Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Manouba

For one person, living is cheaper in Manouba: $651 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $8,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
32

Cost of Living Index in Manouba
Learn more

Manouba Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Manouba

🇹🇳 Tunisia

$651

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Manouba

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $651 in Manouba.

Bucharest $1,340
Manouba $651

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,024 in Manouba.

Bucharest $2,037
Manouba $1,024

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $1,396 in Manouba.

Bucharest $2,734
Manouba $1,396

Living in Bucharest is roughly 106% more expensive than in Manouba, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Manouba 52% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$3.33 TND 9.97

335.14%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$19.92 TND 59.7

191.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$6.14 TND 18.38

21.82%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$1.11 TND 3.34

209.91%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$0.63 TND 1.88

276.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$0.27 TND 0.81

751.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$1.55 TND 4.64

138.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$2.36 TND 7.05

76.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$0.46 TND 1.38

263.04%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$0.22 TND 0.66

522.73%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$1.31 TND 3.92

31.30%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$1.55 TND 4.63

134.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$10.27 TND 30.75

-11.59%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$5.45 TND 16.31

25.50%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$13.79 TND 41.32

-12.98%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$1.84 TND 5.52

-33.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$3.16 TND 9.45

-48.42%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.08 TND 3.24

45.37%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$0.74 TND 2.21

243.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$0.77 TND 2.29

2.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$0.61 TND 1.84

26.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$0.53 TND 1.60

64.15%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.34 TND 1.03

191.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$3.72 TND 11.15

69.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$6.74 TND 20.18

-8.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.19 TND 3.55

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.08 TND 3.22

45.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$0.32 TND 0.95

168.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$9.95 TND 29.81

112.06%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$0.30 TND 0.89

113.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$0.33 TND 1.00

81.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$1.85 TND 5.54

247.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$0.89 TND 2.67

120.22%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$37.0K TND 110.7K

-21.54%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$35.0K TND 104.7K

-23.82%

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

$196 RON 927

$44.48 TND 133

340.40%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$9.22 TND 27.61

-12.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$20.44 TND 61.2

-54.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$26.56 TND 79.6

89.12%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$12.42 TND 37.19

103.95%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$5.31 TND 15.90

53.48%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$97.3 TND 291

545.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$2,444 TND 7,319

476.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$42.75 TND 128

109.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$36.55 TND 109

4.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$101 TND 303

-21.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$67.8 TND 203

33.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$208 TND 624

225.37%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$155 TND 465

188.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$372 TND 1,115

191.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$268 TND 804

170.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$957 TND 2,866

292.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$619 TND 1,854

254.56%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

10.28

-34.34%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Manouba: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Manouba

$155 23.9% 65.3% $293

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Manouba

$74 11.4% 66.9% $151

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Manouba

$185 28.4% 17.7% $40

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Manouba

$74 11.4% 65.2% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Manouba

$112 17.2% 16.6% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Manouba

$37 5.7% 44.1% $29

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Manouba

$13 2% 53.2% $15

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $208 in Manouba. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $20.00 in Manouba for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $185 per month, with Manouba cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇹🇳 Manouba

🕒 Local time

00:25 12:25 AM

22:25 10:25 PM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

58,792

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Tunisian Dinar TND د.ت

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 TND = 0.334 USD

1 TND = 0.297 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TND, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Tunisian Dinar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 2.99 TND (1 TND = 0.334 USD). 1 EUR = 3.37 TND (1 TND = 0.297 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Manouba 1,590 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Manouba

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 Manouba: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Manouba differ by about 106% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $651 including rent). Manouba is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,011 in Bucharest and $977 in Manouba 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.

Rent for a central apartment: $678 in Bucharest versus $208 in Manouba. 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 $651 in Manouba – a 106% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Manouba runs roughly 112% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $651 in Manouba versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Manouba but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Manouba 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 Manouba gentler on the wallet – expenses run 106% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.