Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alba Iulia and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Alba Iulia: $898 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $37,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

43

Cost of Living Index in Alba Iulia
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Alba Iulia Living Index
196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Alba Iulia

🇷🇴 Romania

$898

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alba Iulia and in London

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $898 in Alba Iulia versus $4,048 in London.

Alba Iulia $898
London $4,048

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,374 in Alba Iulia versus $5,903 in London.

Alba Iulia $1,374
London $5,903

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,851 in Alba Iulia versus $7,758 in London.

Alba Iulia $1,851
London $7,758

Living in Alba Iulia costs roughly 78% less than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

The two cities straddle the global median: Alba Iulia is 34% below, London is 199% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.35 RON 39.69

$26.36 £19.59

-68.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$31.40 RON 149

$109 £80.7

-71.08%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.78 RON 27.46

$10.71 £7.96

-46.03%

Cappuccino

$2.22 RON 10.56

$5.59 £4.15

-60.29%

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

$1.73 RON 8.21

$3.00 £2.23

-42.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.49 RON 7.06

$2.22 £1.65

-32.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.03 RON 9.64

$9.65 £7.17

-78.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.08 RON 9.87

$8.26 £6.14

-74.82%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.28 RON 6.10

$1.97 £1.46

-35.03%

White Bread (500g)

$1.14 RON 5.44

$2.09 £1.55

-45.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.51 RON 7.16

$2.59 £1.93

-41.70%

Eggs

$2.81 RON 13.37

$5.37 £3.99

-47.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.54 RON 35.83

$13.12 £9.75

-42.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.90 RON 28.01

$11.03 £8.20

-46.51%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.86 RON 51.6

$17.73 £13.17

-38.75%

Apples (1kg)

$0.88 RON 4.19

$3.17 £2.36

-72.24%

Banana (1kg)

$1.34 RON 6.37

$1.38 £1.03

-2.90%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.27 RON 6.04

$2.82 £2.10

-54.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.29 RON 10.87

$3.36 £2.50

-31.85%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 RON 3.53

$1.70 £1.26

-56.47%

Onion (1kg)

$0.60 RON 2.83

$1.78 £1.32

-66.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.80 RON 3.80

$1.49 £1.11

-46.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.64 RON 3.04

$1.82 £1.35

-64.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.21 RON 24.76

$23.85 £17.72

-78.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.76

$13.44 £9.98

-69.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 RON 5.27

$3.11 £2.31

-64.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 RON 6.17

$4.49 £3.34

-71.05%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.69 RON 3.30

$4.13 £3.07

-83.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$16.91 RON 80.4

$266 £198

-93.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.68 RON 3.22

$5.98 £4.44

-88.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.68 RON 3.24

$3.39 £2.52

-79.94%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.54 RON 21.58

$56.6 £42.03

-91.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.58 RON 7.53

$2.21 £1.64

-28.51%

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

$29.0K RON 137.9K

$38.3K £28.4K

-24.15%

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

$24.4K RON 116.0K

$41.0K £30.5K

-40.48%

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

$123 RON 583

$372 £277

-67.04%

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

$7.35 RON 34.91

$18.66 £13.87

-60.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.88 RON 42.20

$40.53 £30.12

-78.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.11 RON 138

$56.0 £41.63

-48.04%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$31.62 RON 150

$17.10 £12.71

84.91%

Cinema Ticket

$4.90 RON 23.29

$17.95 £13.34

-72.70%

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

$452 RON 2,148

$2,946 £2,189

-84.65%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,571 RON 36.0K

$47.6K £35.4K

-84.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.88 RON 185

$116 £86.4

-66.55%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$24.10 RON 114

$56.9 £42.28

-57.64%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$75.0 RON 356

$128 £95.1

-41.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$62.1 RON 295

$154 £114

-59.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$289 RON 1,375

$2,935 £2,182

-90.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$282 RON 1,341

$2,258 £1,678

-87.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$607 RON 2,882

$5,250 £3,901

-88.45%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$474 RON 2,254

$3,859 £2,868

-87.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,629 RON 7,738

$17.2K £12.8K

-90.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,392 RON 6,614

$8,278 £6,152

-83.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$894 RON 4,250

$5,621 £4,177

-84.09%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.97

4.78

45.82%

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

Last update for Alba Iulia: October 31, 2026

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alba Iulia

$282 31.4%

London

$2.3K 55.8% 700% $2K

Groceries & Markets

Alba Iulia

$186 20.7%

London

$360 8.9% 93.7% $174

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alba Iulia

$139 15.5%

London

$432 10.7% 211% $293

Eating Out

Alba Iulia

$138 15.4%

London

$396 9.8% 187% $258

Clothing & Footwear

Alba Iulia

$90 10%

London

$205 5.1% 128% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Alba Iulia

$39 4.3%

London

$92 2.3% 136% $53

Getting Around

Alba Iulia

$24 2.7%

London

$305 7.6% 1184% $282

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $289 in Alba Iulia and $2,935 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays about 6.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $31 in Alba Iulia vs $109 in London for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $186 vs $360 per month, with Alba Iulia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Alba Iulia

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

10:16 10:16 AM

08:16 8:16 AM

2 h behind Alba Iulia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

63,536

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.743 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.835 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Alba Iulia London 1,830 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Alba Iulia
London

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

Alba Iulia vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alba Iulia is about 78% cheaper overall, especially in transport, eating out, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 84% lower in Alba Iulia. 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: $289 in Alba Iulia versus $2,935 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $898 per month in Alba Iulia versus $4,048 in London – Alba Iulia is about 78% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Alba Iulia runs roughly 94% less than in London. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $898 in Alba Iulia versus $4,048 in London, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Alba Iulia but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Alba Iulia 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 Alba Iulia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.