Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Buchs

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,337 a month against $3,009 in Buchs, rent and utilities included – about $20,100 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
146

Cost of Living Index in Buchs
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Buchs Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Buchs

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,009

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Buchs

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,337 in Bucharest versus $3,009 in Buchs.

Bucharest $1,337
Buchs $3,009

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,029 in Bucharest versus $4,535 in Buchs.

Bucharest $2,029
Buchs $4,535

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,721 in Bucharest versus $6,062 in Buchs.

Bucharest $2,721
Buchs $6,062

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 56% less than in Buchs, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Buchs is 122% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.45 RON 68.4

$23.43 CHF 19.30

-38.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$84.3 CHF 69.4

-31.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 RON 35.65

$15.36 CHF 12.65

-50.98%

Cappuccino

$3.45 RON 16.33

$4.71 CHF 3.88

-26.75%

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

$2.46 RON 11.65

$3.77 CHF 3.10

-34.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 RON 10.54

$3.20 CHF 2.63

-30.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.76 RON 17.78

$6.13 CHF 5.04

-38.66%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 RON 19.84

$5.39 CHF 4.44

-22.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 RON 7.67

$2.01 CHF 1.66

-19.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.30 RON 6.13

$3.94 CHF 3.24

-67.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 RON 8.05

$4.64 CHF 3.82

-63.36%

Eggs

$3.79 RON 17.93

$7.32 CHF 6.03

-48.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.86 RON 41.90

$32.21 CHF 26.53

-72.49%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.90 RON 32.67

$18.51 CHF 15.24

-62.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.14 RON 57.4

$32.47 CHF 26.74

-62.61%

Apples (1kg)

$1.30 RON 6.17

$3.53 CHF 2.91

-63.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.55

$2.14 CHF 1.76

-25.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.42

$3.14 CHF 2.59

-50.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 RON 12.67

$6.70 CHF 5.52

-60.00%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.82

$1.78 CHF 1.46

-54.49%

Onion (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.73

$2.54 CHF 2.10

-68.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.91 RON 4.30

$2.44 CHF 2.01

-62.70%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 RON 4.58

$1.21 CHF 1.00

-19.83%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.41 RON 30.34

$10.84 CHF 8.92

-40.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 RON 29.24

$12.70 CHF 10.46

-51.34%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 RON 5.83

$3.28 CHF 2.70

-62.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 RON 7.91

$3.91 CHF 3.22

-57.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 RON 4.10

$5.17 CHF 4.25

-83.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.98 RON 99.3

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.66 RON 3.10

$5.36 CHF 4.42

-87.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.85

$3.46 CHF 2.85

-82.66%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.19 RON 29.28

$61.2 CHF 50.4

-89.88%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.15

$2.23 CHF 1.83

-13.45%

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

$28.7K RON 135.9K

$42.5K CHF 35.0K

-32.47%

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

$26.3K RON 124.6K

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

-33.46%

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

$196 RON 926

$184 CHF 152

6.08%

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

$8.49 RON 40.19

$31.24 CHF 25.73

-72.82%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.05 RON 42.84

$67.2 CHF 55.4

-86.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.54 RON 234

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.03 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$8.24 RON 39.01

$15.20 CHF 12.52

-45.79%

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

$636 RON 3,007

$611 CHF 503

3.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K RON 69.0K

$20.7K CHF 17.0K

-29.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 RON 419

$107 CHF 88.0

-17.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 RON 183

$23.70 CHF 19.52

63.59%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.8 RON 373

$95.2 CHF 78.4

-17.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 RON 428

$170 CHF 140

-46.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 RON 3,288

$1,828 CHF 1,505

-61.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$446 RON 2,109

$1,561 CHF 1,285

-71.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,084 RON 5,130

$2,690 CHF 2,216

-59.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$712 RON 3,368

$2,746 CHF 2,261

-74.07%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,797 RON 18.0K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,202 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,406

$8,480 CHF 6,984

-84.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

1.93

249.74%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Buchs: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$446 33.3%

Buchs

$1.6K 51.9% 250% $1.1K

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.9%

Buchs

$359 11.9% 59.3% $134

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.9%

Buchs

$555 18.4% 146% $329

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Buchs

$283 9.4% 32.7% $70

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$133 10%

Buchs

$178 5.9% 33.3% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$66 4.9%

Buchs

$30 * 1% 54% $36

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Buchs

$43 * 1.4% 54% $15

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Bucharest and $1,828 in Buchs. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Buchs pays 526% 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 $84.0 in Buchs for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $555 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇭 Buchs

🕒 Local time

00:17 12:17 AM

23:17 11:17 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

12,187

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Buchs 1,320 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Buchs

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 Buchs: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Buchs differ by about 125% in total monthly costs ($1,337 vs $3,009 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 526% lower in Buchs. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $695 in Bucharest versus $1,828 in Buchs. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 146% higher in Buchs. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,337 per month in Bucharest versus $3,009 in Buchs – a 125% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,337 in Bucharest versus $3,009 in Buchs, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Buchs. The gap between the two cities makes Bucharest the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Bucharest and Buchs are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Bucharest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 125% less than in Buchs. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.