Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Saint-Louis

For one person, living is cheaper in Saint-Louis: $824 a month against $1,371 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $6,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
40

Cost of Living Index in Saint-Louis
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Saint-Louis Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,371

/mo nomad

Saint-Louis

🇸🇳 Senegal

$824

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Saint-Louis

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 Saint-Louis actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,371 in Bucharest versus $824 in Saint-Louis.

Bucharest $1,371
Saint-Louis $824

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,067 in Bucharest versus $1,296 in Saint-Louis.

Bucharest $2,067
Saint-Louis $1,296

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,764 in Bucharest versus $1,768 in Saint-Louis.

Bucharest $2,764
Saint-Louis $1,768

Living in Bucharest is roughly 66% more expensive than in Saint-Louis, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.51 RON 69.0

$3.35 F CFA 1,957

333.13%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$61.2 RON 291

$52.6 F CFA 30.7K

16.43%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.46 RON 35.46

$10.91 F CFA 6,367

-31.62%

Cappuccino

$3.64 RON 17.31

$3.42 F CFA 1,995

6.43%

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

$2.62 RON 12.43

$1.20 F CFA 698

118.33%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 RON 11.23

$0.90 F CFA 525

162.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.78 RON 17.98

$1.67 F CFA 975

126.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 RON 19.52

$4.27 F CFA 2,493

-3.75%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.66 RON 7.89

$2.58 F CFA 1,504

-35.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.40 RON 6.64

$0.25 F CFA 145

460.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.79 RON 8.53

$1.49 F CFA 868

20.13%

Eggs

$3.63 RON 17.25

$2.51 F CFA 1,465

44.62%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.92 RON 42.38

$17.19 F CFA 10.0K

-48.11%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.86 RON 32.62

$9.08 F CFA 5,297

-24.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.99 RON 57.0

$10.98 F CFA 6,409

9.20%

Apples (1kg)

$1.30 RON 6.16

$3.26 F CFA 1,901

-60.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.76

$1.85 F CFA 1,081

-11.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.49 RON 7.09

$2.84 F CFA 1,658

-47.54%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.08

$1.71 F CFA 999

48.54%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.86

$1.33 F CFA 778

-39.10%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.78

$0.96 F CFA 560

-16.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.86 RON 4.07

$1.09 F CFA 638

-21.10%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.94 RON 4.46

$0.69 F CFA 402

36.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.60 RON 31.38

$2.17 F CFA 1,268

204.15%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.33 RON 30.08

$14.36 F CFA 8,380

-55.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.64

$1.53 F CFA 891

-22.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 RON 7.53

$3.26 F CFA 1,901

-51.53%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.98 RON 4.64

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.91 RON 99.4

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$0.83 F CFA 484

-27.71%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.62 RON 2.93

$2.09 F CFA 1,223

-70.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.37 RON 30.25

$17.33 F CFA 10.1K

-63.24%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.02 RON 9.62

$1.61 F CFA 939

25.47%

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

$28.2K RON 134.0K

$49.4K F CFA 28.8M

-42.91%

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

$26.3K RON 124.8K

$47.5K F CFA 27.7M

-44.73%

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

$196 RON 932

$201 F CFA 117.2K

-2.27%

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

$8.60 RON 40.84

$11.46 F CFA 6,690

-24.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.20 RON 43.69

$46.27 F CFA 27.0K

-80.12%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.0 RON 242

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.04 RON 119

Cinema Ticket

$8.26 RON 39.27

$8.52 F CFA 4,970

-3.05%

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

$681 RON 3,234

$321 F CFA 187.6K

111.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$18.7K RON 89.0K

$12.1K F CFA 7.1M

54.80%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.3 RON 443

$58.8 F CFA 34.3K

58.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.87 RON 189

$45.45 F CFA 26.5K

-12.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.1 RON 381

$84.3 F CFA 49.2K

-5.02%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 RON 431

$97.2 F CFA 56.7K

-6.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$731 RON 3,473

$434 F CFA 253.2K

68.52%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$470 RON 2,232

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,110 RON 5,276

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$722 RON 3,431

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,749 RON 17.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,233 RON 10.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,365 RON 6,487

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

8.75

-22.86%

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

Last update for Bucharest: November 2, 2026

Last update for Saint-Louis: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$470 34.3%

Saint-Louis

- * 0% 100%

Eating Out

Bucharest

$229 16.7%

Saint-Louis

$126 15.3% 45.1% $103

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.4%

Saint-Louis

$283 34.3% 25.8% $58

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 15.6%

Saint-Louis

$258 31.4% 20.8% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$137 10%

Saint-Louis

$129 15.6% 6% $8.1

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$68 4.9%

Saint-Louis

$17 * 2.1% 74.8% $51

Getting Around

Bucharest

$29 2.1%

Saint-Louis

$11 * 1.4% 60.4% $17

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $731 in Bucharest and $434 in Saint-Louis. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $61 in Bucharest vs $53 in Saint-Louis. Groceries flip the comparison at $225 vs $283, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇸🇳 Saint-Louis

🕒 Local time

08:36 8:36 AM

06:36 6:36 AM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

176,000

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

West African CFA Franc XOF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD

1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

XOF, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.33 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

West African CFA Franc exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 584 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.71 USD). 1 EUR = 655 XOF (1,000 XOF = 1.53 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Saint-Louis 5,080 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Saint-Louis

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 Saint-Louis: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $1,371 in Bucharest and $824 in Saint-Louis, so Saint-Louis is about 40% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,056 in Bucharest and $1,236 in Saint-Louis 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: $731 in Bucharest versus $434 in Saint-Louis. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Bucharest pay roughly 21% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you’ll spend $1,371 per month in Bucharest versus $824 in Saint-Louis – Saint-Louis is about 40% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Saint-Louis is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.