Cost of Living: Barcelona vs Perth (2026)

Spain vs Australia — relocation comparison

Your passport:

Livability Score

Barcelona

Perth

$1,712/mo

Rent

1BR centre

$1,821/mo

$176/yr

Take-home savings

At each city's local median pay

$31k/yr

5 yr

PR path

—

Beckham Law (Régimen Especial), Startups Law — Entrepreneur & Remote-Worker Route into Beckham (Limited)

Tax breaks

Open incentive regimes for newcomers

—

Freelance setup

Autónomo

No VAT exemption
€1800/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Sole Trader with ABN

VAT-free under €46k
€600/yr accountant

WiseStripe

Sourced from Numbeo · Updated April 2026

TL;DRBarcelona and Perth are surprisingly similar on the numbers. Both countries will let you complain about the government in public — and mean it.

Barcelona and Perth are almost suspiciously well-matched. Flip a coin.

How the livability score breaks down

Barcelona

Perth

12.4/25

💰 Affordability

11.3/25

14.4/15

🔒 Violent Crime

14.2/15

4.8/10

🛡️ Perceived Safety

5.8/10

6.3/15

⚡ Internet

5.3/15

12.2/15

🗳️ Democracy

13.3/15

6.3/10

🗣️ English

10/10

9/10

☀️ Climate

8.2/10

7.2/10

📊 Stability

6.8/10

9.7/10

🚗 Road Safety

9.1/10

7.7/10

🕊️ Geopolitical Safety

5.9/10

Verdict delivered. Your move.

Heads

🇪🇸 Barcelona

Full profile, in case the coin says so.

Tails

🇦🇺 Perth

Full profile, in case it says otherwise.

Plot twist

Barcelona vs Madrid

Someone else's dilemma, equally unsolvable.

Household

Barcelona

Metric

Perth

$591/mo

🛒

Living costs (no rent)

lower is better

$611/mo

✓$8,203

🧳

Cost to land

lower is better

$11,432

83 / 100

🛡️

Settler safety

higher is better

86 / 100

✓0.6 / 100k

🔒

Homicides

lower is better

0.8 / 100k

✓3.5 / 100k

🚗

Road deaths

lower is better

4.5 / 100k

48 / 100

🚨

Safety Index

higher is better

58 / 100✓

81°F

☀️

Summer high

personal taste

84°F

41°F

❄️

Winter low

personal taste

48°F

84 Mbps

⚡

Internet speed

higher is better

—

11.8 μg/m³

🌬️

Air quality (PM2.5)

lower is better

5.3 μg/m³✓

85 / 100

🏥

Healthcare

higher is better

86 / 100

8.1 / 10

🗳️

Democracy

higher is better

8.8 / 10✓

7.4 / 9

🤝

Migrant acceptance

higher is better

8.3 / 9✓

76 / 100

🏳️‍🌈

Rainbow Index

higher is better

78 / 100

38/100

🗣️

Street English

higher is better

100/100✓

$58k

💼

GDP per capita (PPP)

higher is better

$72k✓

✓2.8% · Boringly steady

📈

Inflation

lower is better

3.2% · Boringly steady

70/100 — Mostly stable

⚡

Grid reliability

higher is better

—

90/100

🗽

Freedom House

higher is better

95/100✓

A median Software Engineer in Barcelona takes home $3,591/mo under Standard employee. In Perth: $6,333/mo under Standard employee.

$2,742/mo more in Perth

🎯 Barcelona's Beckham Law (Régimen Especial) isn't modelled above — if you qualify, take-home would be $3,813/mo instead.

Each city pays its own median — Software Engineer gross via Levels.fyi / Eurostat. Moving changes your salary too; that's the point.

$66k

💰

Gross income

$107k

−$18k

🏛️

Income tax

Standard employee

−$27k

−$4k

🛡️

Social contributions

−$4k

$43k/yr

$4k/mo

💵

Take-home pay

$76k/yr✓

$6k/mo

−$43k

🏠

Cost of living

−$45k

$176/yr

🐖

Annual savings

$31k/yr✓

Swap the local medians for your actual number

Sources: Numbeo · UNODC · Ookla · WHO · EIU · Gallup · World Bank · Freedom House · Updated April 2026

💰

Cost of Living

Barcelona

$109/mo cheaper on rent alone

🗳️

Democracy

Perth

8.8/10 EIU index

Sun

How much sky you actually get

63% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

Sky clear

avg daytime

78% clear

Win

Spr

Sum

Fall

9.2h

Shortest day

Dec

14.2h

15.2h

Longest day

Jun

10.1h

Sun clocks out early in Barcelona's winter. Plan accordingly.

Source: WeatherSpark (clear-sky share of daytime hours)

Settler Essentials

stable →

Democracy trend

stable →

improving ↑

Inflation trend

improving ↑

biotechai-deeptechgamingfintech

Industries

—

hub

Startup ecosystem

—

Moderate

🇺🇸 Your visa

—

Easy

EU visa

—

Complex

RU visa

—

Moderate

UA visa

—

✅ Partner can work immediately

Spouse works

—

Conditional (1+ yr)

pareja de hecho

Partner pathway

—

€2,400/mo

Retiree visa

—

Visa stamps:Easy <90 daysModerate 3–6 moComplex 6+ mo

Sources: EIU · Freedom House · Startup Genome · official immigration portals

Reproductive Rights

Because your body shouldn't need a visa too

On request

Abortion access

On request

14 wk

Gestational limit

24 wk

On request up to 14 weeks. 2023 reform removed mandatory waiting period.

Legal in all states/territories; gestational limits vary by state (16-24 weeks on request).

Source: Center for Reproductive Rights

LGBTQ+ Rights

Can you hold hands without doing a risk assessment first

Legal

Marriage

Legal

Joint adoption

Adoption

Joint adoption

Yes

Job protection

Yes

Hate crime law

Yes

Barcelona vs Perth — Common Questions

Is Barcelona cheaper than Perth?▾

Barcelona is cheaper. A 1-bedroom apartment in city centre costs around $1712/month there vs $1821/month in the other city (Numbeo data).

Which is safer, Barcelona or Perth?▾

Barcelona is statistically safer based on UNODC homicide data. Barcelona has a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 and Perth has 0.83 per 100,000.

Should I move to Barcelona or Perth?▾

Barcelona and Perth are almost suspiciously well-matched. Flip a coin. See the full comparison above for rent, safety, internet speed, climate, and democracy scores to decide which city fits your priorities.

Is it easier to get residency in Barcelona or Perth?▾

Barcelona: Spain Digital Nomad Visa (moderate requirements, 1 year (renewable to 5)). Perth: no specific remote work visa. See each city's profile page for full requirements.

Can I live in Barcelona or Perth without speaking the local language?▾

Perth is easier for street-level English (100/100) than Barcelona (38/100). That's the score that matters for doctors, landlords, and bureaucracy. Office English can still run higher than street English in both cities.

What's the cost of rent in Barcelona vs Perth?▾

A 1-bedroom in the centre: $1712/month in Barcelona, $1821/month in Perth (Numbeo). That's 6% cheaper rent in Barcelona.

Is Barcelona or Perth better for democracy and rule of law?▾

Perth scores 8.8/10 on the EIU Democracy Index vs 8.1/10 for Barcelona. That puts it in 'full democracy' territory — free press, independent courts, the works.