Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Kadoma

For one person, living is cheaper in Kadoma: $603 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $9,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
29

Cost of Living Index in Kadoma
Learn more

Kadoma Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Kadoma

🇿🇼 Zimbabwe

$603

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Kadoma

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,351 in Bucharest versus $603 in Kadoma.

Bucharest $1,351
Kadoma $603

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,033 in Bucharest versus $982 in Kadoma.

Bucharest $2,033
Kadoma $982

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,715 in Bucharest versus $1,362 in Kadoma.

Bucharest $2,715
Kadoma $1,362

Living in Bucharest is roughly 124% more expensive than in Kadoma, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% above, Kadoma is 55% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 69.2

$10.13 ZWL 270

42.74%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 276

$44.17 ZWL 1,179

30.52%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.84

$5.60 ZWL 150

33.93%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.38

$3.09 ZWL 82.5

11.00%

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

$2.46 RON 11.76

$0.92 ZWL 24.45

167.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.13

$0.48 ZWL 12.88

385.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 18.16

$1.28 ZWL 34.06

196.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.62

$1.94 ZWL 51.9

111.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.87

$1.47 ZWL 39.15

12.24%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.46

$0.98 ZWL 26.26

37.76%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.51

$1.71 ZWL 45.51

4.09%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.52

$1.87 ZWL 49.97

95.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.98

$11.27 ZWL 301

-23.96%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.52

$5.31 ZWL 142

28.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 56.0

$6.73 ZWL 180

74.15%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.18

$2.93 ZWL 78.2

-55.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.45

$1.69 ZWL 45.22

-7.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.36

$2.01 ZWL 53.7

-23.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.87

$1.58 ZWL 42.12

56.96%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.96

$1.76 ZWL 46.89

-52.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.81

$1.79 ZWL 47.69

-55.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 4.03

$1.28 ZWL 34.23

-34.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.44

$1.00 ZWL 26.62

-7.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.78

$1.95 ZWL 52.1

230.26%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 30.23

$8.34 ZWL 223

-24.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 6.01

$1.39 ZWL 37.04

-9.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.67

$1.92 ZWL 51.2

-16.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.89

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 101

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.89

$4.02 ZWL 107

-85.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.94

$1.97 ZWL 52.5

-69.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.51

$4.87 ZWL 130

26.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.37

$1.79 ZWL 47.65

9.50%

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

$28.1K RON 134.6K

$21.7K ZWL 578.6K

29.84%

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

$26.3K RON 125.7K

$27.4K ZWL 730.4K

-3.93%

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

$197 RON 941

$50.8 ZWL 1,355

287.88%

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

$8.34 RON 39.87

$21.33 ZWL 569

-60.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.94

$69.2 ZWL 1,847

-86.72%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 238

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 119

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.45

$9.85 ZWL 263

-14.11%

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

$639 RON 3,056

$441 ZWL 11.8K

45.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.8K

$8,499 ZWL 226.8K

69.33%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 433

$23.30 ZWL 622

288.84%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 182

$21.09 ZWL 563

80.42%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 381

$39.38 ZWL 1,051

102.29%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 446

$39.85 ZWL 1,064

133.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,219

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,146

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,251

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,485

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.9K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.5K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,327

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

13.69

-50.77%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Kadoma: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Kadoma

- * 0% 100%

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Kadoma

$151 25.4% 33.2% $75

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Kadoma

$213 35.9% 3.7% $8.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Kadoma

$141 23.8% 34.1% $73

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Kadoma

$56 9.4% 59% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Kadoma

$20 * 3.3% 70.5% $47

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Kadoma

$14 * 2.3% 50.6% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $44.00 in Kadoma for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $214 per month, with Kadoma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇿🇼 Kadoma

🕒 Local time

07:16 7:16 AM

06:16 6:16 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

77,749

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Zimbabwean Dollar ZWL $

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 ZWL = 3.75 USD

100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZWL, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.36 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Zimbabwean Dollar exchange rates as of October 13, 2026: 1 USD = 26.69 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.75 USD). 1 EUR = 29.91 ZWL (100 ZWL = 3.34 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Kadoma 6,990 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Kadoma

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 Kadoma: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Kadoma differ by about 124% in total monthly costs ($1,351 vs $603 including rent). Kadoma is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,027 in Bucharest and $904 in Kadoma 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.

Supermarket bills run roughly 4% 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 $603 in Kadoma – a 124% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $603 in Kadoma versus $1,351 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Kadoma but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Kadoma 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 Kadoma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 124% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.