Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Arun

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,337 a month against $2,629 in Arun, rent and utilities included – about $15,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
123

Cost of Living Index in Arun
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Arun Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Arun

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,629

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Arun

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

A single person spends $1,337 per month in Bucharest vs $2,629 in Arun, rent included.

Bucharest $1,337
Arun $2,629

A couple spends around $2,029 per month in Bucharest vs $3,863 in Arun, rent included.

Bucharest $2,029
Arun $3,863

A family of three spends $2,721 per month in Bucharest vs $5,097 in Arun, rent included.

Bucharest $2,721
Arun $5,097

Bucharest is about 49% cheaper than Arun, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Bucharest sits 1% below the global median, while Arun is 94% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.45 RON 68.4

$26.34 £19.76

-45.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$108 £81.3

-46.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 RON 35.65

$10.69 £8.02

-29.56%

Cappuccino

$3.45 RON 16.33

$5.82 £4.37

-40.72%

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

$2.46 RON 11.65

$3.02 £2.26

-18.54%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 RON 10.54

$2.21 £1.65

0.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.76 RON 17.78

$9.08 £6.81

-58.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 RON 19.84

$8.31 £6.24

-49.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 RON 7.67

$1.89 £1.42

-14.29%

White Bread (500g)

$1.30 RON 6.13

$2.02 £1.52

-35.64%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 RON 8.05

$2.45 £1.84

-30.61%

Eggs

$3.79 RON 17.93

$5.09 £3.82

-25.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.86 RON 41.90

$4.70 £3.52

88.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.90 RON 32.67

$10.72 £8.04

-35.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.14 RON 57.4

$17.19 £12.90

-29.38%

Apples (1kg)

$1.30 RON 6.17

$3.08 £2.31

-57.79%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.55

$1.11 £0.83

44.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.42

$3.00 £2.25

-47.67%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 RON 12.67

$3.39 £2.55

-20.94%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.82

$1.61 £1.21

-49.69%

Onion (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.73

$1.80 £1.35

-56.11%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.91 RON 4.30

$1.45 £1.09

-37.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 RON 4.58

$1.88 £1.41

-48.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.41 RON 30.34

$23.67 £17.76

-72.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 RON 29.24

$13.11 £9.84

-52.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 RON 5.83

$3.23 £2.42

-61.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 RON 7.91

$4.49 £3.37

-62.81%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 RON 4.10

$3.63 £2.72

-76.03%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.98 RON 99.3

$99.1 £74.3

-78.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.66 RON 3.10

$5.72 £4.29

-88.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.85

$3.23 £2.42

-81.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.19 RON 29.28

$26.16 £19.62

-76.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.15

$1.92 £1.44

0.52%

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

$28.7K RON 135.9K

$38.8K £29.1K

-26.03%

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

$26.3K RON 124.6K

$41.1K £30.8K

-35.87%

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

$196 RON 926

$370 £277

-47.08%

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

$8.49 RON 40.19

$17.94 £13.46

-52.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.05 RON 42.84

$39.96 £29.98

-77.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.54 RON 234

$53.1 £39.87

-6.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.03 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$8.24 RON 39.01

$6.15 £4.61

33.98%

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

$636 RON 3,007

$2,919 £2,190

-78.22%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K RON 69.0K

$36.4K £27.3K

-59.96%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 RON 419

$117 £87.8

-24.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 RON 183

$39.30 £29.48

-1.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.8 RON 373

$128 £96.2

-38.58%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 RON 428

$66.6 £49.94

36.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 RON 3,288

$1,164 £874

-40.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$446 RON 2,109

$1,119 £840

-60.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,084 RON 5,130

$2,254 £1,691

-51.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$712 RON 3,368

$1,796 £1,347

-60.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,797 RON 18.0K

$4,762 £3,572

-20.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,202 RON 10.4K

$4,150 £3,113

-46.93%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,406

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

4.74

42.41%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Arun: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$446 33.3%

Arun

$1.1K 42.6% 151% $673

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.9%

Arun

$396 15.1% 75.4% $170

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.9%

Arun

$328 12.5% 45.3% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Arun

$428 16.3% 101% $214

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$133 10%

Arun

$158 6% 18.4% $25

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$66 4.9%

Arun

$65 2.5% 0.9% $0.6

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Arun

$135 5.2% 382% $107

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $695 in Bucharest versus $1,164 in Arun. 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 $108 in Arun. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $225 vs $328 – making Bucharest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇬🇧 Arun

🕒 Local time

02:43 2:43 AM

00:43 12:43 AM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

3,285

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Arun 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Arun

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 Arun: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Arun costs about 97% more than Bucharest, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,006 per month in Bucharest and $3,943 in Arun. 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.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Bucharest and $108 in Arun. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,337 in Bucharest and $2,629 in Arun. That's a gap of about 97%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bucharest, where all-in costs run around $1,337, than in Arun at $2,629. In Bucharest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Arun it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bucharest costs $1,337 versus $2,629 in Arun. 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, Arun makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.