Spain vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Spain United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1383
$2433
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3131
$5667
🏠 One person rent
$779
$1552
🏘️ Family rent
$1253
$2714
🍽️ Food expenses
$395
$618
🚐 Transport expenses
$87.4
$104
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$1850
$4694
💸 GDP per capita
$29675
$76330
😃 Human freedom index
8.03
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
83.2
76.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
60
69
🌐 English speaking %
22%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
90
100
😀 Quality of life
79
86
🏙️ Population
47.4M
331M

The average cost of living in Spain ($1383) is 43% less expensive than in the United States ($2433). Spain ranked 38th vs 7th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.3 months in Spain compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 31st and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in Spain vs United States infographic

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Prices in Spain vs the United States

We calculate prices for Spain and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 153 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

Spain United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$13.1
$18.4
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$46.7
$73.1
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.34
$10.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.32
$6.08
 Cappuccino
$2.22
$5.09
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.12
$2.51
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$810
$1611
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$627
$1301
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1380
$2861
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1026
$2352
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$82.9
$122
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$127
$188
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$33.5
$67
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.23%
6.5%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3630
$4763
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$2346
$3852
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.69
$2.38
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$35.4
$71.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$15
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.74
$0.99
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.12
$1.09
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.32
$3.44
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.34
$4.32
🥚 Eggs, x12
$2.8
$3.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.7
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$7.76
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$14.2
$16.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.15
$5.02
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.86
$1.78
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.8
$4.43
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.42
$4.66
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.49
$2.78
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.65
$2.87
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.49
$1.41
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.08
$2.51
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.13
$2.12
🚬 Cigarette pack
$5.58
$10.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.06
$9.27
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.27
$5.79
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$1.86
$4.29
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.08
$2.09
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$42.4
$50
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$8.74
$13.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$67.5
$116
💇 Haircut, simple
$14.8
$20.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$75.8
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$80.2
$89.3
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$433
$1423
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$8255
$19463

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in Spain vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In Spain

City Cost of living Population
Madrid
$1726
3.28M
Barcelona
$1773
1.64M
Valencia
$1437
792K
Tenerife
$1659
932K
Malaga
$1435
579K
Seville
$1289
682K
Zaragoza
$1327
673K
Murcia
$1219
673K
Bilbao
$1501
344K
Palma de Mallorca
$1710
416K
Alicante
$1331
339K
Pamplona
$1340
203K
Valladolid
$1207
296K
Gijon
$1201
268K
Terrassa
$1409
224K
Las Palmas
$1191
379K
San Sebastian
$1530
188K
Vitoria-Gasteiz
$1382
254K
L'Hospitalet de Llobregat
$1571
265K
Cordoba
$1056
320K
Sabadell
$1443
216K
Vigo
$1186
292K
Badalona
$1995
224K
Granada
$1174
229K
A Coruna
$1149
245K
Oviedo
$1114
186K
Jerez de la Frontera
$905
213K
Cartagena
$907
217K
Elche
$1158
236K
Santander
$1144
172K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4044
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3165
3.9M
Chicago
$2613
2.75M
Houston
$2221
2.3M
San Diego
$3427
1.39M
Phoenix
$2390
1.61M
Dallas
$2497
1.3M
San Jose
$3502
1.01M
Philadelphia
$2422
1.6M
San Francisco
$3729
874K
San Antonio
$2219
1.43M
Austin
$2590
962K
Seattle
$2974
737K
Washington
$3079
690K
Indianapolis
$2129
888K
Charlotte
$2710
875K
Hempstead
$2627
793K
Fort Worth
$2173
919K
Boston
$3345
676K
Jacksonville
$2246
950K
Denver
$2771
716K
Columbus
$2202
906K
Nashville
$2623
689K
Portland
$2579
653K
Louisville
$1918
633K
Atlanta
$2648
499K
Baltimore
$2197
586K
Detroit
$1979
639K
Las Vegas
$2408
642K
El Paso
$1613
679K