Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cluj-Napoca and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Cluj-Napoca: $1,406 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $11,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Cluj-Napoca
Learn more

Cluj-Napoca Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
Learn more

Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,406

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cluj-Napoca and in Barcelona

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,406 in Cluj-Napoca versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Cluj-Napoca $1,406
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,113 in Cluj-Napoca versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Cluj-Napoca $2,113
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,819 in Cluj-Napoca versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Cluj-Napoca $2,819
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Cluj-Napoca costs roughly 41% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cluj-Napoca 4% above, Barcelona 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.77 RON 60.4

$17.94 €15.96

-28.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.8 RON 259

$68.1 €60.5

-19.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.60 RON 45.41

$13.28 €11.81

-27.71%

Cappuccino

$3.63 RON 17.18

$3.25 €2.89

11.69%

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

$2.31 RON 10.92

$3.01 €2.67

-23.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$1.87 €1.66

24.60%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.27 RON 15.47

$3.85 €3.42

-15.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 RON 20.21

$4.48 €3.98

-4.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 RON 7.26

$1.29 €1.15

18.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.51 RON 7.13

$2.04 €1.81

-25.98%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.81 RON 8.55

$1.72 €1.53

5.23%

Eggs

$3.86 RON 18.28

$4.77 €4.24

-19.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.15 RON 43.28

$16.77 €14.92

-45.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.28 RON 34.45

$8.93 €7.94

-18.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.73 RON 55.5

$19.88 €17.68

-41.00%

Apples (1kg)

$1.42 RON 6.70

$2.98 €2.65

-52.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.69 RON 8.00

$2.03 €1.80

-16.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.95 RON 9.21

$2.73 €2.43

-28.57%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.39 RON 11.30

$2.68 €2.38

-10.82%

Potato (1kg)

$0.94 RON 4.44

$2.10 €1.87

-55.24%

Onion (1kg)

$0.90 RON 4.26

$2.08 €1.85

-56.73%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.90 RON 4.25

$1.45 €1.29

-37.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 RON 4.79

$0.89 €0.79

13.48%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.11 RON 28.89

$6.94 €6.17

-11.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.36 RON 34.84

$7.78 €6.92

-5.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 RON 6.08

$1.45 €1.29

-11.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 RON 8.38

$2.57 €2.29

-31.13%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 RON 3.29

$2.99 €2.66

-76.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.67 RON 145

$25.20 €22.41

21.71%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.89 RON 4.22

$3.12 €2.77

-71.47%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.92 RON 4.37

$1.44 €1.28

-36.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.39 RON 39.71

$33.50 €29.80

-74.96%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.90 RON 9.00

$1.79 €1.59

6.15%

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

$28.0K RON 132.5K

$34.6K €30.8K

-19.13%

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

$24.8K RON 117.2K

$30.1K €26.7K

-17.58%

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

$153 RON 725

$178 €158

-13.78%

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

$8.59 RON 40.64

$13.32 €11.85

-35.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.77 RON 46.24

$34.88 €31.03

-71.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.15 RON 218

$53.3 €47.37

-13.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.53 RON 107

$16.01 €14.24

40.72%

Cinema Ticket

$9.32 RON 44.09

$11.06 €9.84

-15.73%

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

$587 RON 2,780

$957 €851

-38.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,476 RON 44.8K

$16.6K €14.7K

-42.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 RON 419

$88.2 €78.4

0.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.73 RON 216

$39.49 €35.12

15.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 RON 479

$103 €91.5

-1.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 RON 512

$121 €108

-10.88%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$622 RON 2,941

$1,653 €1,470

-62.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$524 RON 2,480

$1,302 €1,158

-59.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,147 RON 5,429

$2,557 €2,275

-55.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$806 RON 3,816

$1,915 €1,703

-57.88%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,709 RON 22.3K

$7,286 €6,481

-35.37%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,348 RON 15.8K

$5,080 €4,519

-34.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,234 RON 5,837

$2,281 €2,029

-45.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.8

3.28

107.32%

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

Last update for Cluj-Napoca: October 11, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cluj-Napoca

$524 37.3%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 148% $778

Groceries & Markets

Cluj-Napoca

$234 16.7%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 36.7% $86

Eating Out

Cluj-Napoca

$218 15.5%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 23.9% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cluj-Napoca

$172 12.2%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 31.7% $54

Clothing & Footwear

Cluj-Napoca

$155 11%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 2.4% $3.8

Sport & Entertainment

Cluj-Napoca

$65 4.6%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 16.3% $11

Getting Around

Cluj-Napoca

$39 2.8%

Barcelona

$47 2% 21.8% $8.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $622 in Cluj-Napoca and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 85% 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: $55.0 in Cluj-Napoca vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $234 vs $320 per month, with Cluj-Napoca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Cluj-Napoca

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

23:30 11:30 PM

22:30 10:30 PM

1 h behind Cluj-Napoca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

324,576

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Cluj-Napoca Barcelona 1,810 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Cluj-Napoca
Barcelona

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

Cluj-Napoca vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cluj-Napoca and Barcelona differ by about 71% in total monthly costs ($1,406 vs $2,399 including rent). Cluj-Napoca is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 85% lower in Barcelona. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $622 in Cluj-Napoca versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $587 in Cluj-Napoca versus $957 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 37% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,406 in Cluj-Napoca versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cluj-Napoca but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Cluj-Napoca 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, Cluj-Napoca and Barcelona 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 Cluj-Napoca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 71% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.