Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Brasilia and Alba Iulia

For one person, living costs are similar in Brasilia and in Alba Iulia: $916 and $901 a month, rent and utilities included.

44

Cost of Living Index in Brasilia
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Brasilia Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Alba Iulia
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Alba Iulia Living Index

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Brasilia

🇧🇷 Brazil

$916

/mo nomad

Alba Iulia

🇷🇴 Romania

$901

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $916 in Brasilia versus $901 in Alba Iulia.

Brasilia $916
Alba Iulia $901

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,514 in Brasilia versus $1,378 in Alba Iulia.

Brasilia $1,514
Alba Iulia $1,378

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,112 in Brasilia versus $1,855 in Alba Iulia.

Brasilia $2,112
Alba Iulia $1,855

Living in Brasilia is roughly 2% more expensive than in Alba Iulia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Brasilia 33% lower, Alba Iulia 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.44 R$45.11

$8.60 RON 41.32

-1.86%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$36.71 R$196

$30.98 RON 149

18.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.98 R$42.68

$5.88 RON 28.25

35.71%

Cappuccino

$2.53 R$13.50

$2.28 RON 10.95

10.96%

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

$1.42 R$7.59

$1.75 RON 8.43

-18.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.00 R$5.36

$1.48 RON 7.13

-32.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.20 R$11.76

$1.97 RON 9.45

11.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.76 R$20.08

$2.04 RON 9.79

84.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.02 R$5.45

$1.23 RON 5.91

-17.07%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 R$10.45

$1.08 RON 5.20

80.56%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.24 R$6.63

$1.43 RON 6.86

-13.29%

Eggs

$2.27 R$12.16

$2.69 RON 12.93

-15.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.17 R$59.7

$7.53 RON 36.17

48.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.86 R$20.66

$6.03 RON 28.97

-35.99%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.58 R$45.86

$10.80 RON 51.9

-20.56%

Apples (1kg)

$2.31 R$12.33

$0.92 RON 4.44

151.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 R$7.37

$1.31 RON 6.29

5.34%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.26 R$6.72

$1.26 RON 6.06

Tomato (1kg)

$1.52 R$8.13

$2.33 RON 11.20

-34.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.11 R$5.94

$0.72 RON 3.44

54.17%

Onion (1kg)

$0.98 R$5.22

$0.59 RON 2.83

66.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.76 R$4.04

$0.87 RON 4.18

-12.64%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 R$4.99

$0.61 RON 2.92

52.46%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.36 R$12.64

$5.18 RON 24.88

-54.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.67 R$41.00

$4.28 RON 20.56

79.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 R$6.63

$1.12 RON 5.36

10.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 R$12.59

$1.27 RON 6.11

85.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.73 R$3.90

$0.75 RON 3.60

-2.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.76 R$159

$16.98 RON 81.6

75.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.01 R$5.42

$0.64 RON 3.06

57.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.86 R$4.59

$0.63 RON 3.03

36.51%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.77 R$30.86

$4.47 RON 21.46

29.08%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.25 R$6.67

$1.50 RON 7.20

-16.67%

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

$22.0K R$117.4K

$28.8K RON 138.4K

-23.75%

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

$31.9K R$170.3K

$23.7K RON 114.1K

34.18%

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

$92.1 R$493

$125 RON 598

-26.03%

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

$11.85 R$63.3

$7.31 RON 35.12

62.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$20.93 R$112

$9.01 RON 43.29

132.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$30.47 R$163

$29.55 RON 142

3.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$26.29 R$141

$30.83 RON 148

-14.73%

Cinema Ticket

$7.46 R$39.91

$5.09 RON 24.44

46.56%

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

$764 R$4,087

$435 RON 2,092

75.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K R$84.1K

$6,969 RON 33.5K

125.58%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.6 R$281

$38.02 RON 183

38.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.10 R$225

$23.94 RON 115

75.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.4 R$425

$73.8 RON 355

7.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$83.6 R$447

$61.7 RON 297

35.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$517 R$2,765

$296 RON 1,422

74.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$242 R$1,291

$283 RON 1,360

-14.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,156 R$6,183

$612 RON 2,941

88.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$580 R$3,099

$478 RON 2,298

21.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,398 R$12.8K

$1,643 RON 7,894

46.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,678 R$8,972

$1,401 RON 6,732

19.79%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$784 R$4,194

$903 RON 4,340

-13.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

12.12

6.97

73.89%

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

Last update for Brasilia: October 24, 2026

Last update for Alba Iulia: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Brasilia

$242 26.4%

Alba Iulia

$283 31.4% 17.2% $41

Groceries & Markets

Brasilia

$201 21.9%

Alba Iulia

$185 20.5% 7.9% $16

Eating Out

Brasilia

$150 16.4%

Alba Iulia

$141 15.6% 6.2% $9.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Brasilia

$125 13.6%

Alba Iulia

$141 15.6% 12.8% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Brasilia

$116 12.7%

Alba Iulia

$89 9.9% 23.4% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Brasilia

$45 5%

Alba Iulia

$40 4.4% 12.5% $5.7

Getting Around

Brasilia

$38 4.1%

Alba Iulia

$24 2.6% 37.4% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $517 in Brasilia and $296 in Alba Iulia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Alba Iulia pays 15% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $37 in Brasilia vs $31 in Alba Iulia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $201 vs $185 per month, with Alba Iulia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇧🇷 Brasilia

🇷🇴 Alba Iulia

🕒 Local time

15:00 3:00 PM

20:00 8:00 PM

5 h ahead of Brasilia

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,817,381 Capital

63,536

💱 Currency

Brazilian Real BRL R$

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 BRL = 0.187 USD

1 BRL = 0.168 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to BRL – Brazilian Real Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇧🇷 Brazilian Real (R$)

Brazilian Real exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 5.35 BRL (1 BRL = 0.187 USD). 1 EUR = 5.95 BRL (1 BRL = 0.168 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to BRL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Brasilia Alba Iulia 9,900 km ≈ 13 h nonstop flight

From you

Brasilia
Alba Iulia

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

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

Alba Iulia is cheaper overall, especially in clothing, utilities, and groceries. The 2% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

On paper, salaries run 13% lower in Brasilia. 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: $517 in Brasilia versus $296 in Alba Iulia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $916 per month in Brasilia versus $901 in Alba Iulia – a 2% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Alba Iulia runs roughly 43% less than in Brasilia. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

For families, Alba Iulia is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Brasilia, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Alba Iulia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 2% less than in Brasilia. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.