Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Barcelona and Sfantu Gheorghe

For one person, living is cheaper in Sfantu Gheorghe: $813 a month against $2,381 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $18,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

115

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index
39

Cost of Living Index in Sfantu Gheorghe
Learn more

Sfantu Gheorghe Living Index

Jump to prices

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,381

/mo nomad

Sfantu Gheorghe

🇷🇴 Romania

$813

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Barcelona and in Sfantu Gheorghe

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,381 in Barcelona versus $813 in Sfantu Gheorghe.

Barcelona $2,381
Sfantu Gheorghe $813

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,406 in Barcelona versus $1,297 in Sfantu Gheorghe.

Barcelona $3,406
Sfantu Gheorghe $1,297

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,431 in Barcelona versus $1,781 in Sfantu Gheorghe.

Barcelona $4,431
Sfantu Gheorghe $1,781

Living in Barcelona is roughly 193% more expensive than in Sfantu Gheorghe, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Barcelona is 76% above, Sfantu Gheorghe is 40% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.89 €15.92

$8.56 RON 40.51

109.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.2 €58.9

$41.50 RON 196

59.42%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.69 €12.18

$7.21 RON 34.10

89.88%

Cappuccino

$3.06 €2.72

$2.54 RON 12.04

20.47%

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

$3.07 €2.73

$1.23 RON 5.81

149.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.07 RON 5.06

81.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.87 €3.44

$2.48 RON 11.74

56.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.61 €4.10

$2.16 RON 10.20

113.43%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 €1.16

$1.39 RON 6.55

-6.47%

White Bread (500g)

$2.10 €1.87

$1.13 RON 5.36

85.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.83 €1.62

$1.40 RON 6.64

30.71%

Eggs

$4.62 €4.11

$3.28 RON 15.52

40.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.36 €15.44

$7.81 RON 36.97

122.28%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.28 €8.25

$4.61 RON 21.83

101.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.83 €17.64

$7.72 RON 36.51

156.87%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 €2.68

$1.08 RON 5.11

178.70%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.81

$1.51 RON 7.14

34.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.65 €2.36

$1.17 RON 5.52

126.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$2.52 RON 11.92

13.89%

Potato (1kg)

$2.16 €1.92

$0.69 RON 3.27

213.04%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$0.60 RON 2.84

258.33%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.47 €1.31

$1.03 RON 4.86

42.72%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.79

$0.81 RON 3.81

8.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.93 €6.16

$4.90 RON 23.17

41.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.83 €6.96

$7.42 RON 35.10

5.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.39 €1.24

$0.96 RON 4.56

44.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.07 RON 5.05

145.79%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.91 €2.59

$0.87 RON 4.10

234.48%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$25.46 €22.64

$15.61 RON 73.9

63.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.00 €2.66

$1.00 RON 4.72

200.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.44 €1.28

$0.88 RON 4.17

63.64%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.20 €29.53

$8.38 RON 39.63

296.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.65

$1.62 RON 7.68

14.81%

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

$32.3K €28.8K

$28.9K RON 136.9K

11.79%

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

$31.7K €28.2K

$24.9K RON 117.8K

27.36%

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

$183 €163

$113 RON 536

61.28%

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

$13.61 €12.11

$9.41 RON 44.53

44.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.93 €29.29

$12.23 RON 57.9

169.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.7 €48.65

$40.71 RON 193

34.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.52 €14.70

$20.72 RON 98.0

-20.27%

Cinema Ticket

$11.23 €9.99

$3.13 RON 14.80

258.79%

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

$954 €849

$444 RON 2,102

114.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.6K €14.8K

$6,646 RON 31.4K

149.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.0 €76.5

$25.88 RON 122

232.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.11 €34.78

$13.62 RON 64.4

187.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 €92.2

$39.45 RON 187

162.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$119 €106

$63.3 RON 299

87.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,695 €1,508

$294 RON 1,389

477.53%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,276 €1,135

$212 RON 1,003

501.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,576 €2,291

$524 RON 2,479

391.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,922 €1,710

$401 RON 1,897

379.41%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,281 €6,477

$1,843 RON 8,718

295.16%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,010 €4,456

$1,362 RON 6,445

267.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,227 €1,981

$691 RON 3,271

222.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.28

6.75

-51.41%

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

Last update for Barcelona: October 20, 2026

Last update for Sfantu Gheorghe: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Barcelona

$1.3K 53.6%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$212 26.1% 83.4% $1.1K

Groceries & Markets

Barcelona

$325 13.7%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$184 22.6% 43.4% $141

Eating Out

Barcelona

$270 11.3%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$147 18% 45.6% $123

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Barcelona

$229 9.6%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$135 16.6% 41.1% $94

Clothing & Footwear

Barcelona

$156 6.6%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$64 7.9% 59.1% $92

Sport & Entertainment

Barcelona

$77 3.2%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$47 5.8% 39.1% $30

Getting Around

Barcelona

$47 2%

Sfantu Gheorghe

$24 3% 48.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,695 in Barcelona and $294 in Sfantu Gheorghe. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 222% 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 $41.00 in Sfantu Gheorghe for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $325 vs $184 per month, with Sfantu Gheorghe cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🇷🇴 Sfantu Gheorghe

🕒 Local time

02:50 2:50 AM

03:50 3:50 AM

1 h ahead of Barcelona

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,660,122

56,006

💱 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

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Barcelona Sfantu Gheorghe 1,960 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Barcelona
Sfantu Gheorghe

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 Sfantu Gheorghe: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Barcelona and Sfantu Gheorghe differ by about 193% in total monthly costs ($2,381 vs $813 including rent). Sfantu Gheorghe is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 222% 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 $294 in Sfantu Gheorghe. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $954 in Barcelona versus $444 in Sfantu Gheorghe. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 77% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $813 in Sfantu Gheorghe versus $2,381 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sfantu Gheorghe but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Sfantu Gheorghe 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 Sfantu Gheorghe 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 Sfantu Gheorghe gentler on the wallet – expenses run 193% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.