Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Satu Mare

For one person, living is cheaper in Satu Mare: $930 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Satu Mare
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Satu Mare Living Index

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Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Satu Mare

🇷🇴 Romania

$930

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Satu Mare

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $930 in Satu Mare.

Barcelona $2,381
Satu Mare $930

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,406 in Satu Mare.

Barcelona $3,406
Satu Mare $1,406

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,883 in Satu Mare.

Barcelona $4,431
Satu Mare $1,883

Living in Barcelona is roughly 156% more expensive than in Satu Mare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Satu Mare is 31% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$8.20 RON 38.81

118.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$32.51 RON 154

103.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$6.48 RON 30.67

111.27%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.50 RON 11.81

22.40%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.49 RON 7.04

106.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.28 RON 6.07

51.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$1.87 RON 8.87

106.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.44 RON 11.55

88.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.13 RON 5.33

15.04%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.06 RON 5.04

98.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.13 RON 5.36

61.95%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$2.69 RON 12.71

71.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$7.35 RON 34.79

136.19%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$7.53 RON 35.63

23.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$10.83 RON 51.2

83.10%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.10 RON 5.19

173.64%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.30 RON 6.15

56.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.28 RON 6.04

107.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$1.43 RON 6.75

100.70%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$1.19 RON 5.61

81.51%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.37 RON 6.48

56.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$0.88 RON 4.14

67.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.71 RON 3.34

23.94%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$5.57 RON 26.38

24.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$6.19 RON 29.29

26.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.23 RON 5.80

13.01%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.70 RON 8.06

54.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.54 RON 2.56

438.89%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$23.41 RON 111

8.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$0.80 RON 3.79

275.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.85 RON 4.03

69.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$8.10 RON 38.34

309.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.58 RON 7.47

17.72%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$22.8K RON 107.9K

41.88%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$25.3K RON 119.5K

25.51%

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

$183 €163

$126 RON 597

44.90%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$7.14 RON 33.79

90.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$7.25 RON 34.30

354.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$41.55 RON 197

31.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$10.68 RON 50.5

54.68%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$6.19 RON 29.29

81.42%

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

$954 €849

$155 RON 733

515.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$3,829 RON 18.1K

333.62%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$59.6 RON 282

44.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$28.51 RON 135

37.18%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$85.6 RON 405

21.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$69.2 RON 328

71.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$322 RON 1,524

426.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$260 RON 1,229

391.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$647 RON 3,060

298.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$410 RON 1,938

369.28%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,007 RON 4,765

622.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,056 RON 4,995

374.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$650 RON 3,075

242.66%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

7.05

-53.48%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Satu Mare: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Satu Mare

$260 27.9% 79.7% $1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Satu Mare

$195 21% 40% $130

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Satu Mare

$140 15.1% 47.9% $129

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Satu Mare

$141 15.1% 38.7% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Satu Mare

$109 11.8% 30.1% $47

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Satu Mare

$54 5.8% 30.1% $23

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Satu Mare

$31 3.3% 35.2% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $322 in Satu Mare. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 243% 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: $66.0 in Barcelona vs $33.00 in Satu Mare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $195 per month, with Satu Mare cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇴 Satu Mare

🕒 Local time

01:28 1:28 AM

02:28 2:28 AM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

102,411

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Between locations

Barcelona Satu Mare 1,780 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Satu Mare

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 Satu Mare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Satu Mare differ by about 156% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $930 including rent). Satu Mare is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 243% 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: $1,695 in Barcelona versus $322 in Satu Mare. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $155 in Satu Mare. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 67% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $930 in Satu Mare versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Satu Mare but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Satu Mare 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 Satu Mare are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Satu Mare gentler on the wallet – expenses run 156% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.