Spain vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

Spain United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$1642
$2515
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$3717
$5738
🏠 One person rent
$935
$1593
🏘️ Family rent
$1515
$2641
🍽️ Food expenses
$472
$654
🚐 Transport expenses
$96
$101
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$2123
$4433
💸 GDP per capita
$35327
$84534
😃 Human freedom index
8.37
8.71
❤️ Life expectancy
83.9
78.4
👮 Corruption perceptions index
55
64
🌐 English speaking %
22%
95.3%
🎓 Higher education
90
100
😀 Quality of life
83
88
🏙️ Population
48.8M
340M

The average cost of living in Spain ($1642) is 35% less expensive than in the United States ($2515). Spain ranked 34th vs 10th 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 32nd and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

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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
$16.3
$19.7
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$58.3
$78.4
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$11.6
$11.6
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$3.95
$6.36
 Cappuccino
$2.71
$5.38
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.62
$2.69
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$985
$1682
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$762
$1341
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1689
$3111
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1260
$2433
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$96.1
$129
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$148
$198
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$33.3
$68.4
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
3.25%
6.36%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$4915
$4955
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$3026
$3526
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$1.94
$2.34
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$35.8
$70.6
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$17.1
$17.9
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.78
$0.91
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.25
$1.11
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.51
$3.61
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.62
$4.52
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.5
$4.83
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$15.9
$13.5
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9
$12.3
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$17.3
$17.2
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.67
$5.09
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.22
$1.86
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.21
$4.5
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.75
$4.76
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.94
$2.87
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.11
$2.94
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.52
$1.52
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.4
$2.75
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$7.38
$14.8
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$1.35
$2.43
🚬 Cigarette pack
$6.57
$11
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$9.66
$10.5
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$3.57
$6.64
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.1
$4.55
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.4
$2.22
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$49.4
$52
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$10.2
$14.5
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$73.4
$123
💇 Haircut, simple
$16.2
$22.1
👖 Brand Jeans
$89.9
$55.1
👟 Brand Sneakers
$96.5
$93.8
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$560
$1517
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$10852
$21058

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
$2089
3.51M
Barcelona
$2116
1.73M
Valencia
$1797
841K
Tenerife
$1774
955K
Zaragoza
$1471
693K
Seville
$1403
689K
Malaga
$1727
599K
Palma de Mallorca
$2000
435K
Bilbao
$1746
351K
Alicante
$1516
366K
Valladolid
$1408
303K
Las Palmas
$1540
382K
Vigo
$1427
294K
Cordoba
$1331
323K
Vitoria-Gasteiz
$1734
261K
Terrassa
$1473
233K
L'Hospitalet de Llobregat
$1812
290K
Gijon
$1511
270K
Sabadell
$1685
225K
A Coruna
$1426
252K
Badalona
$2155
232K
San Sebastian
$1797
190K
Pamplona
$1655
209K
Granada
$1360
234K
Elche
$1314
246K
Cartagena
$1212
221K
Santa Cruz de Tenerife
$1654
212K
Oviedo
$1327
187K
Jerez de la Frontera
$1008
214K
Marbella
$1935
160K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4207
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3378
3.9M
Chicago
$2822
2.75M
Houston
$2265
2.3M
San Diego
$3507
1.39M
Philadelphia
$2597
1.6M
Phoenix
$2357
1.61M
San Francisco
$4040
874K
Dallas
$2461
1.3M
San Antonio
$2063
1.43M
San Jose
$3962
1.01M
Seattle
$3154
737K
Austin
$2444
962K
Boston
$3638
676K
Washington
$3306
690K
Hempstead
$2697
793K
Fort Worth
$2219
919K
Charlotte
$2403
875K
Indianapolis
$2374
888K
Jacksonville
$2224
950K
Columbus
$2127
906K
Denver
$2791
716K
Portland
$2738
653K
Nashville
$2477
689K
Atlanta
$2617
499K
Oklahoma City
$1922
681K
Las Vegas
$2407
642K
Baltimore
$2234
586K
Sacramento
$2846
525K
Oakland
$3212
441K