Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ploiesti and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Ploiesti: $1,151 a month against $2,453 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

55

Cost of Living Index in Ploiesti
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Ploiesti Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

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Ploiesti

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,151

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,453

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,151 in Ploiesti versus $2,453 in Barcelona.

Ploiesti $1,151
Barcelona $2,453

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,697 in Ploiesti versus $3,509 in Barcelona.

Ploiesti $1,697
Barcelona $3,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,242 in Ploiesti versus $4,564 in Barcelona.

Ploiesti $2,242
Barcelona $4,564

Living in Ploiesti costs roughly 53% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Ploiesti is 15% below, Barcelona is 80% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.30 RON 54.0

$17.59 €15.75

-35.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$45.76 RON 219

$67.5 €60.5

-32.20%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.77 RON 37.14

$13.53 €12.12

-42.57%

Cappuccino

$2.90 RON 13.84

$3.19 €2.86

-9.09%

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

$2.10 RON 10.04

$2.91 €2.61

-27.84%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.06 RON 9.84

$1.89 €1.70

8.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.44 RON 11.68

$4.01 €3.59

-39.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.26 RON 15.58

$4.53 €4.06

-28.04%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.56 RON 7.46

$1.31 €1.17

19.08%

White Bread (500g)

$1.17 RON 5.59

$2.02 €1.81

-42.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.47 RON 7.04

$1.85 €1.66

-20.54%

Eggs

$3.19 RON 15.25

$4.83 €4.33

-33.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.87 RON 37.63

$16.74 €14.99

-52.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.87 RON 32.84

$9.12 €8.17

-24.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.55 RON 45.66

$19.64 €17.59

-51.37%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.15

$2.98 €2.67

-56.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 RON 7.76

$2.02 €1.81

-19.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.39 RON 6.64

$2.70 €2.42

-48.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.02 RON 9.67

$2.80 €2.51

-27.86%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 RON 3.51

$2.09 €1.87

-65.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.71 RON 3.39

$2.07 €1.85

-65.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.67 RON 3.21

$1.46 €1.31

-54.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 RON 3.86

$0.94 €0.84

-13.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 30.17

$6.87 €6.15

-8.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.74 RON 32.23

$7.89 €7.06

-14.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.44

$1.41 €1.26

-34.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 RON 6.68

$2.54 €2.27

-44.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.08

$3.14 €2.82

-72.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.66 RON 104

$25.45 €22.79

-14.89%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.65 RON 3.09

$2.99 €2.68

-78.26%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 RON 3.10

$1.49 €1.34

-56.38%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.12 RON 29.22

$33.37 €29.89

-81.66%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 RON 8.88

$1.80 €1.61

3.33%

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

$29.0K RON 138.6K

$33.2K €29.7K

-12.65%

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

$25.3K RON 121.0K

$31.7K €28.4K

-20.10%

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

$164 RON 784

$180 €162

-9.06%

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

$6.15 RON 29.37

$13.84 €12.39

-55.56%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.85 RON 42.29

$33.70 €30.18

-73.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.51 RON 213

$51.5 €46.13

-13.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.53 RON 98.1

$15.96 €14.29

28.63%

Cinema Ticket

$8.22 RON 39.30

$10.99 €9.85

-25.20%

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

$373 RON 1,785

$917 €821

-59.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,824 RON 27.8K

$16.5K €14.8K

-64.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.0 RON 344

$87.0 €77.9

-17.25%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.75 RON 200

$38.51 €34.49

8.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.6 RON 442

$106 €94.8

-12.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.2 RON 455

$120 €107

-20.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$529 RON 2,530

$1,699 €1,522

-68.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$361 RON 1,727

$1,355 €1,214

-73.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$630 RON 3,010

$2,603 €2,331

-75.80%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$483 RON 2,308

$2,062 €1,847

-76.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,972 RON 9,423

$6,915 €6,193

-71.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,325 RON 6,330

$5,128 €4,592

-74.17%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$996 RON 4,757

$2,211 €1,980

-54.97%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.85

3.28

139.33%

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

Last update for Ploiesti: October 25, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ploiesti

$361 31.4%

Barcelona

$1.4K 55.3% 275% $994

Groceries & Markets

Ploiesti

$201 17.5%

Barcelona

$322 13.1% 59.8% $120

Eating Out

Ploiesti

$184 16%

Barcelona

$268 10.9% 45.7% $84

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ploiesti

$179 15.6%

Barcelona

$228 9.3% 27.3% $49

Clothing & Footwear

Ploiesti

$136 11.8%

Barcelona

$158 6.4% 16.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Ploiesti

$61 5.3%

Barcelona

$74 3% 20.6% $13

Getting Around

Ploiesti

$29 2.5%

Barcelona

$48 2% 67.4% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $529 in Ploiesti and $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $46 in Ploiesti vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $322 per month, with Ploiesti cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Ploiesti

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

01:11 1:11 AM

00:11 12:11 AM

1 h behind Ploiesti

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

224,406

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 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 November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Ploiesti Barcelona 1,970 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Ploiesti
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

Ploiesti vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,151 in Ploiesti and $2,453 in Barcelona, so Ploiesti is about 53% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 55% lower in Ploiesti. 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: $529 in Ploiesti versus $1,699 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $373 in Ploiesti versus $917 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 60% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $1,000. Ploiesti is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Ploiesti and Barcelona are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Ploiesti gentler on the wallet – expenses run 53% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.