Spain vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Spain United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1583
$2516
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3587
$5730
🏠 One person rent
$900
$1598
🏘️ Family rent
$1458
$2655
🍽️ Food expenses
$454
$651
🚐 Transport expenses
$94.9
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2016
$4539
💸 GDP per capita
$35297
$85810
😃 Human freedom index
8.34
8.64
❤️ Life expectancy
83.9
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
56
65
🌐 English speaking %
22%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
90
100
😀 Quality of life
81
87
🏙️ Population
48.8M
340M

The average cost of living in Spain ($1583) is 37% less expensive than in the United States ($2516). Spain ranked 35th vs 9th 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 1.8 months in the United States. Ranked 29th and 20th 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
$15.7
$19.5
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$55.1
$76.5
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.1
$11.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.85
$6.31
 Cappuccino
$2.66
$5.34
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.53
$2.65
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$949
$1659
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$732
$1336
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1639
$3048
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1218
$2458
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$91.5
$125
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$141
$193
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$32.3
$67.5
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.39%
6.41%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4581
$4491
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3115
$3675
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.86
$2.35
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$35.7
$69.5
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$17.1
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.76
$0.92
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.2
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.5
$3.57
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.54
$4.43
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.21
$4.7
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15
$13.4
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.63
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$16.1
$16.8
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.51
$5.12
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.13
$1.85
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.03
$4.48
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.67
$4.77
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.85
$2.83
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.02
$2.9
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.52
$1.48
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.35
$2.74
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$6.9
$14.5
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.3
$2.41
🚬 Cigarette pack
$6.36
$10.7
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.28
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.49
$6.66
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.06
$4.53
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.33
$2.2
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$48.5
$52.3
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$9.89
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$71.8
$124
💇 Haircut, simple
$15.6
$21.6
👖 Brand Jeans
$86.9
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$93.6
$92.4
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$510
$1428
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$9657
$20562

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
$2015
3.42M
Barcelona
$2087
1.7M
Valencia
$1703
826K
Tenerife
$1705
955K
Seville
$1393
687K
Zaragoza
$1457
687K
Murcia
$1305
673K
Malaga
$1617
592K
Palma de Mallorca
$1930
432K
Bilbao
$1660
348K
Alicante
$1461
359K
Valladolid
$1367
301K
Las Palmas
$1484
380K
Cordoba
$1233
323K
Vigo
$1302
294K
Vitoria-Gasteiz
$1685
258K
Terrassa
$1590
229K
Gijon
$1389
269K
L'Hospitalet de Llobregat
$1746
280K
San Sebastian
$1673
189K
Sabadell
$1637
222K
Badalona
$2170
227K
Granada
$1334
233K
A Coruna
$1352
249K
Oviedo
$1300
187K
Pamplona
$1585
208K
Elche
$1277
243K
Cartagena
$1206
220K
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
$1567
211K
Burgos
$1343
177K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4203
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3361
3.9M
Chicago
$2799
2.75M
Houston
$2240
2.3M
San Diego
$3469
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2584
1.6M
Phoenix
$2340
1.61M
Dallas
$2447
1.3M
San Francisco
$4110
874K
San Jose
$3952
1.01M
San Antonio
$2023
1.43M
Seattle
$3162
737K
Austin
$2416
962K
Washington
$3328
690K
Boston
$3652
676K
Indianapolis
$2382
888K
Hempstead
$2655
793K
Fort Worth
$2217
919K
Jacksonville
$2222
950K
Charlotte
$2423
875K
Columbus
$2181
906K
Denver
$2775
716K
Portland
$2684
653K
Nashville
$2524
689K
Las Vegas
$2414
642K
Oklahoma City
$1872
681K
Atlanta
$2641
499K
Oakland
$3254
441K
Baltimore
$2323
586K
Sacramento
$2825
525K