Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Gela

For one person, living is cheaper in Gela: $1,235 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bucharest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Gela
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Gela Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Gela

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,235

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Gela

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,235 in Gela.

Bucharest $1,340
Gela $1,235

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,975 in Gela.

Bucharest $2,037
Gela $1,975

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $2,714 in Gela.

Bucharest $2,734
Gela $2,714

Living in Bucharest is roughly 9% more expensive than in Gela, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Gela 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$11.32 €10.07

28.00%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$55.3 €49.22

4.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$9.30 €8.28

-19.57%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$1.75 €1.56

96.57%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$2.34 €2.08

1.28%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$1.26 €1.12

82.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$4.00 €3.56

-7.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$3.87 €3.44

7.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.25 €1.11

33.60%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$1.74 €1.55

-21.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$2.29 €2.03

-24.89%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$2.93 €2.61

24.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$14.62 €13.01

-37.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$11.93 €10.62

-42.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$16.87 €15.01

-28.87%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$2.98 €2.65

-58.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.19 €1.94

-25.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.13 €1.90

-26.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$2.24 €2.00

13.39%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.72 €1.53

-54.07%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.84 €2.53

-72.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$1.26 €1.12

-30.95%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.40 €0.35

147.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$6.87 €6.11

-8.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$7.69 €6.84

-19.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.98 €1.76

-39.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.22 €1.97

-29.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$1.41 €1.26

-39.01%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$42.44 €37.75

-50.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$5.64 €5.02

-88.65%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$2.20 €1.96

-72.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$32.81 €29.18

-80.40%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.97 €1.75

-0.51%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$36.3K €32.3K

-20.12%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$35.5K €31.6K

-25.05%

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

$196 RON 927

$169 €150

15.79%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$9.98 €8.88

-19.44%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$27.12 €24.12

-65.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$50.5 €44.94

-0.57%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$24.05 €21.39

5.32%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$8.70 €7.74

-6.32%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$451 €401

39.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$5,478 €4,873

157.09%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$70.1 €62.4

27.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$30.53 €27.16

25.52%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$87.3 €77.6

-9.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$125 €111

-27.45%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$305 €271

122.34%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$271 €241

65.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$499 €444

116.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$538 €479

34.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$2,158 €1,920

73.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$998 €887

120.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.39

99.12%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Gela: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Gela

$271 21.9% 39.6% $177

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Gela

$182 14.7% 19.3% $44

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Gela

$303 24.5% 34.7% $78

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Gela

$206 16.7% 3.3% $7

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Gela

$141 11.4% 5% $6.7

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Gela

$68 5.5% 2.1% $1.4

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Gela

$65 5.2% 130% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $305 in Gela. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $55.0 in Gela. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $303, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇮🇹 Gela

🕒 Local time

10:03 10:03 AM

09:03 9:03 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

70,735

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Gela 1,290 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Gela

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 Gela: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Gela differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,235 including rent). Gela is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,011 in Bucharest and $1,853 in Gela to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $678 in Bucharest versus $305 in Gela. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,340 per month in Bucharest versus $1,235 in Gela – a 9% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Gela runs roughly 101% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,235 in Gela versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Gela but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Gela 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 Gela gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.