Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Amparai

For one person, living is cheaper in Amparai: $501 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $10,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
24

Cost of Living Index in Amparai
Learn more

Amparai Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Amparai

🇱🇰 Sri Lanka

$501

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Amparai

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 Amparai actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $501 in Amparai.

Bucharest $1,340
Amparai $501

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $815 in Amparai.

Bucharest $2,037
Amparai $815

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $1,128 in Amparai.

Bucharest $2,734
Amparai $1,128

Living in Bucharest is roughly 168% more expensive than in Amparai, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Amparai 63% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$4.34 LKR 1,437

233.87%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$24.60 LKR 8,148

136.14%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$7.64 LKR 2,532

-2.09%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$2.50 LKR 829

37.60%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$0.73 LKR 242

224.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$0.27 LKR 89.6

751.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$2.23 LKR 737

65.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$3.12 LKR 1,033

33.33%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.64 LKR 542

1.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$0.54 LKR 178

153.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$0.74 LKR 245

132.43%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$1.57 LKR 521

131.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$13.64 LKR 4,517

-33.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$4.78 LKR 1,582

43.10%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$7.58 LKR 2,512

58.31%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$6.65 LKR 2,201

-81.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$0.79 LKR 262

106.33%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$4.61 LKR 1,527

-65.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$1.22 LKR 405

108.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.02 LKR 339

-22.55%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$0.80 LKR 265

-3.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$0.93 LKR 308

-6.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.46 LKR 153

115.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$10.32 LKR 3,420

-38.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$13.38 LKR 4,433

-53.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.90 LKR 630

-37.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.93 LKR 972

-46.42%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$0.40 LKR 133

60.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$0.35 LKR 115

71.43%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$0.94 LKR 311

584.04%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.38 LKR 456

42.03%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$37.3K LKR 12.4M

-22.29%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$40.3K LKR 13.4M

-33.92%

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

$196 RON 927

$54.2 LKR 18.0K

261.29%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$4.14 LKR 1,372

94.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$20.40 LKR 6,756

-54.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$1.81 LKR 598

350.28%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$37.41 LKR 12.4K

1578.70%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$1,223 LKR 404.9K

1051.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$17.96 LKR 5,948

398.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$16.50 LKR 5,464

132.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$78.4 LKR 26.0K

1.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$42.66 LKR 14.1K

111.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$90.4 LKR 29.9K

1370.18%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

12.69

-46.81%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Amparai: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Amparai

- * 0% 100%

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Amparai

$109 21.8% 51.6% $116

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Amparai

$237 47.4% 5.4% $12

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Amparai

$79 15.7% 63.1% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Amparai

$70 14% 47.7% $64

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Amparai

$3.6 * 0.7% 94.6% $63

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Amparai

$2.1 * 0.4% 92.4% $26

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Bucharest pays 1370% 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: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $25.00 in Amparai. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $237, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇱🇰 Amparai

🕒 Local time

15:12 3:12 PM

17:42 5:42 PM

2 h 30 min ahead of Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

110,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Sri Lankan Rupee LKR Rs

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD

1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LKR, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Sri Lankan Rupee exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 331 LKR (1,000 LKR = 3.02 USD). 1 EUR = 372 LKR (1,000 LKR = 2.69 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Amparai 6,750 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Amparai

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 Amparai: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Amparai is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, clothing, and leisure. The 168% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 1370% higher in Bucharest, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Childcare runs $628 in Bucharest versus $37.41 in Amparai. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Amparai – a meal for two runs $25.00 versus $58.0 in Bucharest. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $501 in Amparai versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Amparai but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Amparai the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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

Expats usually find Amparai gentler on the wallet – expenses run 168% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.