Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Permet

For one person, living is cheaper in Permet: $1,185 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $1,900 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
58

Cost of Living Index in Permet
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Permet Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Permet

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,185

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Permet

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,185 in Permet.

Bucharest $1,340
Permet $1,185

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,810 in Permet.

Bucharest $2,037
Permet $1,810

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $2,435 in Permet.

Bucharest $2,734
Permet $2,435

Living in Bucharest is roughly 13% more expensive than in Permet, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Permet 12% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 69.2

$9.62 ALL 781

50.62%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 277

$54.7 ALL 4,438

6.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.72

$11.15 ALL 906

-32.91%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.43

$2.28 ALL 185

50.88%

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

$2.37 RON 11.32

$2.41 ALL 196

-1.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.98

$1.23 ALL 99.7

86.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.66

$3.51 ALL 285

5.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.87

$4.00 ALL 324

4.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.97

$2.27 ALL 185

-26.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.56

$1.19 ALL 96.8

15.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.21

$2.39 ALL 194

-28.03%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.37

$3.73 ALL 303

-2.41%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 43.36

$12.88 ALL 1,046

-29.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.64

$9.02 ALL 732

-24.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 57.3

$16.90 ALL 1,373

-28.99%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.85

$1.97 ALL 160

-37.56%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.80

$2.46 ALL 200

-33.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.52

$2.13 ALL 173

-26.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.12

$1.87 ALL 152

35.83%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.78

$1.05 ALL 85.1

-24.76%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.69

$1.28 ALL 104

-39.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.16

$1.50 ALL 122

-42.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.74

$0.75 ALL 60.7

32.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 30.12

$4.80 ALL 390

31.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.61

$10.50 ALL 852

-40.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.68

$1.60 ALL 130

-25.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.52

$2.02 ALL 164

-22.28%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.11

$0.48 ALL 38.99

79.17%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 101

$21.52 ALL 1,747

-1.95%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.07

$3.64 ALL 296

-82.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.88

$3.71 ALL 301

-83.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.71

$18.55 ALL 1,506

-65.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.34

$2.37 ALL 193

-17.30%

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

$29.0K RON 138.4K

$33.5K ALL 2.7M

-13.47%

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

$26.6K RON 127.2K

$35.8K ALL 2.9M

-25.66%

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

$196 RON 935

$98.8 ALL 8,022

98.27%

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

$8.04 RON 38.38

$18.56 ALL 1,507

-56.68%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.61

$19.43 ALL 1,577

-51.88%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 240

$59.6 ALL 4,836

-15.66%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 121

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.89

$10.06 ALL 817

-18.99%

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

$628 RON 2,998

$344 ALL 27.9K

82.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 67.2K

$8,313 ALL 675.0K

69.42%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 428

$49.54 ALL 4,023

80.88%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 183

$47.61 ALL 3,866

-19.51%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 378

$119 ALL 9,673

-33.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 431

$113 ALL 9,141

-19.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,238

$514 ALL 41.8K

31.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,140

$307 ALL 24.9K

46.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,170

$766 ALL 62.2K

41.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,461

$397 ALL 32.2K

82.70%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.9K

$1,885 ALL 153.1K

98.99%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.5K

$1,359 ALL 110.4K

61.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,346

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

5.39

25.23%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Permet: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Permet

$307 25.9% 31.6% $142

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Permet

$178 15% 21% $47

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Permet

$290 24.5% 28.8% $65

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Permet

$137 11.6% 35.9% $76

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Permet

$148 12.5% 10.5% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Permet

$80 6.7% 19.8% $13

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Permet

$46 3.9% 61.7% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $514 in Permet. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $55.0 in Permet. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $290, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇦🇱 Permet

🕒 Local time

16:50 4:50 PM

15:50 3:50 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

10,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 4.77 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.35 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 14, 2026: 1 USD = 81.2 ALL (100 ALL = 1.23 USD). 1 EUR = 90.98 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Permet 660 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Permet

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 Permet: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Permet differ by about 13% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,185 including rent). Permet 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 $1,777 in Permet 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 $514 in Permet. 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 $1,185 in Permet – a 13% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Permet runs roughly 2% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,185 in Permet versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Permet but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Permet 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 Permet gentler on the wallet – expenses run 13% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.