IT is cheaper to rent a three bedroom apartment in Barcelona and commute to London every day than to live in the big smoke, a study found.
Sam Cookney, a businessman in London and author of the blog Best Burger in North West London, recently posted about the extreme disparity between the cost of living in the two cities.
The average price for one-bed flat in West Hampstead is ยฃ1505 (โฌ1767). Add to that council tax (another โฌ88) and the monthly travel card to get around the city (โฌ137), and the total cost is โฌ1979 per month without even thinking about eating.
For Barcelona, in a similar โup marketโ residential district, a three bedroom apartment should cost in average โฌ680 a month, with no council tax involved.
Now to look at the transport. Booked in advance, daily round trips from Barcelona to Stansted cost in average โฌ34, plus an extra โฌ57 a day in other commuting costs.
Based on Cookneyยดs four day working week, he calculates monthly travel expediture to be โฌ912.
Add this to rent, and the final cost of living in Barcelona and working in London is โฌ1,592, exactly โฌ387 cheaper than actually living in London.
Click here to read more News from The Olive Press.





This is theoretically possible, but who wants in practice to spend 14 hours per day travelling? Indeed be it through Stansted, Gatwick or Luton, a center to center trip between Barcelona and London takes about 7 hours!
Bad math. If daily RT air +travel costs are 91 pounds (34 + 57) Then your montly costs from Barca to London is 1456 pounds (91 x 16 work day) not 912 pounds. Add 912 pounds + 680 pounds in rent is 2146 pounds! London is still at 1979 pounds ; )