Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Cotonou

For one person, living is cheaper in Cotonou: $901 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $5,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
44

Cost of Living Index in Cotonou
Learn more

Cotonou Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Cotonou

🇧🇯 Benin

$901

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Cotonou

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,351 in Bucharest versus $901 in Cotonou.

Bucharest $1,351
Cotonou $901

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,033 in Bucharest versus $1,417 in Cotonou.

Bucharest $2,033
Cotonou $1,417

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,715 in Bucharest versus $1,933 in Cotonou.

Bucharest $2,715
Cotonou $1,933

Living in Bucharest is roughly 50% more expensive than in Cotonou, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% above, Cotonou is 33% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$5.05 F CFA 2,954

186.34%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$35.47 F CFA 20.8K

62.53%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$9.56 F CFA 5,592

-21.55%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$5.21 F CFA 3,051

-34.17%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$1.06 F CFA 619

132.08%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$0.89 F CFA 521

161.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$0.84 F CFA 490

352.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$2.56 F CFA 1,497

60.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$3.07 F CFA 1,793

-46.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$1.19 F CFA 695

13.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$1.83 F CFA 1,070

-2.73%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$2.69 F CFA 1,576

36.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$9.19 F CFA 5,375

-6.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$5.44 F CFA 3,180

25.00%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$5.04 F CFA 2,946

132.54%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$4.05 F CFA 2,372

-68.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$1.84 F CFA 1,074

-15.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$1.28 F CFA 750

20.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$2.73 F CFA 1,595

-9.16%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$1.26 F CFA 736

-34.13%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$1.74 F CFA 1,021

-54.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$0.44 F CFA 256

90.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$1.10 F CFA 641

-15.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$3.48 F CFA 2,037

85.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$4.18 F CFA 2,444

51.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$1.23 F CFA 718

2.44%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$1.91 F CFA 1,116

-16.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$1.29 F CFA 757

-37.21%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.34 F CFA 782

-55.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$1.38 F CFA 809

-55.80%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$1.24 F CFA 727

58.06%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$24.0K F CFA 14.1M

9.33%

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

$197 RON 931

$146 F CFA 85.4K

34.85%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$33.86 F CFA 19.8K

-75.37%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$49.15 F CFA 28.8K

-81.30%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$49.30 F CFA 28.8K

1.16%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

$3.44 F CFA 2,015

626.45%

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$8.68 F CFA 5,079

-2.53%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$131 F CFA 76.5K

388.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$5,460 F CFA 3.2M

163.61%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$25.96 F CFA 15.2K

249.00%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$33.73 F CFA 19.7K

136.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$67.9 F CFA 39.7K

37.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$180 F CFA 105.6K

273.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$165 F CFA 96.6K

172.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$599 F CFA 350.7K

83.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$411 F CFA 240.7K

77.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$258 F CFA 151.0K

412.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

68.50%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Cotonou: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Cotonou

$165 18.3% 63.2% $284

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Cotonou

$149 16.5% 34.1% $77

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Cotonou

$221 24.5% 0.3% $0.8

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Cotonou

$229 25.4% 6.8% $15

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Cotonou

$57 * 6.4% 57.7% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Cotonou

$67 7.4% 0.2% $0.1

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Cotonou

$13 * 1.5% 52.2% $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 $673 in Bucharest and $180 in Cotonou. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 413% 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 $35.00 in Cotonou for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $221 per month, with Cotonou cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇧🇯 Cotonou

🕒 Local time

11:23 11:23 AM

09:23 9:23 AM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

780,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.52 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XOF, 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).

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

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Cotonou 4,820 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Cotonou

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 Cotonou: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Cotonou differ by about 50% in total monthly costs ($1,351 vs $901 including rent). Cotonou is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 413% higher in Bucharest, 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: $673 in Bucharest versus $180 in Cotonou. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 0% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,351 per month in Bucharest versus $901 in Cotonou – a 50% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $901 in Cotonou versus $1,351 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Cotonou but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Cotonou 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 Cotonou gentler on the wallet – expenses run 50% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.