Greetings from Barcelona, where I’m posted up and working virtually. I first came to Barcelona when was I just 18. I stayed with a host family, made lifelong friends, and began my language learning journey.

I’ve now come here six times, each time for at least a month, and four times while I’ve worked a virtual, U.S. based job. I speak both Spanish and Catalan, I love tortilla de patatas and fuet. Although I’m neither Spanish nor Catalan, Barcelona is a second home to me.

I’ve written about how pivotal these life experiences have been, like in my journey to learn Spanish and later to learn Catalan. My life would look very different if it weren’t for a very special city called Barcelona.

If you’re a digital nomad and you’re drawn to Barcelona’s perfect weather, the tapas, or the siesta culture, I’d be happy to share all the tips I have for you.

Consider this the ultimate guide on digital nomading in Barcelona from someone who’s not only done it, but who has a deep connection and respect for its people and culture.

This is a guide not only about coworking spaces and beaches, but also about how I think you can connect to the soul of Barcelona. Sometimes, she is a tough nut to crack.

Me and my two best friends from Barcelona during my 5th stint in the city.

Before You Live As a Digital Nomad In Barcelona, Understand This

In Barcelona, one of the most prominent words, which we say in both Spanish and Catalan, is “guiri.” You can’t go to Barcelona without knowing what a guiri is.

The exact definition of a guiri is debated among locals, but the soul of it is as a synonym for tourists. Of the years, as tourism has caused more problems with locals and in some respects overwhelmed the city, the word has been used to refer to tourists in a negative way.

This is from a local festival and is both hilarious and sums up how many people feel about tourists.

If you’re visiting Barcelona as a nomad, you’re a guiri.

As a Guiri, You Are a Guest: 4 Keys to Being a Good Guest in Barcelona

Right now guiris are unpopular in Barcelona. Some of this is just because of the sheer numbers, and the city’s struggle to respond to a huge influx of people.

In fact, in Barcelona along with places like the Canary Islands locals have led protests against unsustainable tourism and its negative impacts. They have called for more sustainable manageable tourism.

For example, this says “For the village and for life, fire to tourism and to capitalism.”

Much of this is outside of your control, but there are still actions you can take to contribute less to unsustainable tourism. Regardless, do you best to be a good guiri.

Some examples of bad guiris are obvious. In the gothic quarter there’s been a huge problem with those returning from Barcelona’s clubs, drunk on the streets, being very loud and leaving trash. Don’t do this.

When you’re visiting a country, you should treat it like you would a friend’s home if they invited you over for dinner.

Just as you’d take off your shoes and say please and thank you, do the proverbial same thing here.

This means you should respect the locals and their culture, and abide by the rules of etiquette in their home, NOT the other way around.

If Barcelona sounds like beach and party with work mixed in, remember that you’re entering communities of people who call these streets home and who care for it like home too.

Here are some tips to adapt to the culture and be a good guiri.

I Highly Recommend Learning Basic Catalan

With that, it means embracing parts of the culture in place. If you want to show locals you respect the existing culture in Barcelona, learn some Catalan.

I’ve spent years learning this language, so I’m not saying you need to be pro, but you can learn the greetings in a few minutes. Use them as your default.

Bon día = good morning

Adeu = bye

Merci = thanks

Moltes gràcies = thank you

This is also how you can make friends with locals. I’ve made positive impressions on countless locals in Barcelona by doing my best to speak in Catalan, even before I could speak it well.

After doing your best in Catalan, it’s okay to switch to your best Spanish. If you need some tips here, check out my article on how to learn Spanish as an adult.

I promise you, no matter how little you know or how bad your pronounce, the overwhelming majority of Catalans will sincerely appreciate your best efforts to use even two words in Catalan.

Be Aware of Certain Cultural Aspects

Next, if you’re going to stay in Barcelona for a minute, you’ve got to know a few things. Most of this applies to anywhere in Spain.

In Barcelona, you greet women with a kiss on each cheek, first the right cheek, then the left check. You don’t actually put your lips on the check, you just tap your cheek next to theirs and make a kissing sound. This shows you know the local customs right away.
Late lunch, late dinner, small breakfast. The sun sets late in Barcelona, and thanks to siesta culture (migdiada in Catalan), people tend to eat dinner late and go to bed kind of late. It’s common to invite people to lunches as well, which are often three-course meals for a fixed price called “menú.” It’s one of humanity’s greatest inventions, and they’ll often be for between €12-16, which is so freaking reasonable. I got a menú at least three days a week. These menús are cheaper on weekdays, so that’s also a pro tip.
Stores close and reopen in the afternoon. Because people go have their big lunch and maybe a migdiada, stores close and reopen. The city sleeps from 2-5pm. Plan any shopping around this.
Festivals and holidays are big cultural events Being in Barcelona or a nearby town for their festivals is such a joy. It’s a beautiful tradition to observe, and it’s a great way to connect with their communities and culture. Of course, it depends on the time of year you’re here, but in the warmer months, look out for this is nearly every neighborhood.

Barcelona’s IN a Drought, so converse water

One of the big complaints among locals about the guiri is that, while Barcelona has given locals a limit to how much water they use in a day, most tourists are blissfully unaware of this. They use way more water than the average person, and it’s making their serious drought even worse. So when you go to Barcelona, be aware of this and keep your water use to a reasonable level.

I Recommend coming in the “off” season

Last, I think the off-season is the best time to come to Barcelona. January is actually my favorite month in Barcelona, because there are way fewer tourists. In this time of year, it will be easier to meet locals, learn about the culture, and frankly it’s just more pleasant.

From the locals’ perspective, they’re also more open to interacting with and supporting foreigners during times of the year when they’re not overwhelming the city.

If you still want beach, then September is a great month to go. It’s still very touristy, but not overwhelming like it is in June-August. April you can get a few beach days too outside of Barcelona.

In total, all of this only requires small actions and an open mind, but if you’re board with it and excited by it, then I think you could have a great time as digital nomad in Barcelona.

While not specific to Barcelona, for more on these ideas, check out my article on ethical digital nomading.

My 5 Rules for Ethical Digital Nomading After 2 Years On The Road — From Gentrification to Environmental Protection

Why Come to Barcelona As a Nomad? It Has a Lot Going For It

It’s one of my favorite cities in the world for so many reasons. Here are few that appeal specifically to digital nomads.

Pretty Much Perfect Weather

You just can’t beat the Mediterranean. It gets hot in the summers, sure, but you have beach and mountains nearby to cool off. In the winters, you have access to skiing, while in Barcelona itself it’s not that cold, which is the best of both.

The Food

While Barcelona may not have the best food in Spain, the entire country eats well. As a major international city, Barcelona offers fantastic Spanish and Catalan cuisine as well as great food from cultures around the world.

Barcelona is actually my favorite place to eat sushi, because it’s just as good as fancy places in New York for like… a third of the price.

Combination of Slow and Fast Paced

I mentioned some of the cultural elements like closing stores and big lunches, that give Barcelona a “slow pace” feel. Yet, at the same time, it’s a major international city, so places are open late and you can find whatever you need like you would in city like New York or Paris. (Except on Sundays, this place shuts down on Sundays.)

Great Infrastructure For Virtual Workers

I’ve worked from countries like El Salvador and Colombia where I had to be hyper aware of the quality of internet. That’s not an issue in a city like Barcelona. You’ll have fast wifi everywhere.

There are also plenty of options options like coffee shops and coworking spaces to choose from. (I’ve done both, so keep reading to see options.)

Reasonable Prices, But If You Want a Low Cost of Living, Look Elsewhere

Barcelona is expensive. And due to a host of factors including more nomads, more tourists, more immigrants, and limited new housing to accommodate all of this. So apartments are expensive by any global standard. And it’s rising.

Food, however, both at grocery stores and eating out, is very reasonable.

If you want a lower cost of living, I recommend looking at other cities in Spain outside of Barcelona and Madrid. The rest of the country is quite affordable and there are so many absolutely precious and gorgeous cities in Spain. If I didn’t have friends here, I personally would spend way more time posted up at a smaller city like Bilbao, Huesca, Santander, Málaga, or many others.

Barcelona is Gothic Magic

People think of Barcelona as a beach and party town, but the true soul of Barcelona is deeply political, working class, creative, and full of soul. I recommend reading some Carlos Ruiz Zafón before you get here to get in the mindset.

Me reading Zafón overlooking the whole city. Pure magic.

The Greater Area Has Absolutely Everything

You’re just a few hours from world-class skiing in Andorra, an hour to the Costa Brava and some of the world’s prettiest beaches, you have hiking on the commuter train lines. There’s really everything you could want from a nature and city perspective nearby.

The Mediterranean just hit the ecological jackpot.

Andorra in the summer, just three hours from Barcelona.

You Can Get CHeap Flights (Sometimes)

If you avoid the touristy months, you can get deals on flights. I often fly LEVEL airlines, and in this article, I wrote about how I get a $106 flight from the US.

Time Zone: Potentially Good or Bad

During my last few visits to Barcelona I have worked virtually for a company in California. This is a 9-hour time difference. Now, that may sound terrible, but I actually liked it a lot.

The big time difference meant I had the entire workday uninterrupted. I was more productive and less stressed than I am in the Americas. The downside is I had to take calls in the evening, often at 9pm a few days a week and occasionally as late as 11pm, which sucked. However, since it was only a few days a week, I didn’t mind it.

The time zone difference really depends on your situation, and it’s why so many North American workers head to South America for their digital nomad experience. (If you’d prefer this, you can read my guide on digital nomading in Medellín, where I’ve gone twice.

Barcelona’s Challenges for Digital Nomads (And How to Overcome Them)

The time zone may not be the only challenge with digital nomading in Barcelona. Here are some of the challenges and downsides.

Finding Short-Term Rentals is Tough

The city has limited the number of short-term rents to take measures against the housing crisis. There are many available, and those that are, have inflated prices even by Barcelona’s standards.

I’m really fortunate that I have friends and family and connections here to make it easy for me, but you may not have the same luck.

The good news is if you stay for over a month, there is more available. That’s because the city classifies rentals longer than a month differently. My recommendation is stay at least a month, unless you’re willing to shell out a lot on housing.

Many Cities in Spain Offer All The Beauty and Culture at a lower price

As an American, where we’re the champions of murdering effective urban life with highways and sprawl, it wasn’t easy to wrap my head around the existence of small to medium cities where you still had everything in walking distance.

Yet that’s exactly the case in much of Europe, including Spain.

If you want great food, great weather, great transit and mobility, an exciting culture, and more affordable prices, Spain has tons of options. I mentioned a few out of dozens above.

Barcelona is a Ghost Town on Sundays

Most places are closed. Frankly, I love the built-in break it provides. Most Sundays I leave the city and go to the beach or the mountains. If you’re looking for somewhere to buckle up and grind seven days a week, the options are limited.

That said, there are some 24/7 coworking spaces that can help you overcome this.

The Summers Here Are Kind of Gross

The best part about Barcelona in the summer is leaving it on the weekends. The city itself gets super hot, for one, and the best beaches are outside the city.

Summer is also peak guiri season, and going to places like Plaça Catalunya, even if just to go to the metro, becomes overwhelming and annoying. The only upside to the summer in Barcelona is there are lots of epic festivals in August.

Okay, now we’ve covered the cultural aspects and the pros and cons, let’s get into some specifics on how to make the best of your digital nomad experience in Barcelona (while, of course, being a good guiri.)

FInding Your Ideal Coworking Space in Barcelona

I’ve come to prefer coworking spots over coffee shops, unless the coffee shop is specifically for workers, and therefore basically a coworking space.

There are dozens or even hundreds of coworking spaces in Barcelona.

This year when I was posted up in Barcelona I toured five different coworking spaces.

Many of them are at or near capacity, because Barcelona really is an ideal location and very popular for nomads. I ended up choosing OneCoWork, and I was very happy with it, but it wasn’t perfect (I killed two cockroaches in one warm April afternoon.)

A few of the bigger ones I felt like had a not very welcoming and corporate culture. Here are few that I looked at and some of my thoughts. With that said, because there are so many, I recommend looking around where you’re staying and touring a few.

OneCoWork: Where I Got a Membership In 2024

Its prices were pretty reasonable, it felt smaller and intimate yet still had good hours, and it’s a great workspace.

It was cozy and people were nice, what more do you want?

It was open from 8am-10pm Monday-Friday. A few Saturdays I wish it had been open, and they do have some locations that are 24/7. I went to the one next to Plaça Catalunya, which wasn’t. For month to month, after all the taxes it was around €220 per month. This is a good price for a really boujie (“pijo” in Castilian Spanish) coworking space with all kinds of nice shit.

OneCoWork Plaça Catalunya Terraza Rooftop — The OneCoWork rooftop is also clutch

I love coming here to the rooftop in the afternoons for calls and some natural sunlight. I even took a nap up here once.

Loom

I toured this place and it looked incredible, but it was more than double the price, so it just made no sense for me. If you’re a rich bitch, go for it.

Attico

I toured Attico and didn’t really like it because it felt impersonal and corporate, but I’ll admit it does have a few advantages.

First, they’re 24/7, seven days a week. That’s nice, I’ll admit.

Second, they have many locations, and membership gives you access to all of them. The one I toured near l’Arc was absolutely massive with tons of floors.

Then, I toured a few smaller, local ones, but a lot of them closed at 7 or 8pm, which just wasn’t going to work with my call schedule.

Itnig

I like this space in Poblenou because they have day pass options (around 15 euros) if I need a phone booth, but it’s also an Internet cafe.) It provides the best of both. I’ve never had issues with it and I’ve found it to be a reliable spot.

Reliable Coffee Shop Chains for Working in Barcelona

Barcelona is a huge city so this list isn’t exhaustive. There are lots of coffee shops that are not for working, and many more where you can work but it’s not comfortable because it’s loud, it’s bad for calls, or they keep asking you to buy more.

All of which is totally fair, yet as a virtual worker it means the options aren’t great.

I’ve noticed it has gotten much harder to find comfortable coffee shops to work at in Barcelona

And this is totally valid. Lots of digital workers post up a table for hours and only buy one coffee, which makes no sense for the business.

This comes back to the unsustainable tourism and influx of virtual workers looking for coffee shops and the problems it brings for businesses.

I didn’t realize how good I had it in 2019 when those with laptops in coffee shops weren’t viewed so negatively. Since, COVID and the rise of virtual work, it has changed.

My best advice here is find a smaller, non-chain and build a relationship with those who work there and appreciate your business.

I did this at a coffee shop in l’eixample in 2022, and the owner gives me a hug whenever I go back in, although I work there less now. It was great for morning writing and work sessions, but not good for calls.

Find your local coffee shop that loves you and you love, and your work problems will mostly be solved. However, in a pinch there are a few chains you can rely on.

There are three big coffee chains in Barcelona where you can safely post up and work with good wifi.

But they have downsides.

Sandwichez

Everybody in Barcelona knows that Sandwichez is not a place to get a good sandwich or coffee and hang out with friends. It’s for studying and working. At any and all Sandwichez, you’ll see notebooks and laptops out. It’s filled with locals, tourists, and nomads alike.

Sandwichez is basically a coworking space

Inside a Sandwichez basement, where everybody comes to do homework.

And it used to be an excellent one, until in 2021-2022 I noticed they started limiting the wifi. Now, with each order you get a code for 90 minutes of wifi. So it’s fine for an hour and a half of work, or offline work, but if you need wifi, you have to keep buying. Obviously they’ve done this because people buy one coffee and hang out there all day, and it’s probably a good thing.

Personally, it pushed me to the coworking spaces, which were much more comfortable with better spaces to do calls and relax.

There’s one location I know of where you can still use wifi without a code that expires, but I’m not sharing it because I want them to keep it that way. It’s hidden, and you won’t find it unless you know Barcelona well, so don’t even try. Send me an email if you want it.

365 Obrador

This is kind of like a Starbucks type of vibe. The sandwiches are actually pretty good, and they have free wifi, and they won’t kick you out or ask you to buy more.

However it’s not set up for work. People go there to grab a quick coffee or sandwich. If you abuse this, then they’ll probably institute boundaries, like other places have. With that said, it’s fine in a pinch.

Vivari

Vivari is the exact same vibe as 365, so I don’t need to repeat it.

Best Neighborhoods for Digital Nomads in Barcelona

There are great spots in just about the entire city. I’m not going through block by block on where you should live and through all of its neighborhoods.

For digital nomads specifically two of the main and most central areas stand out to me.

If it’s your first time to Barcelona, they’re excellent central neighborhoods. They also have the largest concentration of coworking spaces, great access to transit, and stuff for young people to do and places to hang out.

L’Eixample

L’Eixample, which translates to “the widening” in Catalan, is a large central neighborhood with the classic octagon grid that Barcelona is famous for. It’s where you’ll see some of Gaudí’s best works too.

L’Eixample splits into several sub-neighborhoods. This is a good map of it.

Within it, you have a nice range from Sant Antoni all the way to Sagrada Familia, but the core character of it all is similar, and all of it a classic Barcelona experience. Some benefits of staying in L’Eixample

A central location, making it easy to explore different parts of the city
The highest concentration of coworking spaces. They’re everywhere.
Lots of Airbnbs and short-term housing.
Excellent public transportation connections.
Locals will be jealous. It’s like living in New York’s Greenwich Village or Los Angeles’ Santa Monica.

In L’Eixample, you’ll find a nice mix of residential and commercial spots, all the restaurants you could want, and lots to do on almost every block.

So it’s a good place to look.

The main downside is that it’ll be on the pricier side, but you’ll have a greater range of housing options.

Poblenou

You probably won’t see this neighborhood in many other Barcelona travel guides. I think of it Bushwick or Williamsburg in Brooklyn.

There are rock climbing gyms and small breweries and young people with dyed hair and it has an “industrial” feel at times and a residential feel at others.

A small brewery with the same aesthetic as gentrified Brooklyn

Poblenou barcelona — A small brewery with the same aesthetic as gentrified Brooklyn

If you’ve been to gentrified Brooklyn, it’s just like that. It’s a great neighborhood to meet other young professionals.

It’s central and connected to everything but less expensive than l’eixample.

There are lots of business, and therefore lots of coworking spaces too.

Itnig is a reliable co-working space/internet cafe in Poblenou

ou’ll have no shortage finding everything you need here while still being near the center with easy access everywhere.

Where to Find Short-Term Housing

As mentioned, this is one of the biggest downsides of Barcelona for nomads. There’s a limit on the amount of Airbnb’s available. I’ve never stayed in an Airbnb here.

In my experience, you can negotiate short-term leases. Remember, it gets much easier if you stay more than 30 days due to local laws that classify housing as “tourist housing” or not.

Idealista is the main website where you can see apartments available, so look for furnished apartments and go from there.

Best Gyms for Digital Nomads

There are tons of gyms in Barcelona too. I’ve gone to many and have toured many others. For nomads, you’ll want one without a big commitment or a sign-up fee, both of which are common. That knocks out a lot of them.

Barcelona has so many gyms, that I recommend you look around the area where you find housing.

With that said, here are few I’ve gone to.

VivaGym

This is where I went this time. It’s your classic commercial gym. It’ll have everything you’re looking for and I paid €30 per month.

I also like that it was open on weekends, which is rare for Barcelona. You can also for a few bucks more get the pass that lets you go to all the locations.

The only downside to Viva is because it’s affordable and good it’s really busy at peak hours. For Barcelona that’s around 6pm. I usually went a few hours earlier, and it was fine.

Dir

Another typical commercial gym with lots of locations. I had a membership there a few years ago. It’s a bit pricier, but aside from that it’s pretty much the same as Viva.

In L’Eixample, There Are Lots of Upscale Gyms

Crossfit is actually huge in Barcelona. There are tons of Crossfit gyms if you’re looking for classes. (I like The Hall near Passeig Sant Joan and I do drop in classes sometimes because my friend goes there.) I toured Reboot Bruc, and it also is really nice and has both open gym and Crossfit classes. Holmes Place I toured and it didn’t really impress me. It felt like a wannabe Equinox.

The point is, there are tons of gyms.

What to Eat In Barcelona

For groceries, Mercadona will have the best prices and the most extensive selection. You can get lots of typical Spanish food in Mercadona too, like jamón serrano and gazpacho and your Spanish basics.

When eating out I recommend getting menús on weekdays.

I already mentioned this, but a “menú” is where you get a first course, second course, drink, and dessert all included at a fixed price. It usually starts a 1pm, so you’ll have to have a later lunch. It’s as incredible as it sounds. Here’s a picture of the most Catalan menu you can get: pa amb tomàquet, butifarra amb mongetes, and crema catalana. The bread with tomate was actually an appetizer, so there was another first course. This cost 16€.

You can get menús for all types of restaurants too. It’s not limited to typical Spanish and Catalan food.

Here’s a photo of my favorite sushi place’s menu. It was right next to my coworking space.

My routine was to get a menú for lunch and then just cook my own food from Mercadona, or get some of their pre-made meals.

Head to the local markets

Barcelona is famous for its extensive, local food markets that have been around for centuries.

Boquería is legendary, and it’s an absolute treat to see. There are a few others including the Mercat de Sant Antoni and the Mercat de Santa Caterina. Hooray for eating local.

This is from a town outside Barcelona, but it gets the point across.

Since you’re posted up for a while, the markets are a great places to your produce. If you like seafood and meat, it’s also ideal for that and an upgrade from the grocery stores.

How to Get Around In Barcelona

Barcelona has some of the best public transit in the world.

The metro is world-class. It’s frequent, there are ample stations, and it’s clean. It’ll get you anywhere in Barcelona.

When you leave the city, you’ll take the Rodalies trains. These are the commuter trains that will take you to the beaches on Costa Brava or the mountains. For specific towns not serviced by trains, there’s almost always a bus that goes to and from Barcelona. In Catalonia, nearly all routes lead to and from Barcelona. If not, they go to Girona, and then from there it’s easy to get to Barcelona.

Here’s a “medium distance” train. They also have high-speed trains to get to other cities in Spain, and commuter rail that goes to every town close to Barcelona.

Their bike share, Bicing, is really good too. Main streets generally either have really good, safe bike lanes or are thin streets with hardly any car traffic.

If you want something faster and more convenient, small motorcycles (motos) are very popular in Barcelona, so you can look into those as well.

Let’s Talk About Spain’s Digital Nomad Visa

Historically for digital nomads, the main option was to use the regular tourist visa that countries give out.

Spain is part of Europe’s “Schengen Zone” which means as an American I get granted automatically a 90-day visa. This means I can be in this zone, which is most of Europe with some exceptions, for a 90-day span out of every six month.

The regular tourist visa is the simplest.

In fact, if it’s your first time coming to Barcelona as a digital nomad, I recommend just sticking with this. If you want to stay longer, as your 90 days get closer, you can look into the Digital Nomad Visa.

The digital nomad visa has prerequisites.

You can do your own research on this, but it includes employment verification, minimum income levels, healthcare checks, and more. It’s a whole process. Since I just come every year for 1-3 months, I haven’t bothered with it. I spend a lot of time on digital nomad reddit threads, and it’s clear this is what most nomads do as well.

If I wanted to stay for a more, I would apply for the visa. Maybe one day I will and I’ll write a blog about it.

Is Barcelona Safe for Digital Nomads?

Barcelona is a big, modern city. Like almost any big modern city, there are risks. Overall it’s a very safe city. However, there’s a very real problem and risk of getting your phone stolen, especially if you’re going out to clubs.

I’ve seen firsthand locals get their phones stolen without them realizing until hours later. If you do, your crime will be drinking while guiri. There are pros preying on guiris, and if you’re not careful you might as well just hand someone your phone.