Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Oradea

For one person, living is cheaper in Oradea: $1,023 a month against $1,354 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
49

Cost of Living Index in Oradea
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Oradea Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,354

/mo nomad

Oradea

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,023

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Oradea

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,354 in Bucharest versus $1,023 in Oradea.

Bucharest $1,354
Oradea $1,023

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,043 in Bucharest versus $1,523 in Oradea.

Bucharest $2,043
Oradea $1,523

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,733 in Bucharest versus $2,022 in Oradea.

Bucharest $2,733
Oradea $2,022

Living in Bucharest is roughly 32% more expensive than in Oradea, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.66 RON 69.8

$8.26 RON 39.34

77.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 275

$41.28 RON 197

39.78%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 RON 35.82

$7.42 RON 35.34

1.35%

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 16.94

$2.58 RON 12.29

37.98%

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

$2.47 RON 11.78

$1.90 RON 9.03

30.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 RON 10.41

$1.78 RON 8.50

22.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 RON 17.57

$2.14 RON 10.22

72.43%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 RON 20.39

$3.19 RON 15.19

34.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.97

$1.47 RON 7.02

13.61%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.43

$1.05 RON 5.02

28.57%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.46

$1.16 RON 5.51

53.45%

Eggs

$3.56 RON 16.97

$2.78 RON 13.23

28.06%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.12 RON 43.47

$8.13 RON 38.75

12.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.82 RON 32.48

$6.13 RON 29.21

11.26%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.13 RON 57.8

$8.81 RON 41.99

37.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 RON 6.03

$1.07 RON 5.10

17.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 RON 7.73

$1.50 RON 7.15

8.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.42

$1.44 RON 6.87

8.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.10

$1.36 RON 6.49

86.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.73

$0.80 RON 3.82

-2.50%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.69

$0.87 RON 4.14

-11.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 RON 4.23

$0.68 RON 3.24

30.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 RON 4.28

$0.81 RON 3.87

11.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.55 RON 31.21

$5.63 RON 26.81

16.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.37 RON 30.33

$5.90 RON 28.11

7.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 RON 5.92

$0.99 RON 4.69

25.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 RON 7.73

$1.76 RON 8.39

-7.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.07

$0.82 RON 3.90

3.66%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 RON 98.7

$22.55 RON 107

-8.16%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 RON 2.92

$0.74 RON 3.54

-17.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.92

$0.70 RON 3.32

-12.86%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.16 RON 29.36

$7.27 RON 34.62

-15.27%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 RON 9.52

$1.78 RON 8.47

12.36%

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

$27.9K RON 133.2K

$28.0K RON 133.6K

-0.35%

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

$25.3K RON 120.7K

$24.8K RON 118.1K

2.21%

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

$192 RON 915

$137 RON 652

40.37%

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

$7.92 RON 37.72

$6.29 RON 29.98

25.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.96 RON 42.68

$7.80 RON 37.16

14.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.99 RON 238

$47.06 RON 224

6.23%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 RON 118

$16.40 RON 78.2

51.28%

Cinema Ticket

$8.51 RON 40.53

$7.54 RON 35.91

12.86%

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

$686 RON 3,268

$385 RON 1,833

78.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.7K

$8,983 RON 42.8K

60.49%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.2 RON 430

$60.6 RON 289

48.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 RON 185

$37.01 RON 176

4.67%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.9 RON 376

$55.6 RON 265

42.00%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 RON 439

$62.9 RON 300

46.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$711 RON 3,388

$428 RON 2,040

66.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 RON 2,201

$346 RON 1,647

33.59%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 RON 5,019

$643 RON 3,065

63.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$723 RON 3,443

$504 RON 2,401

43.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,634 RON 17.3K

$2,267 RON 10.8K

60.27%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,173 RON 10.4K

$1,806 RON 8,606

20.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,450

$896 RON 4,271

51.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

7.1

-4.93%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 26, 2026

Last update for Oradea: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$462 34.1%

Oradea

$346 33.8% 25.1% $116

Eating Out

Bucharest

$228 16.9%

Oradea

$151 14.8% 33.8% $77

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.6%

Oradea

$186 18.2% 17.2% $39

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$209 15.4%

Oradea

$151 14.8% 27.8% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$135 10%

Oradea

$97 9.5% 27.9% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Oradea

$62 6.1% 7.3% $4.9

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Oradea

$30 2.9% 8.1% $2.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $711 in Bucharest and $428 in Oradea. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 51% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in Bucharest vs $41 in Oradea for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $186 per month, with Oradea cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇷🇴 Oradea

🕒 Local time

17:11 5:11 PM

Same time as Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

196,367

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Bucharest Oradea 440 km

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Bucharest
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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 Oradea: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,354 in Bucharest and $1,023 in Oradea, so Oradea is about 24% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 51% 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: $711 in Bucharest versus $428 in Oradea. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,354 per month in Bucharest versus $1,023 in Oradea – Oradea is about 24% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 8% less than in Oradea. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Oradea gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Oradea wins on affordability, Bucharest on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.