Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Roman and Barcelona

For one person, living is cheaper in Roman: $842 a month against $2,443 in Barcelona, rent and utilities included – about $19,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Roman
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Roman Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Barcelona
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Barcelona Living Index

Jump to prices

Roman

🇷🇴 Romania

$842

/mo nomad

Barcelona

🇪🇸 Spain

$2,443

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $842 in Roman versus $2,443 in Barcelona.

Roman $842
Barcelona $2,443

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,393 in Roman versus $3,519 in Barcelona.

Roman $1,393
Barcelona $3,519

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,944 in Roman versus $4,595 in Barcelona.

Roman $1,944
Barcelona $4,595

Living in Roman costs roughly 66% less than in Barcelona, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Roman is 38% below, Barcelona is 81% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.46 RON 49.72

$17.66 €15.71

-40.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$33.05 RON 157

$67.5 €60.0

-51.02%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.27 RON 34.54

$13.61 €12.12

-46.58%

Cappuccino

$2.54 RON 12.06

$3.10 €2.76

-18.06%

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

$1.35 RON 6.41

$3.00 €2.67

-55.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.04 RON 4.94

$1.93 €1.71

-46.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.14 RON 10.17

$3.84 €3.42

-44.27%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 RON 10.36

$4.36 €3.88

-50.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.18 RON 5.62

$1.25 €1.11

-5.60%

White Bread (500g)

$0.66 RON 3.15

$2.12 €1.89

-68.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 RON 6.82

$1.97 €1.76

-27.41%

Eggs

$2.91 RON 13.84

$4.76 €4.24

-38.87%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.85 RON 37.32

$17.07 €15.19

-54.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.76 RON 27.37

$8.96 €7.97

-35.71%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.25 RON 39.22

$20.65 €18.38

-60.05%

Apples (1kg)

$1.07 RON 5.07

$3.16 €2.81

-66.14%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 RON 7.11

$1.97 €1.75

-24.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.39 RON 6.59

$2.65 €2.36

-47.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.83 RON 8.69

$2.88 €2.57

-36.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.68 RON 3.25

$2.06 €1.83

-66.99%

Onion (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.94

$2.18 €1.94

-61.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.81 RON 3.86

$1.53 €1.37

-47.06%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.73 RON 3.45

$0.97 €0.86

-24.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.32 RON 25.27

$6.97 €6.20

-23.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.38 RON 25.59

$7.89 €7.02

-31.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 RON 4.56

$1.42 €1.26

-32.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.17 RON 5.58

$2.69 €2.39

-56.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.74 RON 3.53

$3.31 €2.94

-77.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.48 RON 97.4

$25.61 €22.79

-20.03%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.65 RON 3.11

$3.08 €2.74

-78.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.65 RON 3.08

$1.48 €1.32

-56.08%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$7.36 RON 34.98

$32.87 €29.25

-77.61%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.82 RON 8.66

$1.87 €1.66

-2.67%

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

$28.3K RON 134.6K

$33.0K €29.3K

-14.12%

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

$24.7K RON 117.6K

$31.9K €28.4K

-22.53%

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

$147 RON 699

$183 €163

-19.55%

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

$6.70 RON 31.85

$14.24 €12.67

-52.95%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.03 RON 38.18

$34.56 €30.76

-76.77%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.42 RON 178

$51.4 €45.76

-27.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.23 RON 81.9

$16.38 €14.58

5.19%

Cinema Ticket

$6.26 RON 29.73

$11.06 €9.85

-43.40%

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

$290 RON 1,377

$944 €840

-69.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$6,433 RON 30.6K

$22.3K €19.8K

-71.11%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$96.0 RON 456

$87.7 €78.0

9.44%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.20 RON 120

$38.77 €34.51

-35.00%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.6 RON 293

$105 €93.0

-41.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$58.4 RON 278

$118 €105

-50.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$213 RON 1,015

$1,697 €1,510

-87.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$159 RON 754

$1,337 €1,190

-88.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$611 RON 2,906

$2,692 €2,396

-77.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$459 RON 2,181

$2,077 €1,848

-77.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,818 RON 8,643

$7,155 €6,367

-74.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,519 RON 7,220

$5,079 €4,520

-70.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$828 RON 3,935

$2,241 €1,995

-63.06%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.2

3.19

125.71%

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

Last update for Roman: November 2, 2026

Last update for Barcelona: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Roman

$176 20.8%

Barcelona

$328 13.4% 86.7% $152

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Roman

$162 19.2%

Barcelona

$232 9.5% 43.1% $70

Eating Out

Roman

$161 19.1%

Barcelona

$267 10.9% 66.3% $106

Accommodation & Living

Roman

$159 18.8%

Barcelona

$1.3K 54.7% 742% $1.2K

Clothing & Footwear

Roman

$109 12.9%

Barcelona

$157 6.4% 44.6% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Roman

$50 5.9%

Barcelona

$74 3% 47.3% $24

Getting Around

Roman

$27 3.3%

Barcelona

$49 2% 80.4% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $213 in Roman and $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Barcelona pays about 2.7 times 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: $33 in Roman vs $67 in Barcelona for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $176 vs $328 per month, with Roman cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Roman

🇪🇸 Barcelona

🕒 Local time

03:36 3:36 AM

02:36 2:36 AM

1 h behind Roman

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

80,328

1,660,122

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 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 5, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 5, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Roman Barcelona 2,060 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Roman
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

Roman vs Barcelona: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $842 in Roman and $2,443 in Barcelona, so Roman is about 66% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 63% lower in Roman. 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: $213 in Roman versus $1,697 in Barcelona. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $290 in Roman versus $944 in Barcelona. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 87% higher in Barcelona. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $842 in Roman versus $2,443 in Barcelona, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Roman but tight or insufficient in Barcelona. The gap between the two cities makes Roman 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.

Expats usually find Roman gentler on the wallet – expenses run 66% less than in Barcelona. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.