City comparison
Cost of living in Budapest vs Barcelona
One person needs about €1,220 a month in Budapest and €2,105 in Barcelona, rent included — Budapest is 73% cheaper overall.
Salary you'd need to keep the same lifestyle
Enter your current net monthly pay. We scale it by the full cost basket — rent, groceries, transport, utilities, eating out and internet.
To live in Barcelona the way you live in Budapest on €3,000, you need
€5,176/ month net
73% more than today (+€2,176)
- Budapest today
- Basket €1,220 · left over €1,780 (59%)
- Barcelona at the matched salary
- Basket €2,105 · left over €3,071 (59%)
Local pay context: average tech net pay covers the basket 133% over in Barcelona (adequate) vs 189% in Budapest. Purchasing power index · How we calculate this
🇭🇺 Budapest
Thermal baths, cheap rent and a currency that makes euro income stretch.
Monthly budget: €1,220
Sources: Eurostat, Harmonised price indices (2025) · 0 community reports
🇪🇸 Barcelona
Beach-and-metro city with the deepest startup scene in southern Europe — and rents that now reflect it.
Monthly budget: €2,105
Sources: INE Spain + Eurostat, HICP & Encuesta de arrendamientos (2025) · 412 community reports
Should you move to Budapest or Barcelona?
On salary, Barcelona pays more for tech roles (€2,800 versus €2,300 a month), so the money left over after costs is €1,080 in Budapest at the top end.
Rent drives most of the gap: €750 in Budapest against €1,450 in Barcelona. Groceries, transport and utilities move far less between the two.
For remote workers, the nomad index scores Budapest at 78 and Barcelona at 81 — see the full nomad index and our data methodology.