Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alcala de Henares and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $1,932 in Alcala de Henares, rent and utilities included – about $7,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

93

Cost of Living Index in Alcala de Henares
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Alcala de Henares Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Alcala de Henares

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,932

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alcala de Henares and in Bucharest

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,932 in Alcala de Henares versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Alcala de Henares $1,932
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,723 in Alcala de Henares versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Alcala de Henares $2,723
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,515 in Alcala de Henares versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Alcala de Henares $3,515
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Alcala de Henares is roughly 44% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Alcala de Henares is 43% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.00 €15.12

$14.49 RON 68.6

17.32%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$65.8 €58.5

$58.1 RON 275

13.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.08 €9.86

$7.48 RON 35.40

48.13%

Cappuccino

$2.72 €2.42

$3.44 RON 16.29

-20.93%

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

$3.34 €2.97

$2.37 RON 11.22

40.93%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 €1.67

$2.30 RON 10.88

-18.70%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.96 €3.52

$3.70 RON 17.51

7.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.64 €4.13

$4.16 RON 19.69

11.54%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.19 €1.05

$1.67 RON 7.90

-28.74%

White Bread (500g)

$1.55 €1.38

$1.37 RON 6.50

13.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 €1.53

$1.72 RON 8.14

Eggs

$2.96 €2.64

$3.64 RON 17.22

-18.68%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.99 €19.56

$9.08 RON 42.98

142.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.20 €8.18

$6.84 RON 32.35

34.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.25 €15.35

$12.00 RON 56.8

43.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.68 €2.39

$1.23 RON 5.80

117.89%

Banana (1kg)

$2.31 €2.05

$1.63 RON 7.73

41.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.18 €1.94

$1.57 RON 7.45

38.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 €2.29

$2.54 RON 12.01

1.57%

Potato (1kg)

$2.13 €1.89

$0.79 RON 3.75

169.62%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 €1.89

$0.77 RON 3.66

176.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.40

$0.87 RON 4.13

80.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.70 €0.63

$0.99 RON 4.70

-29.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.12 €5.44

$6.31 RON 29.86

-3.01%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.84 €6.98

$6.20 RON 29.34

26.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 €1.08

$1.19 RON 5.63

2.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.14 €1.91

$1.57 RON 7.45

36.31%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.46 €1.30

$0.86 RON 4.08

69.77%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$46.53 €41.39

$21.10 RON 99.8

120.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.80 €3.38

$0.64 RON 3.05

493.75%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.93 €1.72

$0.60 RON 2.86

221.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.26 €20.69

$6.43 RON 30.43

261.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.60

$1.96 RON 9.25

-8.16%

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

$35.7K €31.8K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

23.12%

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

$30.3K €26.9K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

13.65%

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

$189 €168

$196 RON 927

-3.61%

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

$19.65 €17.48

$8.04 RON 38.04

144.40%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.18 €26.85

$9.35 RON 44.21

222.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$40.29 €35.84

$50.2 RON 238

-19.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$8.12 €7.22

$25.33 RON 120

-67.94%

Cinema Ticket

$9.43 €8.39

$8.15 RON 38.55

15.71%

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

$178 €159

$628 RON 2,971

-71.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,820 €5,177

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-58.68%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$73.7 €65.6

$89.6 RON 424

-17.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$36.52 €32.48

$38.32 RON 181

-4.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.2 €69.6

$79.3 RON 375

-1.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$94.3 €83.9

$90.4 RON 428

4.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$966 €859

$678 RON 3,209

42.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$879 €782

$448 RON 2,121

96.04%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,858 €1,653

$1,083 RON 5,125

71.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,142 €1,016

$725 RON 3,430

57.48%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,260 €3,789

$3,751 RON 17.7K

13.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,507 €3,119

$2,195 RON 10.4K

59.75%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,735 €1,544

$1,329 RON 6,290

30.55%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.14

6.75

-53.48%

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

Last update for Alcala de Henares: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alcala de Henares

$879 45.5%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 49% $431

Groceries & Markets

Alcala de Henares

$310 16.1%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 27.4% $85

Eating Out

Alcala de Henares

$252 13%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 10.6% $27

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alcala de Henares

$239 12.4%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 10.6% $25

Clothing & Footwear

Alcala de Henares

$127 6.6%

Bucharest

$134 10% 5.2% $6.6

Getting Around

Alcala de Henares

$66 3.4%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 57.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Alcala de Henares

$59 3.1%

Bucharest

$67 5% 12.5% $7.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $966 in Alcala de Henares and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Alcala de Henares pays 31% 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: $66.0 in Alcala de Henares vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $310 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇪🇸 Alcala de Henares

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

12:29 12:29 PM

1 h ahead of Alcala de Henares

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

199,184

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Alcala de Henares Bucharest 2,440 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Alcala de Henares
Bucharest

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

Alcala de Henares vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alcala de Henares and Bucharest differ by about 44% in total monthly costs ($1,932 vs $1,340 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 31% higher in Alcala de Henares, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $966 in Alcala de Henares versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $178 in Alcala de Henares versus $628 in Bucharest. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 38% higher in Alcala de Henares. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,932 in Alcala de Henares, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Alcala de Henares. The gap between the two cities makes Bucharest 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, Alcala de Henares and Bucharest 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 Bucharest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Alcala de Henares. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.