Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Airolo

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $3,388 in Airolo, rent and utilities included – about $24,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
165

Cost of Living Index in Airolo
Learn more

Airolo Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Airolo

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,388

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Airolo

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

A single person spends $1,340 per month in Bucharest vs $3,388 in Airolo, rent included.

Bucharest $1,340
Airolo $3,388

A couple spends around $2,037 per month in Bucharest vs $5,161 in Airolo, rent included.

Bucharest $2,037
Airolo $5,161

A family of three spends $2,734 per month in Bucharest vs $6,934 in Airolo, rent included.

Bucharest $2,734
Airolo $6,934

Bucharest is about 60% cheaper than Airolo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Bucharest sits 1% below the global median, while Airolo is 151% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$30.08 CHF 24.77

-51.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$122 CHF 100

-52.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$18.00 CHF 14.83

-58.44%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$6.19 CHF 5.10

-44.43%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$5.28 CHF 4.35

-55.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$4.93 CHF 4.06

-53.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$8.87 CHF 7.30

-58.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$7.40 CHF 6.10

-43.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$2.13 CHF 1.75

-21.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$3.74 CHF 3.08

-63.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$3.66 CHF 3.02

-53.01%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$7.68 CHF 6.32

-52.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$26.26 CHF 21.63

-65.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$28.37 CHF 23.36

-75.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$40.16 CHF 33.08

-70.12%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$3.47 CHF 2.86

-64.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$1.97 CHF 1.62

-17.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.71 CHF 2.23

-42.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$4.75 CHF 3.92

-46.53%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.76 CHF 1.45

-55.11%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.16 CHF 1.78

-64.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$2.27 CHF 1.87

-61.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$1.30 CHF 1.07

-23.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$10.95 CHF 9.02

-42.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$12.99 CHF 10.70

-52.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$2.77 CHF 2.28

-57.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.23 CHF 2.66

-51.39%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$4.61 CHF 3.80

-81.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$100 CHF 82.4

-78.90%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$7.74 CHF 6.37

-91.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$4.59 CHF 3.78

-86.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$73.8 CHF 60.8

-91.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$2.26 CHF 1.86

-13.27%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$41.6K CHF 34.2K

-30.24%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$39.2K CHF 32.3K

-31.98%

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

$196 RON 927

$282 CHF 232

-30.41%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$33.23 CHF 27.37

-75.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$55.5 CHF 45.69

-83.14%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$88.6 CHF 73.0

-43.33%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$45.27 CHF 37.29

-44.05%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$22.94 CHF 18.90

-64.47%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$2,616 CHF 2,155

-76.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$33.5K CHF 27.6K

-58.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$138 CHF 114

-35.10%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$59.4 CHF 48.96

-35.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$148 CHF 122

-46.40%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$186 CHF 153

-51.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$1,687 CHF 1,389

-59.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$1,437 CHF 1,184

-68.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$2,878 CHF 2,370

-62.36%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$2,427 CHF 1,999

-70.13%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$16.0K CHF 13.2K

-76.57%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$12.1K CHF 10.0K

-81.92%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

2.07

226.09%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Airolo: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Airolo

$1.4K 42.4% 221% $989

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Airolo

$469 13.8% 108% $244

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Airolo

$589 17.4% 162% $364

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Airolo

$370 10.9% 73.6% $157

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Airolo

$239 7.1% 78.4% $105

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Airolo

$135 4% 102% $68

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Airolo

$149 4.4% 429% $121

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $678 in Bucharest versus $1,687 in Airolo. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Bucharest versus $122 in Airolo. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $589 – making Bucharest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇭 Airolo

🕒 Local time

08:37 8:37 AM

07:37 7:37 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

1,500

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Airolo 1,380 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Airolo

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

Bucharest vs Airolo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Airolo costs about 153% more than Bucharest, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,011 per month in Bucharest and $5,083 in Airolo. 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.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,340 in Bucharest and $3,388 in Airolo. That's a gap of about 153%.

Public transport costs about 374% less in Bucharest. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bucharest, where all-in costs run around $1,340, than in Airolo at $3,388. In Bucharest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Airolo it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bucharest costs $1,340 versus $3,388 in Airolo. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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