Cost of living comparison
compared to
Madrid vs. Barcelona Cost of Living Summary
Madrid is 0.2% more expensive than Barcelona.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.2% more in Madrid
- Groceries
-
pay 1.6% less in Madrid
- Transportation
-
pay 6.2% more in Madrid
- Housing
-
pay 2.4% less in Madrid
- Childcare
-
pay 10.1% less in Madrid
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 1.9% less in Madrid
- Clothing
-
pay 8.7% more in Madrid
The cost of clothing, transportation, and restaurants in Madrid are more expensive than in Barcelona. Expenses including childcare, housing, entertainment and sports, and groceries are lower in Madrid.
Madrid vs. Barcelona Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Madrid instead of Barcelona, you would:
pay 2.2% more for restaurants
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$17.52
€15.05
|
$18.10
€15.55
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$14.02
€12.04
|
$11.68
€10.03
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.78
€2.39
|
$3.13
€2.69
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.00
€1.71
|
$2.19
€1.88
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of restaurants
pay 1.6% less for groceries
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.01
€1.72
|
$1.71
€1.47
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$8.44
€7.25
|
$7.25
€6.22
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.71
€4.05
|
$4.61
€3.96
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.60
€3.09
|
$3.36
€2.88
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.25
€3.65
|
$4.05
€3.48
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.25
€1.07
|
$1.18
€1.01
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.07
€0.92
|
$1.02
€0.88
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.00
€0.85
|
$1.19
€1.03
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.33
€1.14
|
$1.26
€1.08
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.90
€0.77
|
$0.94
€0.81
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.87
€0.75
|
$1.01
€0.87
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of groceries
pay 6.2% more for transportation
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.84
€5.88
|
$7.08
€6.08
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$29.20
€25.08
|
$45.84
€39.37
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$38,968.02
€33,466.16
|
$38,541.72
€33,100.05
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$24.79
€21.29
|
$16.23
€13.94
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of transportation
pay 2.4% less for housing
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$37.34
€32.07
|
$34.54
€29.66
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,569.84
€1,348.19
|
$1,540.98
€1,323.41
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,267.61
€1,088.64
|
$1,118.82
€960.85
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$138.01
€118.52
|
$153.78
€132.07
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of housing
pay 10.1% less for childcare
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$731.42
€628.15
|
$673.20
€578.15
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$14,936.94
€12,828.01
|
$13,119.76
€11,267.39
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of childcare
pay 1.9% less for entertainment and sports
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.67
€4.01
|
$4.50
€3.86
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.92
€2.51
|
$3.20
€2.75
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.01
€6.02
|
$7.01
€6.02
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$57.76
€49.60
|
$51.05
€43.85
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.68
€10.03
|
$11.68
€10.03
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.7% more for clothing
|
Barcelona
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$84.92
€72.93
|
$98.88
€84.92
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$36.79
€31.59
|
$41.27
€35.44
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$104.89
€90.08
|
$107.49
€92.31
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$120.92
€103.84
|
$125.44
€107.73
|
|
Barcelona vs. Madrid - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
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