Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Biel and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,826 in Biel, rent and utilities included – about $17,800 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

137

Cost of Living Index in Biel
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Biel Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Biel

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,826

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

A single person spends $2,826 per month in Biel vs $1,340 in Bucharest, rent included.

Biel $2,826
Bucharest $1,340

A couple spends around $4,452 per month in Biel vs $2,037 in Bucharest, rent included.

Biel $4,452
Bucharest $2,037

A family of three spends $6,078 per month in Biel vs $2,734 in Bucharest, rent included.

Biel $6,078
Bucharest $2,734

Biel costs about 111% more than Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Biel sits 109% above the global median, while Bucharest is 1% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.08 CHF 24.77

$14.49 RON 68.6

107.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 CHF 88.9

$58.1 RON 275

85.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.28 CHF 15.06

$7.48 RON 35.40

144.39%

Cappuccino

$6.07 CHF 5.00

$3.44 RON 16.29

76.45%

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

$5.17 CHF 4.26

$2.37 RON 11.22

118.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.13 CHF 3.40

$2.30 RON 10.88

79.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.77 CHF 6.40

$3.70 RON 17.51

110.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.91 CHF 4.04

$4.16 RON 19.69

18.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.09 CHF 1.72

$1.67 RON 7.90

25.15%

White Bread (500g)

$3.78 CHF 3.11

$1.37 RON 6.50

175.91%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.30 CHF 2.72

$1.72 RON 8.14

91.86%

Eggs

$7.19 CHF 5.92

$3.64 RON 17.22

97.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.93 CHF 18.06

$9.08 RON 42.98

141.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$27.12 CHF 22.34

$6.84 RON 32.35

296.49%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$38.83 CHF 31.98

$12.00 RON 56.8

223.58%

Apples (1kg)

$3.06 CHF 2.52

$1.23 RON 5.80

148.78%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.68

$1.63 RON 7.73

25.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.46 CHF 2.02

$1.57 RON 7.45

56.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.10 CHF 2.55

$2.54 RON 12.01

22.05%

Potato (1kg)

$1.47 CHF 1.21

$0.79 RON 3.75

86.08%

Onion (1kg)

$1.81 CHF 1.49

$0.77 RON 3.66

135.06%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.04 CHF 1.68

$0.87 RON 4.13

134.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.05 CHF 0.87

$0.99 RON 4.70

6.06%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.99 CHF 9.05

$6.31 RON 29.86

74.17%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.90 CHF 12.28

$6.20 RON 29.34

140.32%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.92 CHF 0.76

$1.19 RON 5.63

-22.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.77 CHF 1.46

$1.57 RON 7.45

12.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.91 CHF 4.04

$0.86 RON 4.08

470.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.3 CHF 76.9

$21.10 RON 99.8

342.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.84 CHF 6.46

$0.64 RON 3.05

1125.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.53 CHF 3.73

$0.60 RON 2.86

655.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$83.0 CHF 68.4

$6.43 RON 30.43

1191.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 CHF 1.83

$1.96 RON 9.25

13.27%

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

$41.7K CHF 34.4K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

43.87%

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

$34.8K CHF 28.7K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

30.77%

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

$137 CHF 113

$196 RON 927

-29.84%

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

$35.74 CHF 29.43

$8.04 RON 38.04

344.53%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.2 CHF 41.30

$9.35 RON 44.21

436.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$77.2 CHF 63.6

$50.2 RON 238

53.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$21.92 CHF 18.05

$8.15 RON 38.55

168.96%

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

$2,620 CHF 2,158

$628 RON 2,971

317.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$37.2K CHF 30.6K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

163.94%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$108 CHF 89.2

$89.6 RON 424

20.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.74 CHF 33.56

$38.32 RON 181

6.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$136 CHF 112

$79.3 RON 375

71.41%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$219 CHF 180

$90.4 RON 428

142.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,240 CHF 1,022

$678 RON 3,209

82.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,120 CHF 922

$448 RON 2,121

149.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,275 CHF 1,874

$1,083 RON 5,125

110.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,035 CHF 1,676

$725 RON 3,430

180.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,683 CHF 7,975

$3,751 RON 17.7K

158.11%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,818 CHF 6,439

$2,195 RON 10.4K

256.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,516 CHF 4,543

$1,329 RON 6,290

314.95%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.68

6.75

-75.11%

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

Last update for Biel: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Biel

$1.1K 39.6%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 60% $671

Groceries & Markets

Biel

$538 19%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 58.2% $313

Eating Out

Biel

$454 16.1%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 50.4% $229

Clothing & Footwear

Biel

$227 8%

Bucharest

$134 10% 40.9% $93

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Biel

$223 7.9%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 4.5% $10

Getting Around

Biel

$143 5.1%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 80.3% $115

Sport & Entertainment

Biel

$121 4.3%

Bucharest

$67 5% 45% $54

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,240 in Biel versus $678 in Bucharest. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 315% higher in Biel, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in Biel versus $58.0 in Bucharest. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $538 vs $225 – making Bucharest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Biel

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

05:31 5:31 AM

06:31 6:31 AM

1 h ahead of Biel

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,378

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

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Between locations

Biel Bucharest 1,490 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Biel
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

Biel vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Biel is pricier by about 111%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,240 per month in Biel and $2,011 in Bucharest. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bucharest, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 342% less in Bucharest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $2,620 per month in Biel and $628 in Bucharest. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bucharest, where all-in costs run around $1,340, than in Biel at $2,826. In Bucharest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Biel it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Bucharest – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Bucharest. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Biel makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.