Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and La Chaux-de-Fonds

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,965 in La Chaux-de-Fonds, rent and utilities included – about $19,500 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
144

Cost of Living Index in La Chaux-de-Fonds
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La Chaux-de-Fonds Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

La Chaux-de-Fonds

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,965

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in La Chaux-de-Fonds

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 La Chaux-de-Fonds actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,965 in La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Bucharest $1,340
La Chaux-de-Fonds $2,965

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $4,731 in La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Bucharest $2,037
La Chaux-de-Fonds $4,731

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $6,498 in La Chaux-de-Fonds.

Bucharest $2,734
La Chaux-de-Fonds $6,498

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 55% less than in La Chaux-de-Fonds, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, La Chaux-de-Fonds is 120% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$24.06 CHF 19.81

-39.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$84.7 CHF 69.8

-31.45%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$18.02 CHF 14.84

-58.49%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$4.67 CHF 3.85

-26.34%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$3.55 CHF 2.93

-33.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$4.48 CHF 3.69

-48.66%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$7.26 CHF 5.98

-49.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$5.85 CHF 4.82

-28.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$2.18 CHF 1.79

-23.39%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$2.97 CHF 2.45

-53.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$3.22 CHF 2.65

-46.58%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$7.74 CHF 6.37

-52.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$25.32 CHF 20.85

-64.14%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$26.73 CHF 22.01

-74.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$41.67 CHF 34.32

-71.20%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$3.66 CHF 3.01

-66.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.35 CHF 1.93

-30.64%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.93 CHF 2.41

-46.42%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$4.50 CHF 3.70

-43.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.66 CHF 1.37

-52.41%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$1.90 CHF 1.57

-59.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$2.24 CHF 1.85

-61.16%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$1.56 CHF 1.28

-36.54%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$10.96 CHF 9.03

-42.43%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$11.96 CHF 9.85

-48.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$2.44 CHF 2.01

-51.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.00 CHF 2.47

-47.67%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$4.63 CHF 3.81

-81.43%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$98.1 CHF 80.8

-78.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$7.72 CHF 6.36

-91.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$4.46 CHF 3.68

-86.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$84.5 CHF 69.6

-92.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$2.35 CHF 1.94

-16.60%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$42.9K CHF 35.4K

-32.44%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$39.5K CHF 32.6K

-32.63%

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

$196 RON 927

$291 CHF 239

-32.59%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$45.30 CHF 37.31

-82.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$64.5 CHF 53.1

-85.51%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$73.2 CHF 60.3

-31.35%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$45.07 CHF 37.12

-43.80%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$22.43 CHF 18.47

-63.66%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$2,924 CHF 2,408

-78.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$20.1K CHF 16.6K

-30.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$147 CHF 121

-38.87%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$79.1 CHF 65.1

-51.55%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$161 CHF 133

-50.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$197 CHF 162

-54.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$1,463 CHF 1,205

-53.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$1,079 CHF 889

-58.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$3,904 CHF 3,215

-72.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$2,324 CHF 1,914

-68.80%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$16.2K CHF 13.4K

-76.88%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$12.3K CHF 10.1K

-82.09%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$5,068 CHF 4,174

-73.77%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

2.42

178.93%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for La Chaux-de-Fonds: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$1.1K 36.4% 141% $631

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$383 12.9% 69.9% $158

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$575 19.4% 156% $350

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$400 13.5% 87.7% $187

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$263 8.9% 96.1% $129

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$118 4% 77.4% $51

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

La Chaux-de-Fonds

$147 5% 420% $118

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $1,463 in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

La Chaux-de-Fonds pays 281% 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 $85.0 in La Chaux-de-Fonds for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $575 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇭 La Chaux-de-Fonds

🕒 Local time

15:29 3:29 PM

14:29 2:29 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

39,027

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest La Chaux-de-Fonds 1,520 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
La Chaux-de-Fonds

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 La Chaux-de-Fonds: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and La Chaux-de-Fonds differ by about 121% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $2,965 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 281% lower in La Chaux-de-Fonds. 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 $1,463 in La Chaux-de-Fonds. 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 $2,965 in La Chaux-de-Fonds – a 121% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 365% less than in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,965 in La Chaux-de-Fonds, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in La Chaux-de-Fonds. 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.

Safety-wise, Bucharest and La Chaux-de-Fonds 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 Bucharest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 121% less than in La Chaux-de-Fonds. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.