Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Vilagarcia de Arousa

For one person, living is cheaper in Vilagarcia de Arousa: $1,123 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $2,600 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
54

Cost of Living Index in Vilagarcia de Arousa
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Vilagarcia de Arousa Living Index

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Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Vilagarcia de Arousa

🇪🇸 Spain

$1,123

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Vilagarcia de Arousa

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 Vilagarcia de Arousa actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,123 in Vilagarcia de Arousa.

Bucharest $1,340
Vilagarcia de Arousa $1,123

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,665 in Vilagarcia de Arousa.

Bucharest $2,037
Vilagarcia de Arousa $1,665

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $2,207 in Vilagarcia de Arousa.

Bucharest $2,734
Vilagarcia de Arousa $2,207

Living in Bucharest is roughly 19% more expensive than in Vilagarcia de Arousa, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Vilagarcia de Arousa 17% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$9.13 €8.12

58.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$37.96 €33.77

53.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$8.77 €7.80

-14.71%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$1.75 €1.55

96.57%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$2.43 €2.16

-2.47%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$1.60 €1.42

43.75%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$2.51 €2.24

47.41%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$3.27 €2.91

27.22%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$0.99 €0.88

68.69%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$1.33 €1.18

3.01%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$1.80 €1.60

-4.44%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$3.06 €2.72

18.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$6.63 €5.89

36.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$7.24 €6.44

-5.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$7.96 €7.08

50.75%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$2.55 €2.27

-51.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$2.75 €2.44

-40.73%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$2.36 €2.10

-33.47%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$2.31 €2.06

9.96%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$2.07 €1.84

-61.84%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$2.43 €2.16

-68.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$1.52 €1.35

-42.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.72 €0.64

37.50%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$5.11 €4.55

23.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$4.38 €3.90

41.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$1.11 €0.99

7.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.97 €1.76

-20.30%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$1.67 €1.49

-48.50%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

$18.67 €16.61

13.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$5.15 €4.58

-87.57%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.13 €1.01

-46.90%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$19.10 €16.99

-66.34%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.71 €1.52

14.62%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$35.0K €31.1K

-17.06%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$29.0K €25.8K

-8.00%

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

$196 RON 927

$144 €128

35.96%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$16.18 €14.40

-50.31%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$30.73 €27.34

-69.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$28.00 €24.91

79.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

$15.45 €13.74

63.95%

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$8.28 €7.36

-1.57%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$270 €240

132.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$6,669 €5,932

111.17%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$72.7 €64.7

23.23%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$30.73 €27.34

24.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$72.9 €64.8

8.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$130 €116

-30.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$543 €483

24.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$341 €304

31.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$784 €697

38.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$501 €446

44.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$1,461 €1,300

156.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$836 €744

162.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

$2,245 €1,997

-40.78%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

3.77

79.05%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Vilagarcia de Arousa: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$341 30.4% 23.9% $107

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$156 13.9% 30.9% $70

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$217 19.3% 3.7% $8.2

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$191 17% 10.4% $22

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$138 12.3% 3% $4

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$45 4% 33% $22

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Vilagarcia de Arousa

$36 3.2% 28.3% $8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $678 in Bucharest and $543 in Vilagarcia de Arousa. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vilagarcia de Arousa pays 69% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $38.00 in Vilagarcia de Arousa for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $217 per month, with Vilagarcia de Arousa cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇪🇸 Vilagarcia de Arousa

🕒 Local time

04:39 4:39 AM

03:39 3:39 AM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

37,689

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Bucharest Vilagarcia de Arousa 2,800 km ≈ 4 h nonstop flight

From you

Bucharest
Vilagarcia de Arousa

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 Vilagarcia de Arousa: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Vilagarcia de Arousa differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $1,123 including rent). Vilagarcia de Arousa is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 69% lower in Vilagarcia de Arousa. 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: $678 in Bucharest versus $543 in Vilagarcia de Arousa. 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 $1,123 in Vilagarcia de Arousa – a 19% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Vilagarcia de Arousa runs roughly 13% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,123 in Vilagarcia de Arousa versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Vilagarcia de Arousa but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Vilagarcia de Arousa 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 Vilagarcia de Arousa 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 Vilagarcia de Arousa gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.