Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Iasi

For one person, living is cheaper in Iasi: $1,256 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $14,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Iasi
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Iasi Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Iasi

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,256

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Iasi

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Barcelona and in Iasi actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in Barcelona versus $1,256 in Iasi.

Barcelona $2,453
Iasi $1,256

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,509 in Barcelona versus $1,841 in Iasi.

Barcelona $3,509
Iasi $1,841

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,564 in Barcelona versus $2,425 in Iasi.

Barcelona $4,564
Iasi $2,425

Living in Barcelona is roughly 95% more expensive than in Iasi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 80% above, Iasi is 8% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.59 €15.80

$10.50 RON 50.5

67.52%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.6

$42.22 RON 203

59.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.53 €12.15

$7.18 RON 34.49

88.44%

Cappuccino

$3.19 €2.87

$2.95 RON 14.19

8.14%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.91 €2.62

$2.28 RON 10.95

27.63%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.70

$1.78 RON 8.54

6.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.01 €3.60

$3.20 RON 15.37

25.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.53 €4.07

$3.84 RON 18.44

17.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.17

$1.55 RON 7.45

-15.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.31 RON 6.31

54.20%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.85 €1.66

$1.97 RON 9.49

-6.09%

Eggs

$4.83 €4.34

$3.25 RON 15.64

48.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$16.74 €15.03

$8.23 RON 39.57

103.40%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.12 €8.19

$6.59 RON 31.66

38.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.64 €17.64

$10.07 RON 48.38

95.03%

Apples (1kg)

$2.98 €2.68

$1.31 RON 6.29

127.48%

Banana (1kg)

$2.02 €1.81

$1.62 RON 7.77

24.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.70 €2.43

$1.68 RON 8.05

60.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.80 €2.52

$2.12 RON 10.20

32.08%

Potato (1kg)

$2.09 €1.87

$0.86 RON 4.12

143.02%

Onion (1kg)

$2.07 €1.86

$0.82 RON 3.96

152.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.46 €1.31

$1.10 RON 5.30

32.73%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 €0.84

$0.94 RON 4.51

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.87 €6.17

$6.11 RON 29.38

12.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.08

$6.64 RON 31.92

18.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.34 RON 6.43

5.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.54 €2.28

$2.12 RON 10.17

19.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 €2.82

$0.85 RON 4.09

269.41%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.45 €22.86

$27.49 RON 132

-7.42%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.99 €2.69

$0.80 RON 3.85

273.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.49 €1.34

$0.87 RON 4.18

71.26%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.37 €29.98

$8.14 RON 39.10

309.95%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.92 RON 9.24

-6.25%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$33.2K €29.8K

$28.6K RON 137.4K

16.09%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$31.7K €28.5K

$25.8K RON 124.2K

22.66%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$180 €162

$181 RON 870

-0.39%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$13.84 €12.43

$7.28 RON 35.01

90.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$33.70 €30.27

$8.20 RON 39.41

310.98%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.5 €46.27

$43.94 RON 211

17.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.96 €14.34

$15.95 RON 76.7

0.06%

Cinema Ticket

$10.99 €9.88

$8.58 RON 41.24

28.09%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$917 €823

$385 RON 1,853

137.78%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.5K €14.8K

$6,965 RON 33.5K

136.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.0 €78.2

$73.6 RON 354

18.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.51 €34.59

$38.25 RON 184

0.68%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €95.1

$92.0 RON 442

14.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$120 €108

$89.0 RON 428

34.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 €1,527

$542 RON 2,607

213.28%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,217

$435 RON 2,090

211.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,603 €2,338

$836 RON 4,020

211.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,062 €1,853

$645 RON 3,100

219.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,915 €6,211

$2,797 RON 13.4K

147.23%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,128 €4,606

$1,907 RON 9,166

168.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,211 €1,986

$1,130 RON 5,429

95.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

7.18

-54.32%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Last update for Iasi: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3%

Iasi

$435 34.6% 67.9% $920

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$322 13.1%

Iasi

$215 17.1% 33.2% $107

Eating Out

Barcelona

$268 10.9%

Iasi

$181 14.4% 32.5% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$228 9.3%

Iasi

$197 15.7% 13.8% $31

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$158 6.4%

Iasi

$132 10.5% 16.6% $26

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Iasi

$61 4.9% 16.9% $12

Getting Around

Barcelona

$48 2%

Iasi

$36 2.9% 25.6% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,699 in Barcelona and $542 in Iasi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 96% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $42 in Iasi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $322 vs $215 per month, with Iasi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇴 Iasi

🕒 Local time

17:06 5:06 PM

18:06 6:06 PM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

290,422

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

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Between locations

Barcelona Iasi 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Iasi

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Barcelona vs Iasi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Iasi differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($2,453 vs $1,256 including rent). Iasi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 96% higher in Barcelona, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,699 in Barcelona versus $542 in Iasi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $917 in Barcelona versus $385 in Iasi. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 50% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,256 in Iasi versus $2,453 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Iasi but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Iasi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Barcelona and Iasi are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

It comes down to priorities – Iasi wins on affordability, Barcelona on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.