Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Swords

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,354 a month against $2,598 in Swords, rent and utilities included – about $14,900 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
125

Cost of Living Index in Swords
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Swords Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,354

/mo nomad

Swords

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,598

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Swords

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,354 in Bucharest versus $2,598 in Swords.

Bucharest $1,354
Swords $2,598

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,043 in Bucharest versus $3,804 in Swords.

Bucharest $2,043
Swords $3,804

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,733 in Bucharest versus $5,010 in Swords.

Bucharest $2,733
Swords $5,010

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 48% less than in Swords, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.66 RON 70.5

$22.16 €19.91

-33.84%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.7 RON 277

$98.6 €88.6

-41.48%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.52 RON 36.14

$13.20 €11.86

-43.03%

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 17.09

$4.93 €4.43

-27.79%

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

$2.47 RON 11.88

$2.98 €2.68

-17.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 RON 10.50

$2.16 €1.94

0.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.69 RON 17.73

$8.03 €7.21

-54.05%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.28 RON 20.57

$6.74 €6.05

-36.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 8.04

$1.58 €1.42

5.70%

White Bread (500g)

$1.35 RON 6.49

$2.35 €2.11

-42.55%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.78 RON 8.53

$2.03 €1.83

-12.32%

Eggs

$3.56 RON 17.12

$4.24 €3.81

-16.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.12 RON 43.86

$9.89 €8.89

-7.79%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.82 RON 32.77

$10.86 €9.76

-37.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.13 RON 58.3

$13.29 €11.94

-8.73%

Apples (1kg)

$1.26 RON 6.08

$2.75 €2.47

-54.18%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 RON 7.80

$2.27 €2.04

-28.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.56 RON 7.49

$2.79 €2.51

-44.09%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.21

$4.17 €3.75

-39.09%

Potato (1kg)

$0.78 RON 3.76

$1.87 €1.68

-58.29%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.72

$1.47 €1.33

-47.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.89 RON 4.27

$1.30 €1.16

-31.54%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.90 RON 4.32

$1.90 €1.70

-52.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.55 RON 31.49

$20.52 €18.44

-68.08%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.37 RON 30.60

$13.39 €12.03

-52.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.24 RON 5.98

$3.35 €3.01

-62.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 RON 7.80

$3.45 €3.10

-53.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.11

$2.26 €2.03

-62.39%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 RON 99.6

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$5.00 €4.49

-87.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.95

$1.47 €1.32

-58.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.16 RON 29.62

$37.35 €33.55

-83.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 RON 9.60

$2.16 €1.94

-7.41%

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

$27.9K RON 134.4K

$38.6K €34.7K

-27.56%

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

$25.3K RON 121.7K

$38.0K €34.1K

-33.34%

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

$192 RON 923

$246 €221

-22.02%

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

$7.92 RON 38.06

$18.68 €16.78

-57.60%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.96 RON 43.06

$51.2 €45.97

-82.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.99 RON 240

$40.58 €36.46

23.19%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 RON 119

Cinema Ticket

$8.51 RON 40.90

$13.43 €12.07

-36.63%

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

$686 RON 3,297

$1,010 €907

-32.08%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 69.3K

$5,183 €4,656

178.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.2 RON 434

$100 €90.0

-9.92%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.74 RON 186

$48.06 €43.18

-19.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.9 RON 379

$108 €97.1

-27.01%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$92.1 RON 443

$113 €101

-18.33%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$711 RON 3,419

$1,556 €1,398

-54.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$462 RON 2,220

$1,342 €1,206

-65.58%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,053 RON 5,064

$2,584 €2,322

-59.24%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$723 RON 3,474

$2,165 €1,945

-66.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,634 RON 17.5K

$4,721 €4,242

-23.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,173 RON 10.4K

$3,447 €3,097

-36.97%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,508

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.68

83.42%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 26, 2026

Last update for Swords: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$462 34.1%

Swords

$1.3K 51.7% 191% $880

Eating Out

Bucharest

$228 16.9%

Swords

$350 13.5% 53.5% $122

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.6%

Swords

$335 12.9% 48.8% $110

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$209 15.4%

Swords

$316 12.2% 51.3% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$135 10%

Swords

$166 6.4% 23% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Swords

$67 2.6% 0.6% $0.4

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Swords

$21 * 0.8% 23.2% $6.4

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 $711 in Bucharest and $1,556 in Swords. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58 in Bucharest vs $99 in Swords for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $335 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇮🇪 Swords

🕒 Local time

07:12 7:12 AM

05:12 5:12 AM

2 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

40,776

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 4.81 RON (1 RON = 0.208 USD). 1 EUR = 5.36 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 28, 2026: 1 USD = 0.898 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Swords 2,540 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Swords

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 Swords: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Swords differ by about 92% in total monthly costs ($1,354 vs $2,598 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $2,030 in Bucharest and $3,897 in Swords 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: $711 in Bucharest versus $1,556 in Swords. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in Swords. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $1,354 per month in Bucharest versus $2,598 in Swords – a 92% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,354 in Bucharest versus $2,598 in Swords, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Swords. 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.