Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Korce

For one person, living is cheaper in Korce: $1,001 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,100 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
49

Cost of Living Index in Korce
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Korce Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Korce

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,001

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Korce

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,001 in Korce.

Bucharest $1,340
Korce $1,001

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,483 in Korce.

Bucharest $2,037
Korce $1,483

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $1,965 in Korce.

Bucharest $2,734
Korce $1,965

Living in Bucharest is roughly 34% more expensive than in Korce, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Korce 26% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$6.07 ALL 489

138.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$37.94 ALL 3,055

53.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$5.99 ALL 482

24.87%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$1.92 ALL 155

79.17%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$1.84 ALL 148

28.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$0.68 ALL 55.0

238.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$2.49 ALL 201

48.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$2.41 ALL 194

72.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.93 ALL 155

-13.47%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$1.00 ALL 80.2

37.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$2.08 ALL 168

-17.31%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$2.57 ALL 207

41.63%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$10.26 ALL 826

-11.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$8.69 ALL 700

-21.29%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$13.92 ALL 1,121

-13.79%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$1.22 ALL 98.2

0.82%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.31 ALL 186

-29.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.28 ALL 103

22.66%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$1.64 ALL 132

54.88%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.05 ALL 84.4

-24.76%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$1.00 ALL 80.3

-23.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$1.05 ALL 84.2

-17.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.81 ALL 65.4

22.22%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$4.38 ALL 353

44.06%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$8.03 ALL 647

-22.79%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.80 ALL 145

-33.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.84 ALL 148

-14.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$0.64 ALL 51.3

34.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$18.41 ALL 1,483

14.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$3.72 ALL 300

-82.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$3.74 ALL 301

-83.96%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$18.53 ALL 1,492

-65.30%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$2.24 ALL 180

-12.50%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$33.5K ALL 2.7M

-13.38%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$24.2K ALL 1.9M

10.18%

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

$196 RON 927

$59.9 ALL 4,826

226.86%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$18.16 ALL 1,462

-55.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$15.08 ALL 1,214

-38.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$33.08 ALL 2,664

51.84%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$18.66 ALL 1,503

35.74%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$9.92 ALL 799

-17.84%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$224 ALL 18.0K

180.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$44.80 ALL 3,608

100.02%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$53.9 ALL 4,336

-28.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$104 ALL 8,376

-23.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$144 ALL 11.6K

-37.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$474 ALL 38.2K

43.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$294 ALL 23.7K

52.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$496 ALL 39.9K

118.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$305 ALL 24.6K

137.60%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$1,377 ALL 110.9K

172.35%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$1,120 ALL 90.2K

96.07%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$670 ALL 53.9K

98.54%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

35.00%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Korce: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Korce

$294 29.4% 34.4% $154

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Korce

$117 11.7% 48.1% $108

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Korce

$245 24.5% 8.8% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Korce

$93 9.3% 56.3% $120

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Korce

$156 15.6% 16.4% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Korce

$53 5.3% 20.4% $14

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Korce

$43 4.3% 53.8% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $474 in Korce. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 99% 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 $38.00 in Korce. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $245, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇦🇱 Korce

🕒 Local time

07:03 7:03 AM

06:03 6:03 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

51,152

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR 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).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Korce 610 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Korce

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 Korce: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Korce differ by about 34% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,001 including rent). Korce is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 99% 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: $678 in Bucharest versus $474 in Korce. 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 $1,001 in Korce – a 34% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Korce runs roughly 15% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,001 in Korce versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Korce but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Korce 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 Korce gentler on the wallet – expenses run 34% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.