Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Ballsh

For one person, living is cheaper in Ballsh: $1,214 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $1,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bucharest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Ballsh
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Ballsh Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Ballsh

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,214

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Ballsh

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

A single person spends $1,351 per month in Bucharest vs $1,214 in Ballsh, rent included.

Bucharest $1,351
Ballsh $1,214

A couple spends around $2,033 per month in Bucharest vs $1,852 in Ballsh, rent included.

Bucharest $2,033
Ballsh $1,852

A family of three spends $2,715 per month in Bucharest vs $2,490 in Ballsh, rent included.

Bucharest $2,715
Ballsh $2,490

Bucharest costs about 11% more than Ballsh, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Bucharest sits 1% above the global median, while Ballsh is 9% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$9.99 ALL 813

44.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$55.1 ALL 4,482

4.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$7.22 ALL 587

3.88%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$2.33 ALL 189

47.21%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$1.42 ALL 116

73.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$0.85 ALL 69.1

174.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$3.56 ALL 290

6.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$4.14 ALL 337

-0.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$2.30 ALL 187

-28.26%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$1.18 ALL 96.4

14.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$2.43 ALL 198

-26.75%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$3.79 ALL 308

-3.43%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$12.96 ALL 1,054

-33.87%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$9.41 ALL 766

-27.74%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$16.85 ALL 1,371

-30.45%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$1.93 ALL 157

-33.16%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$2.42 ALL 197

-35.54%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$2.16 ALL 176

-28.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$1.84 ALL 149

34.78%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$1.02 ALL 82.9

-18.63%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$1.31 ALL 107

-38.93%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$1.44 ALL 117

-41.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$0.75 ALL 61.2

24.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$4.72 ALL 384

36.44%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$10.52 ALL 856

-39.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$1.59 ALL 129

-20.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$2.01 ALL 164

-20.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$0.47 ALL 38.18

72.34%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

$19.41 ALL 1,579

8.86%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$3.81 ALL 310

-84.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$3.80 ALL 309

-83.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$18.85 ALL 1,534

-67.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$2.28 ALL 185

-14.04%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$34.1K ALL 2.8M

-17.43%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$36.2K ALL 2.9M

-27.31%

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

$197 RON 931

$99.2 ALL 8,074

98.36%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$18.74 ALL 1,524

-55.50%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$20.45 ALL 1,664

-55.06%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$55.9 ALL 4,549

-10.80%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$10.13 ALL 824

-16.49%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$351 ALL 28.6K

82.00%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$8,230 ALL 669.6K

74.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$50.0 ALL 4,069

81.16%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

$48.21 ALL 3,922

-21.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$120 ALL 9,755

-33.56%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$113 ALL 9,212

-17.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$473 ALL 38.5K

42.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$331 ALL 26.9K

35.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$721 ALL 58.7K

52.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$469 ALL 38.2K

55.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$1,863 ALL 151.6K

100.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$1,217 ALL 99.0K

79.83%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

5.39

25.05%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Ballsh: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Ballsh

$331 27.7% 26.3% $118

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Ballsh

$165 13.8% 27% $61

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Ballsh

$292 24.4% 31.6% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Ballsh

$138 11.6% 35.4% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Ballsh

$149 12.5% 9.9% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Ballsh

$76 6.4% 14% $9.4

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Ballsh

$44 3.7% 57.1% $16

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $673 in Bucharest versus $473 in Ballsh. 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 $55.0 in Ballsh. Groceries tell a different story – $222 in Bucharest vs $292 in Ballsh – so Bucharest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇦🇱 Ballsh

🕒 Local time

13:24 1:24 PM

12:24 12:24 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

7,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 81.36 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 91.17 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Ballsh 670 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Ballsh

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 Ballsh: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Bucharest is pricier by about 11%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,027 per month in Bucharest and $1,821 in Ballsh. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Interestingly, groceries are about 32% cheaper in Bucharest – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Bucharest and $55.0 in Ballsh. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,500 monthly budget goes further in Ballsh, where all-in costs run around $1,214, than in Bucharest at $1,351. In Ballsh it covers expenses comfortably, while in Bucharest it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Ballsh – 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 Ballsh. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Bucharest makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.