Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Hamar

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,380 in Hamar, rent and utilities included – about $12,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
117

Cost of Living Index in Hamar
Learn more

Hamar Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Hamar

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,380

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Hamar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,380 in Hamar.

Bucharest $1,340
Hamar $2,380

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $3,750 in Hamar.

Bucharest $2,037
Hamar $3,750

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $5,120 in Hamar.

Bucharest $2,734
Hamar $5,120

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 44% less than in Hamar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Hamar is 76% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$21.18 NOK 199

-31.59%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$125 NOK 1,180

-53.64%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$15.83 NOK 149

-52.75%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$5.76 NOK 54.2

-40.28%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$4.21 NOK 39.63

-43.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$3.28 NOK 30.85

-29.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$11.49 NOK 108

-67.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$8.07 NOK 76.0

-48.45%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$2.50 NOK 23.53

-33.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$2.93 NOK 27.57

-53.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$2.06 NOK 19.36

-16.50%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$5.76 NOK 54.3

-36.81%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$11.05 NOK 104

-17.83%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$12.20 NOK 115

-43.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$31.42 NOK 296

-61.81%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$3.21 NOK 30.26

-61.68%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.57 NOK 24.17

-36.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.05 NOK 28.74

-48.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$5.89 NOK 55.5

-56.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$2.48 NOK 23.34

-68.15%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.44 NOK 22.95

-68.44%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$2.12 NOK 19.97

-58.96%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$1.99 NOK 18.74

-50.25%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$18.94 NOK 178

-66.68%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$16.40 NOK 154

-62.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$3.38 NOK 31.78

-64.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$4.18 NOK 39.37

-62.44%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$4.66 NOK 43.87

-81.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$67.5 NOK 635

-68.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$11.92 NOK 112

-94.63%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.78 NOK 16.76

-66.29%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$69.5 NOK 654

-90.75%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$2.37 NOK 22.32

-17.30%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$47.8K NOK 449.5K

-39.28%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$43.6K NOK 410.2K

-38.87%

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

$196 RON 927

$223 NOK 2,104

-12.34%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$33.07 NOK 311

-75.69%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$54.1 NOK 509

-82.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$58.2 NOK 548

-13.71%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$29.40 NOK 277

-13.84%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$19.79 NOK 186

-58.82%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$207 NOK 1,948

203.45%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$15.8K NOK 148.3K

-10.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$102 NOK 959

-12.03%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$59.5 NOK 560

-35.63%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$131 NOK 1,230

-39.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$104 NOK 977

-12.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$1,227 NOK 11.6K

-44.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$847 NOK 7,973

-47.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$1,578 NOK 14.9K

-31.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$1,489 NOK 14.0K

-51.32%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$4,302 NOK 40.5K

-12.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$3,421 NOK 32.2K

-35.84%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$4,269 NOK 40.2K

-68.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

4.94

36.64%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Hamar: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Hamar

$847 35.6% 88.9% $399

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Hamar

$390 16.4% 73% $164

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Hamar

$450 18.9% 99.9% $225

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Hamar

$311 13.1% 45.6% $97

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Hamar

$178 7.5% 33% $44

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Hamar

$98 4.1% 47% $31

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Hamar

$107 4.5% 279% $79

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $1,227 in Hamar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamar pays 221% 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 $125 in Hamar for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $450 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇳🇴 Hamar

🕒 Local time

18:32 6:32 PM

17:32 5:32 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

33,059

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Hamar 2,090 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Hamar

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 Hamar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Hamar differ by about 78% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $2,380 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 221% lower in Hamar. 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: $678 in Bucharest versus $1,227 in Hamar. 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 $2,380 in Hamar – a 78% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 220% less than in Hamar. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,380 in Hamar, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Hamar. 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.

Expats usually find Bucharest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 78% less than in Hamar. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.