Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Ostersund

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $1,729 in Ostersund, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 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
84

Cost of Living Index in Ostersund
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Ostersund Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Ostersund

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,729

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Ostersund

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,729 in Ostersund.

Bucharest $1,340
Ostersund $1,729

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $2,687 in Ostersund.

Bucharest $2,037
Ostersund $2,687

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $3,644 in Ostersund.

Bucharest $2,734
Ostersund $3,644

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 22% less than in Ostersund, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Ostersund is 28% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$13.35 SEK 132

8.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$75.1 SEK 744

-22.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$10.07 SEK 99.8

-25.72%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$4.53 SEK 44.86

-24.06%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$2.56 SEK 25.38

-7.42%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$2.16 SEK 21.42

6.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$7.03 SEK 69.7

-47.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$6.97 SEK 69.0

-40.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.43 SEK 14.16

16.78%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$2.94 SEK 29.16

-53.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$4.58 SEK 45.43

-62.45%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$3.22 SEK 31.91

13.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$13.29 SEK 132

-31.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$11.28 SEK 112

-39.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$14.94 SEK 148

-19.68%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$4.11 SEK 40.73

-70.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.77 SEK 27.49

-41.16%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.53 SEK 34.95

-55.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$3.87 SEK 38.37

-34.37%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.61 SEK 15.96

-50.93%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$1.55 SEK 15.38

-50.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$2.20 SEK 21.82

-60.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$1.40 SEK 13.87

-29.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$7.85 SEK 77.8

-19.62%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$10.11 SEK 100

-38.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.96 SEK 19.38

-39.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.21 SEK 21.91

-28.96%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$3.33 SEK 32.96

-74.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$76.5 SEK 758

-72.41%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$5.85 SEK 57.9

-89.06%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.70 SEK 16.80

-64.71%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$58.8 SEK 583

-89.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.81 SEK 17.94

8.29%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$33.3K SEK 329.5K

-12.81%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$32.1K SEK 317.8K

-16.96%

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

$196 RON 927

$104 SEK 1,031

88.25%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$23.74 SEK 235

-66.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$38.74 SEK 384

-75.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$37.10 SEK 368

35.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$26.47 SEK 262

-4.31%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$14.80 SEK 147

-44.93%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$124 SEK 1,231

405.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$5,033 SEK 49.9K

179.81%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$91.7 SEK 909

-2.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$40.11 SEK 397

-4.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$91.3 SEK 905

-13.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$138 SEK 1,366

-34.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$803 SEK 7,957

-15.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$615 SEK 6,094

-27.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$1,324 SEK 13.1K

-18.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$1,013 SEK 10.0K

-28.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$3,940 SEK 39.0K

-4.78%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$2,776 SEK 27.5K

-20.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.45

95.65%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Ostersund: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Ostersund

$615 35.6% 37.2% $167

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Ostersund

$259 15% 15.2% $34

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Ostersund

$355 20.5% 57.6% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Ostersund

$167 9.6% 21.9% $47

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Ostersund

$162 9.4% 21.3% $29

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Ostersund

$67 3.9% 0.3% $0.2

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Ostersund

$104 6% 269% $76

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $803 in Ostersund. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $75.0 in Ostersund for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $355 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇸🇪 Ostersund

🕒 Local time

04:27 4:27 AM

03:27 3:27 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

44,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, 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).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Ostersund 2,210 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Ostersund

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 Ostersund: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Ostersund differ by about 29% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,729 including rent). Bucharest 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 $2,593 in Ostersund 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 $803 in Ostersund. 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 $1,729 in Ostersund – a 29% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 263% less than in Ostersund. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,729 in Ostersund, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Ostersund. 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 Ostersund 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 29% less than in Ostersund. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.