Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and St. Gallen

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $3,632 in St. Gallen, rent and utilities included – about $27,400 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
178

Cost of Living Index in St. Gallen
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St. Gallen Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

St. Gallen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,632

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in St. Gallen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,351 in Bucharest versus $3,632 in St. Gallen.

Bucharest $1,351
St. Gallen $3,632

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,033 in Bucharest versus $5,284 in St. Gallen.

Bucharest $2,033
St. Gallen $5,284

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,715 in Bucharest versus $6,937 in St. Gallen.

Bucharest $2,715
St. Gallen $6,937

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 63% less than in St. Gallen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Bucharest 1% above, St. Gallen 171% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.46 RON 68.4

$29.41 CHF 24.41

-50.83%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 273

$145 CHF 121

-60.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.50 RON 35.46

$17.82 CHF 14.79

-57.91%

Cappuccino

$3.43 RON 16.20

$5.99 CHF 4.97

-42.74%

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

$2.46 RON 11.63

$5.81 CHF 4.83

-57.66%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.01

$5.33 CHF 4.42

-56.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.80 RON 17.97

$9.23 CHF 7.66

-58.83%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.10 RON 19.41

$6.17 CHF 5.12

-33.55%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 RON 7.79

$2.23 CHF 1.85

-26.01%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.39

$3.18 CHF 2.64

-57.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.42

$3.68 CHF 3.06

-51.63%

Eggs

$3.66 RON 17.33

$7.68 CHF 6.37

-52.34%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.57 RON 40.54

$25.41 CHF 21.09

-66.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.80 RON 32.17

$28.97 CHF 24.05

-76.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.72 RON 55.4

$38.85 CHF 32.25

-69.83%

Apples (1kg)

$1.29 RON 6.11

$3.16 CHF 2.62

-59.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.37

$1.61 CHF 1.33

-3.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.54 RON 7.28

$2.31 CHF 1.92

-33.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.48 RON 11.75

$6.01 CHF 4.99

-58.74%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.92

$1.70 CHF 1.41

-51.18%

Onion (1kg)

$0.80 RON 3.77

$2.16 CHF 1.80

-62.96%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.84 RON 3.98

$2.16 CHF 1.79

-61.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.93 RON 4.39

$1.18 CHF 0.98

-21.19%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.44 RON 30.45

$10.65 CHF 8.84

-39.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.32 RON 29.91

$11.32 CHF 9.39

-44.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 RON 5.94

$2.18 CHF 1.81

-42.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$2.31 CHF 1.92

-30.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

$4.17 CHF 3.46

-80.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

$128 CHF 106

-83.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$6.64 CHF 5.51

-90.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.91

$4.79 CHF 3.98

-87.27%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.17 RON 29.19

$77.3 CHF 64.2

-92.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.27

$2.22 CHF 1.84

-11.71%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

$35.3K CHF 29.3K

-20.30%

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

$39.5K CHF 32.7K

-33.37%

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

$197 RON 931

$305 CHF 253

-35.47%

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

$8.34 RON 39.44

$38.46 CHF 31.92

-78.32%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.19 RON 43.47

$54.2 CHF 44.95

-83.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.87 RON 236

$80.7 CHF 67.0

-38.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$8.46 RON 40.01

$30.32 CHF 25.16

-72.10%

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

$639 RON 3,023

$2,308 CHF 1,915

-72.30%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

$31.8K CHF 26.4K

-54.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.6 RON 429

$146 CHF 122

-38.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.05 RON 180

$64.6 CHF 53.7

-41.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.7 RON 377

$147 CHF 122

-45.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.2 RON 441

$179 CHF 148

-47.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$673 RON 3,184

$1,734 CHF 1,439

-61.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$449 RON 2,123

$1,698 CHF 1,410

-73.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,098 RON 5,195

$2,854 CHF 2,369

-61.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$729 RON 3,448

$2,153 CHF 1,787

-66.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,740 RON 17.7K

$12.1K CHF 10.0K

-69.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,189 RON 10.4K

$9,070 CHF 7,528

-75.87%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,323 RON 6,259

$6,528 CHF 5,418

-79.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.74

2.1

220.95%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Last update for St. Gallen: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$449 33.5%

St. Gallen

$1.7K 46% 278% $1.2K

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.8%

St. Gallen

$464 12.6% 106% $238

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$222 16.5%

St. Gallen

$572 15.5% 158% $351

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$214 16%

St. Gallen

$398 10.8% 85.5% $183

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$136 10.1%

St. Gallen

$242 6.6% 78.1% $106

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

St. Gallen

$141 3.8% 112% $75

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

St. Gallen

$176 4.8% 526% $147

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $673 in Bucharest and $1,734 in St. Gallen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

St. Gallen pays 393% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $145 in St. Gallen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $222 vs $572 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇨🇭 St. Gallen

🕒 Local time

06:08 6:08 AM

05:08 5:08 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

78,213

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

1 CHF = 1.2 USD

1 CHF = 1.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, 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).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 0.931 CHF (1 CHF = 1.07 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest St. Gallen 1,330 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
St. Gallen

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 St. Gallen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and St. Gallen differ by about 169% in total monthly costs ($1,351 vs $3,632 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 393% lower in St. Gallen. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $673 in Bucharest versus $1,734 in St. Gallen. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,351 per month in Bucharest versus $3,632 in St. Gallen – a 169% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 507% less than in St. Gallen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,351 in Bucharest versus $3,632 in St. Gallen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in St. Gallen. 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 St. Gallen 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 169% less than in St. Gallen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.