Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Varberg

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,337 a month against $1,648 in Varberg, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. The total is higher in Varberg despite lower rent and utilities.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index
80

Cost of Living Index in Varberg
Learn more

Varberg Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Varberg

🇸🇪 Sweden

$1,648

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Varberg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,337 in Bucharest versus $1,648 in Varberg.

Bucharest $1,337
Varberg $1,648

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,029 in Bucharest versus $2,641 in Varberg.

Bucharest $2,029
Varberg $2,641

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,721 in Bucharest versus $3,635 in Varberg.

Bucharest $2,721
Varberg $3,635

Living in Bucharest costs roughly 19% less than in Varberg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Bucharest is 1% below, Varberg is 22% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.45 RON 68.4

$15.26 SEK 151

-5.31%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$75.9 SEK 752

-23.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.53 RON 35.65

$10.34 SEK 102

-27.18%

Cappuccino

$3.45 RON 16.33

$3.80 SEK 37.70

-9.21%

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

$2.46 RON 11.65

$1.13 SEK 11.16

117.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 RON 10.54

$1.05 SEK 10.40

112.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.76 RON 17.78

$6.17 SEK 61.1

-39.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 RON 19.84

$7.75 SEK 76.8

-45.94%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 RON 7.67

$1.50 SEK 14.85

8.00%

White Bread (500g)

$1.30 RON 6.13

$2.88 SEK 28.58

-54.86%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 RON 8.05

$3.46 SEK 34.30

-50.87%

Eggs

$3.79 RON 17.93

$4.11 SEK 40.72

-7.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.86 RON 41.90

$13.20 SEK 131

-32.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.90 RON 32.67

$11.23 SEK 111

-38.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.14 RON 57.4

$20.15 SEK 200

-39.75%

Apples (1kg)

$1.30 RON 6.17

$2.93 SEK 28.99

-55.63%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.55

$2.49 SEK 24.62

-35.74%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.42

$3.09 SEK 30.60

-49.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.68 RON 12.67

$4.23 SEK 41.89

-36.64%

Potato (1kg)

$0.81 RON 3.82

$1.55 SEK 15.36

-47.74%

Onion (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.73

$1.56 SEK 15.46

-49.36%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.91 RON 4.30

$2.57 SEK 25.43

-64.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.97 RON 4.58

$1.04 SEK 10.28

-6.73%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.41 RON 30.34

$6.66 SEK 66.0

-3.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.18 RON 29.24

$10.21 SEK 101

-39.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.23 RON 5.83

$1.96 SEK 19.46

-37.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 RON 7.91

$1.24 SEK 12.32

34.68%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.87 RON 4.10

$2.86 SEK 28.38

-69.58%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.98 RON 99.3

$78.1 SEK 774

-73.13%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.66 RON 3.10

$5.15 SEK 51.0

-87.18%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.85

$2.40 SEK 23.75

-75.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.19 RON 29.28

$49.91 SEK 495

-87.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.15

$1.81 SEK 17.94

6.63%

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

$28.7K RON 135.9K

$33.4K SEK 331.0K

-13.99%

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

$26.3K RON 124.6K

$34.4K SEK 341.0K

-23.48%

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

$196 RON 926

$140 SEK 1,390

39.49%

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

$8.49 RON 40.19

$19.77 SEK 196

-57.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.05 RON 42.84

$30.07 SEK 298

-69.90%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$49.54 RON 234

$39.66 SEK 393

24.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.03 RON 118

$40.53 SEK 402

-38.24%

Cinema Ticket

$8.24 RON 39.01

$16.16 SEK 160

-49.01%

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

$636 RON 3,007

$152 SEK 1,505

318.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.6K RON 69.0K

$3,359 SEK 33.3K

334.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.5 RON 419

$70.7 SEK 700

25.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.77 RON 183

$40.44 SEK 401

-4.13%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$78.8 RON 373

$113 SEK 1,115

-30.04%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.6 RON 428

$151 SEK 1,498

-40.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$695 RON 3,288

$791 SEK 7,839

-12.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$446 RON 2,109

$500 SEK 4,956

-10.90%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,084 RON 5,130

$1,195 SEK 11.8K

-9.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$712 RON 3,368

$924 SEK 9,152

-22.93%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,797 RON 18.0K

$6,614 SEK 65.5K

-42.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,202 RON 10.4K

$3,563 SEK 35.3K

-38.18%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 RON 6,406

$3,170 SEK 31.4K

-57.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

1.9

255.26%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Last update for Varberg: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$446 33.3%

Varberg

$500 30.4% 12.2% $55

Eating Out

Bucharest

$226 16.9%

Varberg

$254 15.4% 12.6% $28

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.9%

Varberg

$357 21.6% 58.1% $131

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Varberg

$190 11.5% 10.8% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$133 10%

Varberg

$169 10.2% 26.4% $35

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$66 4.9%

Varberg

$72 4.4% 9% $6

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Varberg

$107 6.5% 279% $79

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $695 in Bucharest and $791 in Varberg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Varberg pays 134% 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 $76.0 in Varberg for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $357 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇸🇪 Varberg

🕒 Local time

12:01 12:01 PM

11:01 11:01 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

27,602

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Swedish Krona SEK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

100 SEK = 10.09 USD

100 SEK = 8.98 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 25, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Varberg 1,710 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Varberg

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 Varberg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Varberg differ by about 23% in total monthly costs ($1,337 vs $1,648 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 134% lower in Varberg. 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: $695 in Bucharest versus $791 in Varberg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,337 per month in Bucharest versus $1,648 in Varberg – a 23% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 272% less than in Varberg. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,337 in Bucharest versus $1,648 in Varberg, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Varberg. 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 Varberg 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 23% less than in Varberg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.