Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Sighetu Marmatiei

For one person, living is cheaper in Sighetu Marmatiei: $958 a month against $1,354 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 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
46

Cost of Living Index in Sighetu Marmatiei
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Sighetu Marmatiei Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,354

/mo nomad

Sighetu Marmatiei

🇷🇴 Romania

$958

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Sighetu Marmatiei

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,354 in Bucharest versus $958 in Sighetu Marmatiei.

Bucharest $1,354
Sighetu Marmatiei $958

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,043 in Bucharest versus $1,401 in Sighetu Marmatiei.

Bucharest $2,043
Sighetu Marmatiei $1,401

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,733 in Bucharest versus $1,843 in Sighetu Marmatiei.

Bucharest $2,733
Sighetu Marmatiei $1,843

Living in Bucharest is roughly 41% more expensive than in Sighetu Marmatiei, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.66 RON 70.5

$8.62 RON 41.42

70.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 277

$20.80 RON 100.0

177.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 RON 36.13

$7.31 RON 35.14

2.87%

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 17.09

$2.68 RON 12.89

32.84%

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

$2.47 RON 11.88

$1.84 RON 8.86

34.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 RON 10.50

$1.77 RON 8.51

23.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 RON 17.72

$2.06 RON 9.89

79.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 RON 20.57

$3.15 RON 15.12

35.87%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 8.04

$1.44 RON 6.92

15.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.49

$1.01 RON 4.87

33.66%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.53

$1.20 RON 5.77

48.33%

Eggs

$3.56 RON 17.12

$2.83 RON 13.61

25.80%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.12 RON 43.84

$8.02 RON 38.54

13.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.82 RON 32.76

$6.34 RON 30.45

7.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.13 RON 58.3

$9.18 RON 44.10

32.14%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 RON 6.08

$1.12 RON 5.38

12.50%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 RON 7.80

$1.49 RON 7.16

8.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.49

$1.49 RON 7.17

4.70%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.21

$1.36 RON 6.56

86.76%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.76

$0.86 RON 4.16

-9.30%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.72

$0.95 RON 4.57

-18.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 RON 4.27

$0.69 RON 3.32

28.99%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 RON 4.32

$0.84 RON 4.01

7.14%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.55 RON 31.48

$5.46 RON 26.23

19.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.37 RON 30.60

$5.77 RON 27.73

10.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 RON 5.97

$1.03 RON 4.95

20.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 RON 7.79

$1.76 RON 8.44

-7.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.10

$0.76 RON 3.64

11.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 RON 99.6

$21.76 RON 105

-4.83%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$0.72 RON 3.45

-15.28%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$0.77 RON 3.69

-20.78%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.16 RON 29.62

$7.41 RON 35.63

-16.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 RON 9.60

$1.73 RON 8.31

15.61%

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

$27.9K RON 134.3K

$29.0K RON 139.3K

-3.57%

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

$25.3K RON 121.7K

$25.5K RON 122.5K

-0.63%

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

$192 RON 923

$138 RON 663

39.32%

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

$7.92 RON 38.05

$6.50 RON 31.22

21.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.96 RON 43.05

$7.73 RON 37.13

15.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.99 RON 240

$38.48 RON 185

29.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 RON 119

$20.29 RON 97.5

22.28%

Cinema Ticket

$8.51 RON 40.88

$4.31 RON 20.73

97.45%

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

$686 RON 3,296

$396 RON 1,904

73.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 69.3K

$8,844 RON 42.5K

63.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.2 RON 434

$59.9 RON 288

50.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 RON 186

$37.56 RON 180

3.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.9 RON 379

$54.8 RON 263

43.94%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 RON 442

$63.4 RON 305

45.16%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$711 RON 3,418

$378 RON 1,818

88.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 RON 2,220

$290 RON 1,392

59.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 RON 5,063

$602 RON 2,893

75.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$723 RON 3,473

$441 RON 2,120

63.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,634 RON 17.5K

$1,865 RON 8,961

94.89%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,173 RON 10.4K

$1,333 RON 6,404

63.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,506

$522 RON 2,510

159.26%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

7.1

-4.93%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 26, 2026

Last update for Sighetu Marmatiei: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$462 34.1%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$290 30.2% 37.3% $172

Eating Out

Bucharest

$228 16.9%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$154 16.1% 32.4% $74

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.6%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$189 19.7% 16.1% $36

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$209 15.4%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$152 15.9% 27.2% $57

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$135 10%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$97 10.1% 28.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$47 4.9% 29.7% $20

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Sighetu Marmatiei

$29 3.1% 5.5% $1.5

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $711 in Bucharest and $378 in Sighetu Marmatiei. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in Bucharest vs $21 in Sighetu Marmatiei for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $189 per month, with Sighetu Marmatiei cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇷🇴 Sighetu Marmatiei

🕒 Local time

16:04 4:04 PM

Same time as Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

37,640

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Sighetu Marmatiei 420 km

From you

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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 Sighetu Marmatiei: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Sighetu Marmatiei differ by about 41% in total monthly costs ($1,354 vs $958 including rent). Sighetu Marmatiei is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay in Bucharest is about 2.6 times higher, 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: $711 in Bucharest versus $378 in Sighetu Marmatiei. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $1,354 per month in Bucharest versus $958 in Sighetu Marmatiei – a 41% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 5% less than in Sighetu Marmatiei. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you’re watching your budget.

At $958 in Sighetu Marmatiei versus $1,354 in Bucharest, a $1,200 budget is realistic in Sighetu Marmatiei but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Sighetu Marmatiei 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.

It comes down to priorities – Sighetu Marmatiei wins on affordability, Bucharest on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.