1.71 €      -2.4 %
Markets
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Milk (regular), (1 gallon) 4.11 € 3.93 €      -4.4 %
Loaf of Fresh White Bread (1 lb) 1.67 € 1.27 €      -23.5 %
Rice (white), (1 lb) 0.75 € 0.63 €      -16.4 %
Eggs (regular) (12) 2.90 € 2.85 €      -1.6 %
Local Cheese (1 lb) 6.81 € 5.46 €      -19.9 %
Chicken Fillets (1 lb) 3.92 € 3.51 €      -10.6 %
Beef Round (1 lb) (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) 7.63 € 6.30 €      -17.4 %
Apples (1 lb) 0.99 € 0.99 €      -0.3 %
Banana (1 lb) 0.90 € 0.82 €      -8.5 %
Oranges (1 lb) 0.86 € 0.94 €      +9.6 %
Tomato (1 lb) 1.06 € 0.98 €      -7.0 %
Potato (1 lb) 0.78 € 0.77 €      -1.5 %
Onion (1 lb) 0.73 € 0.74 €      +1.5 %
Lettuce (1 head) 1.26 € 1.13 €      -10.2 %
Water (1.5 liter bottle) 0.76 € 0.84 €      +10.6 %
Bottle of Wine (Mid-Range) 6.00 € 6.00 €      0.0 %
Domestic Beer (0.5 liter bottle) 1.20 € 1.20 €      +0.3 %
Imported Beer (12 oz small bottle) 1.98 € 1.90 €      -4.4 %
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro) 5.50 € 6.00 €      +9.1 %
Transportation
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
One-way Ticket (Local Transport) 2.50 € 1.50 €      -40.0 %
Monthly Pass (Regular Price) 22.00 € 35.00 €      +59.1 %
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff) 3.50 € 3.50 €      0.0 %
Taxi 1 mile (Normal Tariff) 3.22 € 2.09 €      -35.0 %
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff) 25.30 € 25.00 €      -1.2 %
Gasoline (1 gallon) 6.19 € 6.35 €      +2.6 %
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) 27,625.00 € 28,855.40 €      +4.5 %
Utilities (Monthly)
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Basic (Electricity, Heating, Cooling, Water, Garbage) for 915 sq ft Apartment 167.47 € 159.56 €      -4.7 %
Mobile Phone Monthly Plan with Calls and 10GB+ Data 19.09 € 15.71 €      -17.7 %
Internet (60 Mbps or More, Unlimited Data, Cable/ADSL) 33.97 € 29.85 €      -12.1 %
Sports And Leisure
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Fitness Club, Monthly Fee for 1 Adult 47.43 € 42.20 €      -11.0 %
Tennis Court Rent (1 Hour on Weekend) 20.44 € 13.12 €      -35.8 %
Cinema, International Release, 1 Seat 9.00 € 10.00 €      +11.1 %
Childcare
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Preschool (or Kindergarten), Full Day, Private, Monthly for 1 Child 609.66 € 547.73 €      -10.2 %
International Primary School, Yearly for 1 Child 12,653.85 € 9,661.90 €      -23.6 %
Clothing And Shoes
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
1 Pair of Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar) 77.52 € 78.81 €      +1.7 %
1 Summer Dress in a Chain Store (Zara, H&M, ...) 32.83 € 35.93 €      +9.4 %
1 Pair of Nike Running Shoes (Mid-Range) 91.38 € 91.17 €      -0.2 %
1 Pair of Men Leather Business Shoes 106.39 € 110.00 €      +3.4 %
Rent Per Month
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Apartment (1 bedroom) in City Centre 1,302.57 € 1,349.47 €      +3.6 %
Apartment (1 bedroom) Outside of Centre 987.82 € 956.19 €      -3.2 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) in City Centre 2,214.69 € 2,257.44 €      +1.9 %
Apartment (3 bedrooms) Outside of Centre 1,494.96 € 1,526.19 €      +2.1 %
Buy Apartment Price
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment in City Centre 521.69 € 609.96 €      +16.9 %
Price per Square Feet to Buy Apartment Outside of Centre 366.79 € 356.78 €      -2.7 %
Salaries And Financing
Barcelona Edit Madrid Edit
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax) 1,902.49 € 2,143.98 €      +12.7 %
Mortgage Interest Rate in Percentages (%), Yearly, for 20 Years Fixed-Rate 3.39 3.65      +7.6 %
Last update: February 2025February 2025
Contributors in the past 12 months:346327