Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Rybnik

For one person, living costs are similar in Bucharest and in Rybnik: $1,340 and $1,397 a month, rent and utilities included.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Rybnik
Learn more

Rybnik Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Rybnik

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,397

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Rybnik

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,397 in Rybnik.

Bucharest $1,340
Rybnik $1,397

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $2,047 in Rybnik.

Bucharest $2,037
Rybnik $2,047

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $2,697 in Rybnik.

Bucharest $2,734
Rybnik $2,697

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 4% less than in Rybnik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Rybnik is 3% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$10.06 zł 39.10

44.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$45.99 zł 179

26.31%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$8.84 zł 34.33

-15.38%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$3.29 zł 12.79

4.56%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$1.87 zł 7.25

26.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$1.96 zł 7.61

17.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$3.85 zł 14.95

-3.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$4.06 zł 15.76

2.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.14 zł 4.43

46.49%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$2.04 zł 7.93

-32.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$2.10 zł 8.14

-18.10%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$3.99 zł 15.51

-8.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$8.31 zł 32.29

9.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$8.25 zł 32.06

-17.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$15.09 zł 58.6

-20.48%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$1.26 zł 4.89

-2.38%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$1.81 zł 7.04

-9.94%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.73 zł 6.73

-9.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$3.88 zł 15.07

-34.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$1.00 zł 3.87

-21.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$1.01 zł 3.91

-23.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$1.54 zł 5.99

-43.51%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.77 zł 3.01

28.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$6.50 zł 25.24

-2.92%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$6.34 zł 24.65

-2.21%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.13 zł 4.37

5.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.42 zł 5.52

10.56%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$1.28 zł 4.99

-32.81%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$21.56 zł 83.8

-2.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$2.23 zł 8.68

-71.30%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$0.90 zł 3.51

-33.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$12.69 zł 49.32

-49.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.67 zł 6.48

17.37%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$31.1K zł 120.8K

-6.75%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$29.8K zł 115.9K

-10.71%

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

$196 RON 927

$241 zł 936

-18.69%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$9.53 zł 37.02

-15.63%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$20.18 zł 78.4

-53.67%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$39.63 zł 154

26.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$16.29 zł 63.3

55.49%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$5.58 zł 21.69

46.06%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$575 zł 2,235

9.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$14.4K zł 55.8K

-1.89%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$93.6 zł 363

-4.21%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$42.27 zł 164

-9.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$79.4 zł 309

-0.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$114 zł 443

-20.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$541 zł 2,101

25.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$452 zł 1,757

-0.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$850 zł 3,303

27.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$700 zł 2,719

3.61%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$1,729 zł 6,717

116.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$1,481 zł 5,754

48.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$1,314 zł 5,107

1.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

6.67

1.20%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Rybnik: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Rybnik

$452 32.4% 0.9% $4

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Rybnik

$189 13.5% 16% $36

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Rybnik

$253 18.1% 12.3% $28

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Rybnik

$271 19.4% 26.9% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Rybnik

$148 10.6% 10.6% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Rybnik

$51 3.6% 23.7% $16

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Rybnik

$33 2.4% 18.6% $5.2

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $541 in Rybnik. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 1% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $46.00 in Rybnik. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $253, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇵🇱 Rybnik

🕒 Local time

03:59 3:59 AM

02:59 2:59 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

142,510

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 PLN = 0.257 USD

1 PLN = 0.229 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PLN, 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).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.89 PLN (1 PLN = 0.257 USD). 1 EUR = 4.37 PLN (1 PLN = 0.229 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Bucharest Rybnik 850 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Rybnik

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 Rybnik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Rybnik differ by about 4% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,397 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1% 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: $678 in Bucharest versus $541 in Rybnik. 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 $1,397 in Rybnik – a 4% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

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

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,397 in Rybnik, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Rybnik. 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 Rybnik 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 4% less than in Rybnik. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.