Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Romania

For one person, living is cheaper in Romania: $1,095 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Barcelona
🇪🇸 Spain
$2,405
/mo nomad
🇷🇴 Romania
$1,095
/mo nomad
😐 Solo nomad: Barcelona is 56.5% more expensive than Romania without rent, and 119.5% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Barcelona is 54.3% more expensive than Romania without rent, and 102.3% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$17.98 €16.05
$10.35 RON 48.95
73.72%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$67.4 €60.2
$41.76 RON 198
61.45%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$13.37 €11.93
$7.47 RON 35.35
78.98%
Cappuccino
$3.34 €2.98
$2.84 RON 13.45
17.61%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.95 €2.64
$1.95 RON 9.21
51.28%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.90 €1.69
$1.68 RON 7.94
13.10%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$3.88 €3.46
$2.30 RON 10.86
68.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.57 €4.08
$3.24 RON 15.31
41.05%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.27 €1.13
$1.47 RON 6.95
-13.61%
White Bread (500g)
$1.96 €1.75
$1.16 RON 5.49
68.97%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.75 €1.56
$1.59 RON 7.54
10.06%
Eggs
$4.89 €4.36
$3.18 RON 15.04
53.77%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$17.47 €15.59
$8.02 RON 37.95
117.83%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.06 €8.09
$6.26 RON 29.61
44.73%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$20.18 €18.01
$10.53 RON 49.79
91.64%
Apples (1kg)
$3.08 €2.75
$1.21 RON 5.73
154.55%
Banana (1kg)
$2.03 €1.81
$1.56 RON 7.40
30.13%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.60 €2.32
$1.55 RON 7.35
67.74%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.71 €2.42
$2.20 RON 10.41
23.18%
Potato (1kg)
$2.15 €1.92
$0.85 RON 4.02
152.94%
Onion (1kg)
$2.21 €1.97
$0.82 RON 3.86
169.51%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.54 €1.38
$0.84 RON 3.99
83.33%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.93 €0.83
$0.85 RON 4.01
9.41%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.09 €6.32
$6.10 RON 28.85
16.23%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.63 €6.81
$6.21 RON 29.35
22.87%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.49 €1.33
$1.14 RON 5.38
30.70%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.73 €2.43
$1.63 RON 7.69
67.48%
🚌 Getting Around
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.95 €2.63
$0.73 RON 3.45
304.11%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$25.91 €23.13
$23.09 RON 109
12.21%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$3.13 €2.80
$0.76 RON 3.60
311.84%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.45 €1.29
$0.76 RON 3.58
90.79%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$34.17 €30.49
$7.20 RON 34.07
374.58%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.79 €1.60
$1.76 RON 8.34
1.70%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$34.7K €31.0K
$28.6K RON 135.4K
21.13%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.3K €27.0K
$24.9K RON 117.6K
21.89%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$181 €161
$161 RON 764
11.89%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.56 €12.10
$8.01 RON 37.89
69.29%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$35.12 €31.34
$8.84 RON 41.80
297.29%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$53.2 €47.44
$40.05 RON 189
32.73%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$16.05 €14.33
$18.90 RON 89.4
-15.08%
Cinema Ticket
$11.37 €10.14
$7.29 RON 34.50
55.97%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$939 €838
$469 RON 2,216
100.36%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$16.5K €14.7K
$8,762 RON 41.4K
88.56%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$88.2 €78.7
$68.8 RON 325
28.29%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$39.77 €35.49
$37.50 RON 177
6.05%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$103 €92.3
$80.1 RON 379
29.00%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$119 €107
$84.2 RON 398
41.85%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,695 €1,513
$462 RON 2,186
266.84%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,301 €1,161
$342 RON 1,615
280.83%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,576 €2,299
$800 RON 3,784
222.00%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,941 €1,732
$589 RON 2,786
229.50%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$7,470 €6,666
$2,451 RON 11.6K
204.74%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,195 €4,636
$1,819 RON 8,605
185.52%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Barcelona
Romania
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$2,299 €2,052
$975 RON 4,611
135.87%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.28
6.98
-53.01%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Last update for Romania: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Barcelona
$1.3K
Romania
$342 73.7% $959
Groceries & Markets
Barcelona
$325
Romania
$204 37.2% $121
Eating Out
Barcelona
$272
Romania
$172 36.8% $100
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Barcelona
$229
Romania
$178 22.3% $51
Clothing & Footwear
Barcelona
$158
Romania
$122 22.9% $36
Sport & Entertainment
Barcelona
$76
Romania
$55 28% $21
Getting Around
Barcelona
$48
Romania
$31 36.5% $18
Good to know
🇪🇸 Barcelona
🇷🇴 Romania
🕒 Local time
09:52 9:52 AM
10:52 10:52 AM
1 h ahead of Barcelona
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
1,660,122
19,053,815
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Barcelona Romania 1,970 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Barcelona
  • Romania

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

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