Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Lubumbashi

For one person, living is cheaper in Lubumbashi: $1,228 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $1,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Bucharest outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Lubumbashi
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Lubumbashi Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Lubumbashi

🇨🇩 Democratic Republic of the Congo

$1,228

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Lubumbashi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,228 in Lubumbashi.

Bucharest $1,340
Lubumbashi $1,228

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $2,727 in Lubumbashi.

Bucharest $2,037
Lubumbashi $2,727

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $4,226 in Lubumbashi.

Bucharest $2,734
Lubumbashi $4,226

Living in Bucharest is roughly 9% more expensive than in Lubumbashi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Lubumbashi 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$9.91 CDF 22.5K

46.22%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$99.1 CDF 224.6K

-41.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$9.92 CDF 22.5K

-24.60%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$4.03 CDF 9,131

-14.64%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$1.08 CDF 2,458

119.44%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$1.99 CDF 4,508

85.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$2.54 CDF 5,756

63.78%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.96 CDF 4,446

-14.80%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$1.22 CDF 2,764

12.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$3.18 CDF 7,204

-45.91%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$2.10 CDF 4,761

73.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$14.77 CDF 33.5K

-38.52%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$7.70 CDF 17.4K

-11.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$15.52 CDF 35.2K

-22.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$4.96 CDF 11.2K

-75.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$3.07 CDF 6,960

-46.91%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$4.88 CDF 11.1K

-67.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$2.98 CDF 6,745

-14.77%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$2.56 CDF 5,810

-69.14%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.66 CDF 6,020

-71.05%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$0.98 CDF 2,220

-11.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$1.22 CDF 2,774

-18.85%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$4.07 CDF 9,227

55.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$12.73 CDF 28.8K

-51.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.15 CDF 2,600

3.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.08 CDF 4,719

-24.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$1.01 CDF 2,289

-14.85%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$4.47 CDF 10.1K

-85.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$9.87 CDF 22.4K

-34.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.48 CDF 3,361

32.43%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$25.1K CDF 56.8M

15.74%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$30.6K CDF 69.3M

-12.88%

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

$196 RON 927

$99.9 CDF 226.3K

96.13%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$20.13 CDF 45.6K

-60.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$60.3 CDF 136.6K

-84.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$73.6 CDF 166.8K

-31.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

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

$628 RON 2,971

$132 CDF 297.9K

377.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$4,456 CDF 10.1M

216.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$22.35 CDF 50.6K

300.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$22.55 CDF 51.1K

69.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$59.1 CDF 133.9K

34.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$86.5 CDF 196.0K

4.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$862 CDF 2.0M

-21.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$376 CDF 851.7K

19.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$2,522 CDF 5.7M

-57.05%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$2,051 CDF 4.6M

-64.65%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$1,012 CDF 2.3M

270.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$499 CDF 1.1M

339.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$1,064 CDF 2.4M

24.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Lubumbashi: October 13, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Lubumbashi

$376 30.6% 16.1% $72

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Lubumbashi

$177 * 14.4% 21.5% $48

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Lubumbashi

$327 26.6% 45.3% $102

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Lubumbashi

$180 14.7% 15.5% $33

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Lubumbashi

$86 7% 36% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Lubumbashi

$74 * 6% 10.7% $7.1

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Lubumbashi

$8.5 * 0.7% 69.8% $20

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $862 in Lubumbashi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 25% 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 $99.0 in Lubumbashi for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $327 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇩 Lubumbashi

🕒 Local time

10:55 10:55 AM

09:55 9:55 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

1,139,064

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Congolese Franc CDF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

10,000 CDF = 4.41 USD

10,000 CDF = 3.93 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CDF, 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).

Congolese Franc exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 2,265 CDF (10,000 CDF = 4.41 USD). 1 EUR = 2,547 CDF (10,000 CDF = 3.93 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

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Bucharest Lubumbashi 6,240 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

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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 Lubumbashi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Lubumbashi differ by about 9% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,228 including rent). Lubumbashi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 25% 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 $862 in Lubumbashi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Bucharest pay roughly 45% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $1,340 per month in Bucharest versus $1,228 in Lubumbashi – a 9% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,228 in Lubumbashi versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lubumbashi but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Lubumbashi 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 Lubumbashi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 9% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.