Living in Barcelona

Barcelona is a city in Cataluña, Spain, home to 1,636,732 people. Of the 29 household profiles on Nestlyzer, its strongest are digital natives (top 1%, #2 of 877), single professionals (top 1%, #2 of 828), young professionals (top 1%, #2 of 794).

Residents1,636,732

Density16,648 per km²

Area98.3 km²

Hub airport14 km (Josep Tarradellas Barcelona-El Prat)

Nearest city of 100k+Itself

Within 30 km4,632,500 people

Sea coast5 km

Climate typeMediterranean, hot summer (Csa)

Terrain around itabout 50 m, height range 200 m

Nearest major riverCardoner, 8.6 km

Main railway line2.0 km

Distance to Madrid504 km

Within 10 km2,564,564 people

Greater areaGreater Barcelona, the core

Winter daylight9 h 11 min, sunset 17:25

See Barcelona on the map

Open in Nestlyzer

Good to know about Barcelona

The Balearic Sea is 5 km away.
On the shortest day the sun is up for 9 h 11 min and sets around 17:25; in late June it sets around 21:28.

Best places in Greater Barcelona

How Barcelona ranks

Scores run 0 to 100 against every municipality in Spain. Ranks count only the places that pass each profile's minimums, so the totals differ by profile. Local data: official statistics on demographics, education and family, health and elderly, jobs and economy, mobility and connectivity and safety and community (local or regional figures, sources on every place page) plus population and geography.

Profile	Score	In Spain	In Cataluña
Young family	50	#681 of 2,778	#66 of 446	Map
Low-income household	38	#817 of 1,796	#44 of 287	Map
Low-income family	42	#672 of 1,689	#67 of 282	Map
Single parent	49	#376 of 1,254	#53 of 208	Map
Pensioner couple	68	#161 of 2,098	#21 of 347	Map
Single pensioner	59	#537 of 2,098	#46 of 347	Map
Early retiree	63	#281 of 1,989	#19 of 310	Map
Single professional	79	#2 of 828	#1 of 181	Map
Young professional	83	#2 of 794	#1 of 176	Map
DINKS	85	#2 of 518	#1 of 117	Map
Remote worker	62	#509 of 1,313	#23 of 212	Map
Commuter	77	#79 of 1,136	#24 of 260	Map
Car-free household	92	#2 of 675	#1 of 155	Map
Student	87	#2 of 393	#1 of 82	Map
First-home buyer	49	#390 of 1,689	#22 of 282	Map
Budget-constrained mover	33	#1,393 of 2,260	#69 of 354	Map
Urban lifestyle seeker	86	#2 of 715	#1 of 164	Map
Expat professional	80	#33 of 1,313	#3 of 212	Map
Healthcare-first mover	57	#743 of 2,098	#151 of 347	Map
Nature-focused household	16	#3,148 of 3,442	#415 of 514	Map
Cross-border commuter		not ranked: must-have: a border within 45 km where pay is higher on the other side	–	Map
Outdoor and mountain lover	40	#1,253 of 3,137	#169 of 463	Map
Rural value seeker	4	#3,089 of 3,442	#348 of 514	Map
High-net-worth mover	63	#573 of 3,137	#157 of 463	Map
Lottery winner	71	#341 of 8,132	#143 of 947	Map
Climate-resilient relocation	59	#1,135 of 2,260	#116 of 354	Map
Coastal living	69	#165 of 1,174	#20 of 254	Map
Business owner	80	#104 of 2,260	#38 of 354	Map
Digital native	82	#2 of 877	#1 of 188	Map

Strengths and trade-offs

Lifestyle and amenities100
City scale (people within 10 km: big-city life, transit, scenes)100
Services nearby (people within 10 km: shops, doctors, cafes, transport)100
Universities in town (universities and universities of applied sciences within 10 km)100
University-town character (universities relative to the people nearby)100
Freight access (motorway, rail, port)97
Mobility and connectivity97
Sea or lake shore96
Market reach (residents within 100 km, across borders)93
Climate exposure (estimate: coastal and river flooding, heat; 100 = low)90
Jobs and economy89
Climate (mild and sunny: climate class and winter daylight)88
Port access (major sea or inland port)87
Education and family84
Home market (residents of the same country within 150 km)80
Health and elderly73
Financial centre (banking and capital markets) within commuting distance65
Flat land (terrain relief)63
Foundation59
Mountains and water (terrain relief, lakes and the sea nearby)58
Demographics50
Safety and community29
One-day truck radius (residents within 300 km, across borders)27
Affordability21
Green space0
Chemical park nearby (sites with pipeline links)0
National border nearby (straight line)0
Commodity-trading or gold hub within commuting distance0
Crypto hub within commuting distance0
Wealth-management centre within commuting distance0

Nearby

Data: Eurostat GISCO LAU 2024; locations EDJNet LAU centres; airports OurAirports; coastline Natural Earth. Updated 2026-10-31. Rankings are decision aids, not advice.