Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Ulsteinvik

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,608 in Ulsteinvik, rent and utilities included – about $15,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
128

Cost of Living Index in Ulsteinvik
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Ulsteinvik Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Ulsteinvik

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,608

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Ulsteinvik

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,608 in Ulsteinvik.

Bucharest $1,340
Ulsteinvik $2,608

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $3,954 in Ulsteinvik.

Bucharest $2,037
Ulsteinvik $3,954

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $5,301 in Ulsteinvik.

Bucharest $2,734
Ulsteinvik $5,301

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 49% less than in Ulsteinvik, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Ulsteinvik is 93% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$20.24 NOK 191

-28.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$106 NOK 996

-45.11%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$13.39 NOK 126

-44.14%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$4.68 NOK 44.06

-26.50%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$4.17 NOK 39.26

-43.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$2.84 NOK 26.77

-19.01%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$13.40 NOK 126

-72.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$9.98 NOK 93.9

-58.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$2.50 NOK 23.54

-33.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$3.59 NOK 33.75

-61.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$3.81 NOK 35.86

-54.86%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$4.92 NOK 46.35

-26.02%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$13.40 NOK 126

-32.24%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$15.42 NOK 145

-55.64%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$31.06 NOK 292

-61.37%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$3.29 NOK 30.93

-62.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.70 NOK 25.44

-39.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.44 NOK 32.39

-54.36%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$4.77 NOK 44.87

-46.75%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$2.52 NOK 23.72

-68.65%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.93 NOK 27.55

-73.72%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$2.90 NOK 27.27

-70.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$2.55 NOK 23.97

-61.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$17.56 NOK 165

-64.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$16.52 NOK 156

-62.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$3.81 NOK 35.82

-68.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$3.90 NOK 36.72

-59.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$4.86 NOK 45.79

-82.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$85.7 NOK 806

-75.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$13.46 NOK 127

-95.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.73 NOK 16.25

-65.32%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$69.0 NOK 649

-90.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$2.13 NOK 20.01

-7.98%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$41.7K NOK 393.0K

-30.54%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$42.9K NOK 404.3K

-37.98%

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

$196 RON 927

$266 NOK 2,505

-26.38%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$29.25 NOK 275

-72.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$53.4 NOK 503

-82.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$48.70 NOK 458

3.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$34.49 NOK 325

-26.56%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$17.01 NOK 160

-52.09%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$214 NOK 2,017

193.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$14.6K NOK 137.2K

-3.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$98.4 NOK 927

-8.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$49.95 NOK 470

-23.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$121 NOK 1,136

-34.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$135 NOK 1,271

-33.04%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$1,096 NOK 10.3K

-38.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$1,002 NOK 9,434

-55.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$1,785 NOK 16.8K

-39.31%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$1,659 NOK 15.6K

-56.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$7,015 NOK 66.0K

-46.53%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$4,138 NOK 39.0K

-46.95%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

4.94

36.64%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Ulsteinvik: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Ulsteinvik

$1K 38.4% 124% $554

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Ulsteinvik

$373 14.3% 65.7% $148

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Ulsteinvik

$492 18.9% 119% $267

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Ulsteinvik

$349 13.4% 63.5% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Ulsteinvik

$182 7% 35.8% $48

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Ulsteinvik

$83 3.2% 24.3% $16

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Ulsteinvik

$127 4.9% 351% $99

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $1,096 in Ulsteinvik. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $106 in Ulsteinvik for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $492 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇳🇴 Ulsteinvik

🕒 Local time

17:37 5:37 PM

16:37 4:37 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

5,600

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Ulsteinvik 2,380 km ≈ 3 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Ulsteinvik

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 Ulsteinvik: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Ulsteinvik differ by about 95% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $2,608 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,011 in Bucharest and $3,912 in Ulsteinvik 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: $678 in Bucharest versus $1,096 in Ulsteinvik. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,340 per month in Bucharest versus $2,608 in Ulsteinvik – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 306% less than in Ulsteinvik. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,608 in Ulsteinvik, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Ulsteinvik. 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 Ulsteinvik 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 95% less than in Ulsteinvik. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.