Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Iasi and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Iasi: $1,247 a month against $2,399 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $13,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

60

Cost of Living Index in Iasi
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Iasi Living Index
116

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Iasi

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,247

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,399

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Iasi 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 Iasi and in Barcelona actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,247 in Iasi versus $2,399 in Barcelona.

Iasi $1,247
Barcelona $2,399

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,839 in Iasi versus $3,410 in Barcelona.

Iasi $1,839
Barcelona $3,410

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,431 in Iasi versus $4,421 in Barcelona.

Iasi $2,431
Barcelona $4,421

Living in Iasi costs roughly 48% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Iasi is 8% below, Barcelona is 78% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.43 RON 49.33

$17.94 €15.96

-41.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$41.89 RON 198

$68.1 €60.5

-38.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.81 RON 32.22

$13.28 €11.81

-48.72%

Cappuccino

$2.86 RON 13.55

$3.25 €2.89

-12.00%

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

$2.20 RON 10.42

$3.01 €2.67

-26.91%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 RON 8.68

$1.87 €1.66

-2.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.18 RON 15.06

$3.85 €3.42

-17.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.78 RON 17.88

$4.48 €3.98

-15.63%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 RON 7.44

$1.29 €1.15

21.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.34 RON 6.34

$2.04 €1.81

-34.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.00 RON 9.47

$1.72 €1.53

16.28%

Eggs

$3.22 RON 15.22

$4.77 €4.24

-32.49%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.22 RON 38.87

$16.77 €14.92

-50.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.42 RON 30.38

$8.93 €7.94

-28.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.12 RON 47.89

$19.88 €17.68

-49.09%

Apples (1kg)

$1.33 RON 6.27

$2.98 €2.65

-55.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 RON 7.82

$2.03 €1.80

-18.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.58

$2.73 €2.43

-41.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.06 RON 9.73

$2.68 €2.38

-23.13%

Potato (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$2.10 €1.87

-61.90%

Onion (1kg)

$0.84 RON 3.99

$2.08 €1.85

-59.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 RON 5.26

$1.45 €1.29

-23.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.69

$0.89 €0.79

11.24%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.26 RON 29.61

$6.94 €6.17

-9.80%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.60 RON 31.23

$7.78 €6.92

-15.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 RON 6.07

$1.45 €1.29

-11.72%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.05 RON 9.68

$2.57 €2.29

-20.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.82

$2.99 €2.66

-72.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$27.14 RON 128

$25.20 €22.41

7.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.82 RON 3.86

$3.12 €2.77

-73.72%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 RON 4.09

$1.44 €1.28

-40.28%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.31 RON 39.33

$33.50 €29.80

-75.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.91 RON 9.05

$1.79 €1.59

6.70%

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

$28.7K RON 135.8K

$34.6K €30.8K

-17.10%

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

$27.7K RON 131.3K

$30.1K €26.7K

-7.73%

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

$179 RON 847

$178 €158

0.69%

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

$7.29 RON 34.47

$13.32 €11.85

-45.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.28 RON 39.19

$34.88 €31.03

-76.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.12 RON 209

$53.3 €47.37

-17.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.93 RON 75.4

$16.01 €14.24

-0.50%

Cinema Ticket

$8.49 RON 40.15

$11.06 €9.84

-23.24%

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

$413 RON 1,956

$957 €851

-56.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,058 RON 33.4K

$16.6K €14.7K

-57.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.4 RON 347

$88.2 €78.4

-16.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.95 RON 180

$39.49 €35.12

-3.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$94.0 RON 445

$103 €91.5

-8.55%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.7 RON 429

$121 €108

-25.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$541 RON 2,561

$1,653 €1,470

-67.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$431 RON 2,037

$1,302 €1,158

-66.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$879 RON 4,159

$2,557 €2,275

-65.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$660 RON 3,121

$1,915 €1,703

-65.54%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,924 RON 13.8K

$7,286 €6,481

-59.86%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,902 RON 8,999

$5,080 €4,519

-62.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,126 RON 5,325

$2,281 €2,029

-50.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.18

3.28

118.90%

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

Last update for Iasi: 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

Iasi

$431 34.5%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.3% 202% $871

Groceries & Markets

Iasi

$215 17.2%

Barcelona

$320 13.3% 49.2% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Iasi

$195 15.6%

Barcelona

$226 9.4% 16.1% $31

Eating Out

Iasi

$178 14.3%

Barcelona

$270 11.3% 51.9% $92

Clothing & Footwear

Iasi

$133 10.7%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 18.9% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Iasi

$61 4.9%

Barcelona

$75 3.1% 23.4% $14

Getting Around

Iasi

$36 2.9%

Barcelona

$47 2% 33.7% $12

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $541 in Iasi and $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 103% 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: $42.00 in Iasi vs $68.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $215 vs $320 per month, with Iasi cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Iasi

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

00:50 12:50 AM

23:50 11:50 PM

1 h behind Iasi

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

290,422

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

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Between locations

Iasi Barcelona 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Iasi
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

Iasi vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Iasi and Barcelona differ by about 92% in total monthly costs ($1,247 vs $2,399 including rent). Iasi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 103% 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: $541 in Iasi versus $1,653 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $413 in Iasi 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 49% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,247 in Iasi versus $2,399 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Iasi but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Iasi 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, Iasi 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 Iasi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 92% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.