Cost of living comparison
compared to
North Carolina vs. Spain Cost of Living Summary
North Carolina is 52.8% more expensive than Spain overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 2.4% more in North Carolina
- Groceries
-
pay 68.6% more in North Carolina
- Transportation
-
pay 6.7% more in North Carolina
- Housing
-
pay 69.9% more in North Carolina
- Childcare
-
pay 2.9 times more in North Carolina
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 45.0% more in North Carolina
- Clothing
-
pay 7.8% less in North Carolina
The cost of childcare, housing, groceries, entertainment and sports, transportation, and restaurants in North Carolina are more expensive than in Spain. Notably, childcare is significantly more expensive in North Carolina.
North Carolina vs. Spain Cost Breakdown
If you lived in North Carolina instead of Spain, you would:
pay 2.4% more for restaurants
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.59
€13.44
|
$17.06
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.47
€9.03
|
$10.47
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.43
€2.10
|
$2.28
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.75
€1.51
|
$1.82
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of restaurants
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pay 68.6% more for groceries
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.50
€1.29
|
$3.79
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.18
€6.19
|
$6.80
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.55
€3.92
|
$3.73
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.00
€2.59
|
$3.98
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.77
€3.25
|
$5.20
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.12
€0.97
|
$2.47
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.94
€0.81
|
$0.71
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$0.90
€0.77
|
$2.20
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.25
€1.08
|
$2.38
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.79
€0.68
|
$1.74
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.88
€0.76
|
$1.80
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of groceries
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pay 6.7% more for transportation
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.72
€5.80
|
$2.98
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$36.04
€31.08
|
$60.67
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,479.99
€31,457.68
|
$33,588.64
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$16.35
€14.10
|
$19.99
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of transportation
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pay 69.9% more for housing
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$31.86
€27.48
|
$72.77
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$935.97
€807.11
|
$1,488.15
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$738.34
€636.69
|
$1,261.77
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$108.98
€93.97
|
$132.31
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of housing
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pay 2.9 times more for childcare
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$443.17
€382.16
|
$1,261.89
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$8,629.20
€7,441.19
|
$24,633.15
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of childcare
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pay 45.0% more for entertainment and sports
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$3.32
€2.86
|
$5.12
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.26
€1.95
|
$4.82
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$6.32
€5.45
|
$7.77
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$48.29
€41.64
|
$48.40
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$9.66
€8.33
|
$12.98
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of entertainment and sports
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pay 7.8% less for clothing
|
Spain
|
North Carolina
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$82.11
€70.81
|
$49.30
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$35.86
€30.92
|
$37.76
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.78
€76.56
|
$88.37
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$106.74
€92.05
|
$111.01
|
|
Spain vs. North Carolina - Cost of clothing
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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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cost of living in Spain vs. United States.
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