Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Bushehr

For one person, living is cheaper in Bushehr: $518 a month against $1,354 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $10,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
25

Cost of Living Index in Bushehr
Learn more

Bushehr Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,354

/mo nomad

Bushehr

🇮🇷 Iran

$518

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Bushehr

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,354 in Bucharest versus $518 in Bushehr.

Bucharest $1,354
Bushehr $518

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,043 in Bucharest versus $805 in Bushehr.

Bucharest $2,043
Bushehr $805

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,733 in Bucharest versus $1,091 in Bushehr.

Bucharest $2,733
Bushehr $1,091

Living in Bucharest is roughly 161% more expensive than in Bushehr, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.66 RON 70.5

$4.53 $4.53

223.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 277

$12.80 $12.80

350.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 RON 36.13

$4.10 $4.10

83.41%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.02 $1.02

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 $1.73

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 17.09

$1.22 $1.22

191.80%

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

$2.47 RON 11.88

$0.62 $0.62

298.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 RON 10.50

$1.03 $1.03

111.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 RON 17.72

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 RON 20.57

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 8.04

$0.51 $0.51

227.45%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.49

$0.29 $0.29

365.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.53

$1.81 $1.81

-1.66%

Eggs

$3.56 RON 17.12

$0.99 $0.99

259.60%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.12 RON 43.84

$1.46 $1.46

524.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.82 RON 32.76

$2.94 $2.94

131.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.13 RON 58.3

$9.89 $9.89

22.65%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 RON 6.08

$0.57 $0.57

121.05%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 RON 7.80

$1.46 $1.46

10.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.49

$0.94 $0.94

65.96%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.21

$0.52 $0.52

388.46%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.76

$0.48 $0.48

62.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.72

$0.29 $0.29

165.52%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 RON 4.27

$0.51 $0.51

74.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 RON 4.32

$0.20 $0.20

350.00%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.58 $0.58

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.31 $0.31

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.53 $1.53

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.55 RON 31.48

$3.08 $3.08

112.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.37 RON 30.60

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 RON 5.97

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 RON 7.79

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.10

$0.13 $0.13

553.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 RON 99.6

$9.67 $9.67

114.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$0.38 $0.38

60.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$0.31 $0.31

96.77%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.16 RON 29.62

$3.53 $3.53

74.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 RON 9.60

$0.09 $0.09

2122.22%

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

$27.9K RON 134.3K

$60.0K $60.0K

-53.41%

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

$25.3K RON 121.7K

$48.4K $48.4K

-47.67%

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

$192 RON 923

$20.18 $20.18

851.78%

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

$7.92 RON 38.05

$1.59 $1.59

398.11%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.96 RON 43.05

$3.97 $3.97

125.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.99 RON 240

$19.16 $19.16

160.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 RON 119

$13.66 $13.66

81.63%

Cinema Ticket

$8.51 RON 40.88

$1.94 $1.94

338.66%

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

$686 RON 3,296

$50.9 $50.9

1247.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 69.3K

$608 $608

2272.55%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.2 RON 434

$22.67 $22.67

298.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 RON 186

$18.74 $18.74

106.72%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.9 RON 379

$96.2 $96.2

-17.96%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 RON 442

$55.5 $55.5

65.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$711 RON 3,418

$295 $295

141.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 RON 2,220

$208 $208

121.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 RON 5,063

$327 $327

222.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$723 RON 3,473

$353 $353

104.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,634 RON 17.5K

$1,143 $1,143

217.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,173 RON 10.4K

$531 $531

309.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,506

$282 $282

379.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

24.3

-72.22%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 26, 2026

Last update for Bushehr: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$462 34.1%

Bushehr

$208 40.2% 54.9% $254

Eating Out

Bucharest

$228 16.9%

Bushehr

$70 13.5% 69.4% $158

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.6%

Bushehr

$92 17.8% 58.9% $132

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$209 15.4%

Bushehr

$26 5% 87.7% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$135 10%

Bushehr

$87 16.8% 35.6% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Bushehr

$23 4.5% 65.6% $44

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Bushehr

$12 2.3% 56.3% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $711 in Bucharest and $295 in Bushehr. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays about 4.8 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in Bucharest vs $13 in Bushehr for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $92 per month, with Bushehr cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇮🇷 Bushehr

🕒 Local time

01:09 1:09 AM

02:39 2:39 AM

1 h 30 min ahead of Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

223,504

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

USD USD

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 USD = 0.898 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.11 USD (1 USD = 0.898 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

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Between locations

Bucharest Bushehr 2,780 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Bushehr

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 Bushehr: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,354 in Bucharest and $518 in Bushehr, so Bushehr is about 62% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Bucharest is about 4.8 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $711 in Bucharest versus $295 in Bushehr. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,354 per month in Bucharest versus $518 in Bushehr – Bushehr is about 62% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Bushehr runs roughly 53% less than in Bucharest. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

At $518 in Bushehr versus $1,354 in Bucharest, a $800 budget is realistic in Bushehr but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Bushehr 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.

Expats usually find Bushehr gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.