Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and South Africa

Name: South Africa
Address: ZA

For one person, living is cheaper in South Africa: $1,182 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $2,000 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
58

Cost of Living Index in South Africa
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South Africa Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,182

/mo nomad

😐 Solo nomad: Bucharest is 0.7% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 14.3% more expensive with rent.

😐 Family of 3: Bucharest is 10.7% more expensive than South Africa without rent, and 7.6% more expensive with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$10.64 R 176

35.90%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$41.40 R 683

39.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$5.60 R 92.4

33.93%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$2.28 R 37.63

50.44%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$1.16 R 19.17

112.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$0.92 R 15.22

153.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$2.45 R 40.40

55.10%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$2.95 R 48.69

38.98%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$1.19 R 19.63

38.66%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$1.12 R 18.42

20.54%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$1.79 R 29.58

-0.56%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$2.48 R 40.88

47.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$8.08 R 133

6.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$5.13 R 84.7

32.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$7.81 R 129

50.06%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$1.87 R 30.78

-31.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$1.66 R 27.42

-6.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$1.77 R 29.15

-12.99%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$1.80 R 29.67

37.78%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$1.49 R 24.53

-44.30%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$1.50 R 24.71

-46.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$1.28 R 21.16

-34.38%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$1.09 R 17.97

-14.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$3.22 R 53.2

100.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$4.93 R 81.3

28.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$1.48 R 24.47

-14.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$2.01 R 33.09

-20.40%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$1.60 R 26.39

-49.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

$60.7 R 1,001

-65.18%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.09 R 17.98

-44.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$0.98 R 16.23

-37.76%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$7.42 R 122

-16.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$1.49 R 24.63

31.54%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$35.0K R 578.2K

-19.68%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$31.6K R 521.1K

-16.77%

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

$197 RON 931

$131 R 2,168

49.79%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$34.71 R 573

-75.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$39.94 R 659

-76.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$33.88 R 559

47.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

$11.39 R 188

119.40%

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$7.31 R 121

15.73%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$225 R 3,715

183.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$5,485 R 90.5K

162.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$52.0 R 858

74.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

$33.30 R 549

14.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$99.4 R 1,640

-19.87%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$87.4 R 1,441

6.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$480 R 7,918

40.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$406 R 6,692

10.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$935 R 15.4K

17.46%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$796 R 13.1K

-8.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$1,111 R 18.3K

236.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$777 R 12.8K

181.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$1,476 R 24.4K

-10.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

11.23

-39.98%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for South Africa: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

South Africa

$406 33.6% 9.6% $43

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

South Africa

$156 12.9% 31% $70

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

South Africa

$196 16.2% 11.7% $26

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

South Africa

$206 17.1% 3.9% $8.3

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

South Africa

$122 10.1% 9.8% $13

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

South Africa

$49 4% 27.4% $18

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

South Africa

$73 6.1% 161% $45

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇿🇦 South Africa

🕒 Local time

17:14 5:14 PM

16:14 4:14 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

62,027,503

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.06 USD

100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, 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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 16.5 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.06 USD). 1 EUR = 18.49 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.41 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest South Africa 8,180 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
South Africa

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

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