Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Oradea and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Oradea: $975 a month against $2,405 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $17,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

48

Cost of Living Index in Oradea
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Oradea Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Oradea

🇷🇴 Romania

$975

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,405

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $975 in Oradea versus $2,405 in Barcelona.

Oradea $975
Barcelona $2,405

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,443 in Oradea versus $3,477 in Barcelona.

Oradea $1,443
Barcelona $3,477

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,912 in Oradea versus $4,550 in Barcelona.

Oradea $1,912
Barcelona $4,550

Living in Oradea costs roughly 59% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Oradea is 27% below, Barcelona is 79% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.49 RON 40.15

$17.98 €16.05

-52.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$42.39 RON 200

$67.4 €60.2

-37.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.49 RON 35.42

$13.37 €11.93

-43.98%

Cappuccino

$2.61 RON 12.34

$3.34 €2.98

-21.86%

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

$1.82 RON 8.61

$2.95 €2.64

-38.31%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.70 RON 8.04

$1.90 €1.69

-10.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.15 RON 10.17

$3.88 €3.46

-44.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.21 RON 15.21

$4.57 €4.08

-29.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 RON 7.00

$1.27 €1.13

16.54%

White Bread (500g)

$1.02 RON 4.83

$1.96 €1.75

-47.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.19 RON 5.64

$1.75 €1.56

-32.00%

Eggs

$2.85 RON 13.46

$4.89 €4.36

-41.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.25 RON 39.03

$17.47 €15.59

-52.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.23 RON 29.45

$9.06 €8.09

-31.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.05 RON 42.80

$20.18 €18.01

-55.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.06 RON 5.03

$3.08 €2.75

-65.58%

Banana (1kg)

$1.48 RON 7.01

$2.03 €1.81

-27.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.45 RON 6.85

$2.60 €2.32

-44.23%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.40 RON 6.64

$2.71 €2.42

-48.34%

Potato (1kg)

$0.86 RON 4.09

$2.15 €1.92

-60.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 RON 4.17

$2.21 €1.97

-60.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.70 RON 3.30

$1.54 €1.38

-54.55%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 RON 3.89

$0.93 €0.83

-11.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.95 RON 28.12

$7.09 €6.32

-16.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.69 RON 26.93

$7.63 €6.81

-25.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 RON 4.91

$1.49 €1.33

-30.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.83 RON 8.68

$2.73 €2.43

-32.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.95 €2.63

-73.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.97 RON 89.7

$25.91 €23.13

-26.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.75 RON 3.56

$3.13 €2.80

-76.04%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 RON 3.61

$1.45 €1.29

-47.59%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.27 RON 34.41

$34.17 €30.49

-78.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.78 RON 8.40

$1.79 €1.60

-0.56%

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

$28.6K RON 135.5K

$34.7K €31.0K

-17.43%

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

$25.1K RON 118.6K

$30.3K €27.0K

-17.23%

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

$137 RON 649

$181 €161

-24.01%

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

$6.32 RON 29.90

$13.56 €12.10

-53.39%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.08 RON 38.21

$35.12 €31.34

-76.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.21 RON 219

$53.2 €47.44

-13.07%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.19 RON 76.6

$16.05 €14.33

0.87%

Cinema Ticket

$7.50 RON 35.46

$11.37 €10.14

-34.04%

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

$397 RON 1,876

$939 €838

-57.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,125 RON 43.2K

$16.5K €14.7K

-44.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.7 RON 287

$88.2 €78.7

-31.18%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.01 RON 175

$39.77 €35.49

-6.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$54.1 RON 256

$103 €92.3

-47.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$64.2 RON 304

$119 €107

-46.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$401 RON 1,895

$1,695 €1,513

-76.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$310 RON 1,466

$1,301 €1,161

-76.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$536 RON 2,534

$2,576 €2,299

-79.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$397 RON 1,876

$1,941 €1,732

-79.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,969 RON 9,314

$7,470 €6,666

-73.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,925 RON 9,105

$5,195 €4,636

-62.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$895 RON 4,235

$2,299 €2,052

-61.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.1

3.28

116.46%

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

Last update for Oradea: October 5, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Oradea

$310 31.4%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54% 320% $991

Groceries & Markets

Oradea

$188 19.1%

Barcelona

$325 13.5% 72.4% $136

Eating Out

Oradea

$153 15.5%

Barcelona

$272 11.3% 77.8% $119

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Oradea

$152 15.4%

Barcelona

$229 9.5% 51.2% $78

Clothing & Footwear

Oradea

$97 9.8%

Barcelona

$158 6.6% 62.4% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Oradea

$61 6.2%

Barcelona

$76 3.2% 24% $15

Getting Around

Oradea

$27 2.7%

Barcelona

$48 2% 80.6% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $401 in Oradea and $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays 157% 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 Oradea vs $67.0 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $188 vs $325 per month, with Oradea cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Oradea

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

05:25 5:25 AM

04:25 4:25 AM

1 h behind Oradea

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

196,367

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

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

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Oradea Barcelona 1,690 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Oradea
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

Oradea vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Oradea and Barcelona differ by about 147% in total monthly costs ($975 vs $2,405 including rent). Oradea is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 157% 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: $401 in Oradea versus $1,695 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $397 in Oradea versus $939 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 72% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $975 in Oradea versus $2,405 in Barcelona, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Oradea but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Oradea 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, Oradea 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 Oradea gentler on the wallet – expenses run 147% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.