Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Brazzaville

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $1,931 in Brazzaville, rent and utilities included – about $7,000 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Brazzaville outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
93

Cost of Living Index in Brazzaville
Learn more

Brazzaville Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Brazzaville

🇨🇬 Republic of the Congo

$1,931

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Brazzaville

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

A single person spends $1,351 per month in Bucharest vs $1,931 in Brazzaville, rent included.

Bucharest $1,351
Brazzaville $1,931

A couple spends around $2,033 per month in Bucharest vs $2,959 in Brazzaville, rent included.

Bucharest $2,033
Brazzaville $2,959

A family of three spends $2,715 per month in Bucharest vs $3,986 in Brazzaville, rent included.

Bucharest $2,715
Brazzaville $3,986

Bucharest is about 30% cheaper than Brazzaville, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Bucharest and Brazzaville sit above the global median – Bucharest by 1%, Brazzaville by 44%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$8.22 FCFA 4,812

75.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$49.75 FCFA 29.1K

15.88%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$4.85 FCFA 2,839

54.64%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$4.05 FCFA 2,370

-15.31%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$1.59 FCFA 929

54.72%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$1.31 FCFA 766

77.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$5.58 FCFA 3,264

-31.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$3.69 FCFA 2,157

11.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$2.75 FCFA 1,608

-40.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$4.81 FCFA 2,813

-71.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$3.00 FCFA 1,754

-40.67%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$2.87 FCFA 1,678

27.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$16.06 FCFA 9,399

-46.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$9.45 FCFA 5,527

-28.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$14.39 FCFA 8,422

-18.55%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$2.42 FCFA 1,413

-46.69%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$1.75 FCFA 1,022

-10.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$3.57 FCFA 2,089

-56.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$2.91 FCFA 1,701

-14.78%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$2.58 FCFA 1,509

-67.83%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$2.35 FCFA 1,376

-65.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$1.36 FCFA 796

-38.24%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$0.83 FCFA 487

12.05%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$3.73 FCFA 2,181

72.65%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$10.38 FCFA 6,075

-39.11%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$0.25 FCFA 145

224.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

$23.00 FCFA 13.5K

-8.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.73 FCFA 1,011

-65.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$1.31 FCFA 768

-53.44%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$6.75 FCFA 3,946

-8.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$1.36 FCFA 798

44.12%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$29.5K FCFA 17.2M

-4.43%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$26.9K FCFA 15.7M

-2.33%

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

$197 RON 931

$839 FCFA 491.1K

-76.55%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$17.27 FCFA 10.1K

-51.71%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$42.17 FCFA 24.7K

-78.21%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$26.27 FCFA 15.4K

89.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

$13.90 FCFA 8,133

79.78%

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$5.60 FCFA 3,279

51.07%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$52.2 FCFA 30.5K

1125.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$1,175 FCFA 687.2K

-42.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$451 FCFA 264.1K

-0.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$3,203 FCFA 1.9M

-65.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$1,449 FCFA 848.0K

-49.71%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$3,458 FCFA 2.0M

8.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$2,979 FCFA 1.7M

-26.53%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$451 FCFA 264.1K

193.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

6.54

3.06%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Brazzaville: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Brazzaville

$451 23.4% 0.6% $2.5

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Brazzaville

$176 9.1% 22.1% $50

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Brazzaville

$338 * 17.5% 52.3% $116

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Brazzaville

$899 46.5% 319% $684

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Brazzaville

- * 0% 100%

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Brazzaville

$37 1.9% 43.9% $29

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Brazzaville

$32 1.7% 15% $4.2

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 $1,175 in Brazzaville. 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 193% 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 $50.0 in Brazzaville. Groceries tell a different story – $222 in Bucharest vs $338 in Brazzaville – so Bucharest wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇬 Brazzaville

🕒 Local time

12:05 12:05 PM

10:05 10:05 AM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

1,932,610 Capital

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Central African CFA Franc XAF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XAF = 1.52 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XAF, 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).

Central African CFA Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 585 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 656 XAF (1,000 XAF = 1.52 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Brazzaville 5,520 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Brazzaville

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 Brazzaville: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Brazzaville costs about 43% more than Bucharest, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from clothing. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $2,027 per month in Bucharest and $2,897 in Brazzaville. 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 $50.0 in Brazzaville. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,351 in Bucharest and $1,931 in Brazzaville. That's a gap of about 43%.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Bucharest, where all-in costs run around $1,351, than in Brazzaville at $1,931. In Bucharest it covers expenses comfortably, while in Brazzaville it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bucharest costs $1,351 versus $1,931 in Brazzaville. 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, Brazzaville makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.