Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Roman

For one person, living is cheaper in Roman: $842 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 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
40

Cost of Living Index in Roman
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Roman Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Roman

🇷🇴 Romania

$842

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Roman

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 Roman actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,443 in Barcelona versus $842 in Roman.

Barcelona $2,443
Roman $842

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,519 in Barcelona versus $1,393 in Roman.

Barcelona $3,519
Roman $1,393

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,595 in Barcelona versus $1,944 in Roman.

Barcelona $4,595
Roman $1,944

Living in Barcelona is roughly 190% more expensive than in Roman, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 81% above, Roman is 38% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.66 €15.69

$10.46 RON 49.67

68.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €59.9

$33.05 RON 157

104.15%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.61 €12.09

$7.27 RON 34.51

87.21%

Cappuccino

$3.10 €2.75

$2.54 RON 12.05

22.05%

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

$3.00 €2.67

$1.35 RON 6.40

122.22%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.93 €1.71

$1.04 RON 4.93

85.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.84 €3.41

$2.14 RON 10.16

79.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.36 €3.87

$2.18 RON 10.35

100.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.25 €1.11

$1.18 RON 5.61

5.93%

White Bread (500g)

$2.12 €1.89

$0.66 RON 3.14

221.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.43 RON 6.81

37.76%

Eggs

$4.76 €4.23

$2.91 RON 13.82

63.57%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.07 €15.16

$7.85 RON 37.28

117.45%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.96 €7.96

$5.76 RON 27.35

55.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.65 €18.34

$8.25 RON 39.18

150.30%

Apples (1kg)

$3.16 €2.81

$1.07 RON 5.06

195.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.97 €1.75

$1.49 RON 7.10

32.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.39 RON 6.58

90.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.88 €2.56

$1.83 RON 8.69

57.38%

Potato (1kg)

$2.06 €1.83

$0.68 RON 3.25

202.94%

Onion (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$0.83 RON 3.94

162.65%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.53 €1.36

$0.81 RON 3.86

88.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 €0.86

$0.73 RON 3.45

32.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.97 €6.19

$5.32 RON 25.24

31.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.89 €7.01

$5.38 RON 25.56

46.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$0.96 RON 4.55

47.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.69 €2.39

$1.17 RON 5.58

129.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.31 €2.94

$0.74 RON 3.53

347.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.61 €22.75

$20.48 RON 97.3

25.05%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.08 €2.74

$0.65 RON 3.11

373.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.48 €1.32

$0.65 RON 3.08

127.69%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$32.87 €29.20

$7.36 RON 34.94

346.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.87 €1.66

$1.82 RON 8.65

2.75%

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

$33.0K €29.3K

$28.3K RON 134.4K

16.44%

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

$31.9K €28.4K

$24.7K RON 117.5K

29.08%

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

$183 €162

$147 RON 698

24.29%

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

$14.24 €12.65

$6.70 RON 31.82

112.54%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.56 €30.70

$8.03 RON 38.14

330.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 €45.68

$37.42 RON 178

37.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.38 €14.55

$17.23 RON 81.8

-4.93%

Cinema Ticket

$11.06 €9.83

$6.26 RON 29.70

76.68%

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

$944 €838

$290 RON 1,375

225.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.3K €19.8K

$6,433 RON 30.5K

246.15%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.7 €77.9

$96.0 RON 456

-8.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 €34.44

$25.20 RON 120

53.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$105 €92.9

$61.6 RON 292

69.88%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$58.4 RON 277

101.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,697 €1,507

$213 RON 1,013

695.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,337 €1,187

$159 RON 754

742.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,692 €2,391

$611 RON 2,903

340.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,845

$459 RON 2,179

352.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,155 €6,356

$1,818 RON 8,634

293.46%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,079 €4,512

$1,519 RON 7,212

234.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,241 €1,991

$828 RON 3,931

170.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.19

7.2

-55.69%

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

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Last update for Roman: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7%

Roman

$159 18.8% 88.1% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$328 13.4%

Roman

$176 20.8% 46.4% $152

Eating Out

Barcelona

$267 10.9%

Roman

$161 19.1% 39.9% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$232 9.5%

Roman

$162 19.2% 30.1% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$157 6.4%

Roman

$109 12.9% 30.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$74 3%

Roman

$50 5.9% 32.1% $24

Getting Around

Barcelona

$49 2%

Roman

$27 3.3% 44.6% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,697 in Barcelona and $213 in Roman. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.7 times more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $67 in Barcelona vs $33 in Roman for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $176 per month, with Roman cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇴 Roman

🕒 Local time

23:35 11:35 PM

00:35 12:35 AM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

80,328

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Roman 2,060 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Roman

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 Roman: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,443 in Barcelona and $842 in Roman, so Roman is about 66% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Barcelona is about 2.7 times higher, 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: $1,697 in Barcelona versus $213 in Roman. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $944 in Barcelona versus $290 in Roman. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 87% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $842 in Roman versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Roman but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Roman 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.

Expats usually find Roman gentler on the wallet – expenses run 66% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.