Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Balzan

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $1,963 in Balzan, rent and utilities included – about $7,300 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
94

Cost of Living Index in Balzan
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Balzan Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Balzan

🇲🇹 Malta

$1,963

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Balzan

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

A single person spends $1,351 per month in Bucharest vs $1,963 in Balzan, rent included.

Bucharest $1,351
Balzan $1,963

A couple spends around $2,033 per month in Bucharest vs $2,917 in Balzan, rent included.

Bucharest $2,033
Balzan $2,917

A family of three spends $2,715 per month in Bucharest vs $3,871 in Balzan, rent included.

Bucharest $2,715
Balzan $3,871

Bucharest is about 31% cheaper than Balzan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Bucharest and Balzan sit above the global median – Bucharest by 1%, Balzan by 46%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$19.07 €17.02

-24.17%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$91.5 €81.7

-37.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$12.43 €11.09

-39.66%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$3.22 €2.87

6.52%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$2.02 €1.80

21.78%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$1.01 €0.90

130.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$3.38 €3.02

12.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$2.51 €2.24

63.35%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$1.28 €1.14

28.91%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$1.00 €0.89

35.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$3.63 €3.24

-50.96%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$4.26 €3.81

-14.08%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$10.45 €9.33

-17.99%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$9.05 €8.08

-24.86%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$12.43 €11.09

-5.71%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$2.67 €2.39

-51.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$1.98 €1.77

-21.21%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$1.80 €1.61

-14.44%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$1.17 €1.05

111.97%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$0.88 €0.79

-5.68%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$0.87 €0.77

-8.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$0.83 €0.74

1.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$1.02 €0.91

-8.82%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$6.23 €5.56

3.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$5.90 €5.27

7.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$1.05 €0.94

20.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$1.51 €1.35

5.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$3.19 €2.84

-74.61%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$2.30 €2.05

-73.91%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$1.78 €1.59

-65.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$32.65 €29.14

-81.10%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$1.50 €1.34

30.67%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$28.7K €25.6K

-1.92%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$32.8K €29.3K

-19.79%

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

$197 RON 931

$158 €141

24.76%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$20.27 €18.09

-58.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$29.53 €26.36

-68.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$62.4 €55.7

-20.08%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$11.75 €10.49

-28.00%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$279 €249

128.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$12.4K €11.1K

16.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$76.4 €68.2

18.57%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

$63.3 €56.4

-39.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$113 €101

-29.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$133 €119

-30.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$1,170 €1,044

-42.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$949 €847

-52.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$1,804 €1,610

-39.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$1,504 €1,342

-51.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$3,953 €3,527

-5.38%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$2,826 €2,522

-22.55%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$1,019 €909

29.90%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

4.05

66.42%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Balzan: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Balzan

$949 48.7% 111% $500

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Balzan

$263 13.5% 16.3% $37

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Balzan

$247 12.7% 11.2% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Balzan

$208 10.7% 3.2% $6.8

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Balzan

$174 8.9% 28.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Balzan

$86 4.4% 28.6% $19

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Balzan

$24 * 1.2% 14.6% $4.1

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $673 in Bucharest versus $1,170 in Balzan. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 30% higher in Bucharest, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $58.0 in Bucharest versus $92.0 in Balzan. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $222 vs $247 – making Bucharest the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇲🇹 Balzan

🕒 Local time

09:12 9:12 AM

08:12 8:12 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

4,700

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Balzan 1,370 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Balzan

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 Balzan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $1,351 in Bucharest, $1,963 in Balzan – roughly 45% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,027 per month in Bucharest and $2,944 in Balzan. 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 $92.0 in Balzan. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 11% more in Balzan, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bucharest, where all-in costs run around $1,351, than in Balzan at $1,963. In Bucharest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Balzan it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Bucharest has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,351 in Bucharest to $1,963 in Balzan. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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