Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Patna

For one person, living is cheaper in Patna: $378 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $11,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
18

Cost of Living Index in Patna
Learn more

Patna Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Patna

🇮🇳 India

$378

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Patna

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,351 in Bucharest versus $378 in Patna.

Bucharest $1,351
Patna $378

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,033 in Bucharest versus $581 in Patna.

Bucharest $2,033
Patna $581

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,715 in Bucharest versus $783 in Patna.

Bucharest $2,715
Patna $783

Living in Bucharest is roughly 257% more expensive than in Patna, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% above, Patna is 72% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$2.04 ₹197

608.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$9.32 ₹902

518.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$3.03 ₹294

147.52%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$1.62 ₹157

111.73%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$0.34 ₹33.11

623.53%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$0.15 ₹14.48

1453.33%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$1.90 ₹184

100.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$5.80 ₹561

-29.31%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$0.65 ₹62.6

153.85%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$0.42 ₹40.69

221.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$0.52 ₹50.6

242.31%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$0.94 ₹90.6

289.36%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$6.69 ₹648

28.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$2.23 ₹216

204.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$1.35 ₹131

-4.44%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$0.67 ₹65.3

132.84%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$1.03 ₹99.8

49.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$0.45 ₹43.18

451.11%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$0.32 ₹30.63

159.38%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$0.49 ₹47.19

63.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$0.46 ₹44.79

82.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$0.27 ₹26.05

244.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$4.96 ₹480

29.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$6.31 ₹611

0.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$1.59 ₹154

-20.75%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$2.14 ₹207

-25.23%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$6.84 ₹662

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$0.32 ₹31.32

153.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

$4.56 ₹441

363.38%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.34 ₹130

-55.22%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$0.19 ₹18.44

221.05%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$2.05 ₹198

200.98%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$1.06 ₹102

84.91%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$13.5K ₹1.3M

108.50%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$26.8K ₹2.6M

-1.77%

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

$197 RON 931

$45.39 ₹4,392

333.69%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$2.72 ₹263

206.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$6.48 ₹627

41.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$21.99 ₹2,128

126.78%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

$12.09 ₹1,171

106.70%

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$3.29 ₹318

157.14%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$53.7 ₹5,192

1091.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$1,637 ₹158.4K

779.24%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$23.99 ₹2,322

277.66%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

$28.76 ₹2,783

32.30%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$38.25 ₹3,702

108.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$32.71 ₹3,166

185.05%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$106 ₹10.2K

537.92%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$60.5 ₹5,858

641.63%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$240 ₹23.3K

356.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$132 ₹12.8K

452.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$1,255 ₹121.5K

197.93%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$495 ₹47.9K

342.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$340 ₹32.9K

289.49%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

9.46

-28.75%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for Patna: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

Patna

$61 16.3% 86.5% $388

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

Patna

$68 18.3% 69.9% $158

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

Patna

$97 26% 56.4% $125

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

Patna

$55 14.7% 74.5% $160

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

Patna

$56 15% 59% $80

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Patna

$29 7.7% 57.2% $38

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Patna

$8.1 2.2% 71% $20

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $673 in Bucharest and $106 in Patna. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 289% 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 $9.00 in Patna for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $97.0 per month, with Patna cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇮🇳 Patna

🕒 Local time

10:27 10:27 AM

12:57 12:57 PM

2 h 30 min ahead of Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

500,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.33 USD

1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 96.78 INR (100 INR = 1.03 USD). 1 EUR = 109 INR (1,000 INR = 9.21 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Patna 5,630 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Patna

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 Patna: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Patna differ by about 257% in total monthly costs ($1,351 vs $378 including rent). Patna is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 289% 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: $673 in Bucharest versus $106 in Patna. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,351 per month in Bucharest versus $378 in Patna – a 257% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Patna runs roughly 363% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $378 in Patna versus $1,351 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Patna but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Patna 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 Patna gentler on the wallet – expenses run 257% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.