Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Kicevo

For one person, living is cheaper in Kicevo: $888 a month against $1,337 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
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Bucharest Living Index
43

Cost of Living Index in Kicevo
Learn more

Kicevo Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Kicevo

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$888

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Kicevo

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,337 in Bucharest versus $888 in Kicevo.

Bucharest $1,337
Kicevo $888

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,029 in Bucharest versus $1,308 in Kicevo.

Bucharest $2,029
Kicevo $1,308

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,721 in Bucharest versus $1,727 in Kicevo.

Bucharest $2,721
Kicevo $1,727

Living in Bucharest is roughly 51% more expensive than in Kicevo, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Kicevo 34% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.45 RON 68.4

$3.93 MKD 214

267.68%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$18.45 MKD 1,006

214.74%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 RON 35.65

$4.45 MKD 243

69.21%

Cappuccino

$3.45 RON 16.33

$1.13 MKD 61.6

205.31%

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

$2.46 RON 11.65

$1.34 MKD 73.1

83.58%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 RON 10.54

$0.75 MKD 40.78

197.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.76 RON 17.78

$2.33 MKD 127

61.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 RON 19.84

$2.24 MKD 122

87.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 RON 7.67

$1.28 MKD 69.6

26.56%

White Bread (500g)

$1.30 RON 6.13

$0.52 MKD 28.25

150.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 RON 8.05

$1.77 MKD 96.7

-3.95%

Eggs

$3.79 RON 17.93

$2.37 MKD 129

59.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.86 RON 41.90

$7.37 MKD 402

20.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.90 RON 32.67

$7.57 MKD 413

-8.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.14 RON 57.4

$14.61 MKD 797

-16.91%

Apples (1kg)

$1.30 RON 6.17

$1.43 MKD 78.1

-9.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.55

$1.38 MKD 75.1

15.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.42

$1.32 MKD 72.1

18.94%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 RON 12.67

$1.88 MKD 103

42.55%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.82

$0.84 MKD 46.08

-3.57%

Onion (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.73

$0.84 MKD 45.58

-5.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.91 RON 4.30

$0.63 MKD 34.62

44.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 RON 4.58

$0.35 MKD 19.09

177.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.41 RON 30.34

$2.84 MKD 155

125.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 RON 29.24

$5.28 MKD 288

17.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 RON 5.83

$1.02 MKD 55.9

20.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 RON 7.91

$1.44 MKD 78.4

15.97%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 RON 4.10

$0.76 MKD 41.55

14.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.98 RON 99.3

$23.27 MKD 1,269

-9.84%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.66 RON 3.10

$1.07 MKD 58.4

-38.32%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.85

$0.62 MKD 33.66

-3.23%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.19 RON 29.28

$7.66 MKD 418

-19.19%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.15

$1.39 MKD 76.1

38.85%

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

$28.7K RON 135.9K

$35.6K MKD 1.9M

-19.20%

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

$26.3K RON 124.6K

$27.6K MKD 1.5M

-4.58%

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

$196 RON 926

$158 MKD 8,619

23.81%

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

$8.49 RON 40.19

$17.88 MKD 975

-52.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.05 RON 42.84

$19.13 MKD 1,043

-52.69%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.54 RON 234

$21.61 MKD 1,179

129.25%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.03 RON 118

$17.24 MKD 941

45.19%

Cinema Ticket

$8.24 RON 39.01

$7.12 MKD 388

15.73%

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

$636 RON 3,007

$348 MKD 19.0K

82.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K RON 69.0K

$5,689 MKD 310.3K

156.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 RON 419

$85.0 MKD 4,636

4.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 RON 183

$36.90 MKD 2,013

5.07%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.8 RON 373

$101 MKD 5,516

-22.12%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 RON 428

$113 MKD 6,185

-20.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 RON 3,288

$276 MKD 15.0K

151.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$446 RON 2,109

$195 MKD 10.6K

128.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,084 RON 5,130

$507 MKD 27.6K

114.08%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$712 RON 3,368

$303 MKD 16.5K

135.17%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,797 RON 18.0K

$1,496 MKD 81.6K

153.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,202 RON 10.4K

$1,151 MKD 62.8K

91.39%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,406

$567 MKD 30.9K

138.83%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

4.23

59.57%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Kicevo: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$446 33.3%

Kicevo

$195 22% 56.3% $251

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.9%

Kicevo

$83 9.3% 63.3% $143

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.9%

Kicevo

$198 22.3% 12.2% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Kicevo

$195 22% 8.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$133 10%

Kicevo

$151 17% 13.4% $18

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$66 4.9%

Kicevo

$36 4% 45.7% $30

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Kicevo

$30 3.4% 8.4% $2.3

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Bucharest and $276 in Kicevo. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 139% 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 $18.00 in Kicevo for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $198 per month, with Kicevo cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇲🇰 Kicevo

🕒 Local time

19:50 7:50 PM

18:50 6:50 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

31,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 MKD = 1.83 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 54.55 MKD (100 MKD = 1.83 USD). 1 EUR = 61.33 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Kicevo 530 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Kicevo

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 Kicevo: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Kicevo differ by about 51% in total monthly costs ($1,337 vs $888 including rent). Kicevo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 139% 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: $695 in Bucharest versus $276 in Kicevo. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,337 per month in Bucharest versus $888 in Kicevo – a 51% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Kicevo runs roughly 11% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $888 in Kicevo versus $1,337 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Kicevo but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Kicevo 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.

Safety-wise, Bucharest and Kicevo are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Kicevo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 51% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.