Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bucharest and Vrsac

For one person, living is cheaper in Vrsac: $932 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in Vrsac
Learn more

Vrsac Living Index

Jump to prices

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Vrsac

🇷🇸 Serbia

$932

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bucharest and in Vrsac

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,340 in Bucharest versus $932 in Vrsac.

Bucharest $1,340
Vrsac $932

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,037 in Bucharest versus $1,354 in Vrsac.

Bucharest $2,037
Vrsac $1,354

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,734 in Bucharest versus $1,776 in Vrsac.

Bucharest $2,734
Vrsac $1,776

Living in Bucharest is roughly 44% more expensive than in Vrsac, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bucharest 1% lower, Vrsac 31% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.49 RON 68.6

$8.49 RSD 885

70.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$58.1 RON 275

$34.00 RSD 3,545

70.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.48 RON 35.40

$11.42 RSD 1,191

-34.50%

Cappuccino

$3.44 RON 16.29

$1.69 RSD 176

103.55%

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

$2.37 RON 11.22

$1.87 RSD 195

26.74%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.30 RON 10.88

$1.32 RSD 137

74.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.70 RON 17.51

$1.99 RSD 207

85.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.16 RON 19.69

$2.38 RSD 248

74.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 7.90

$1.03 RSD 107

62.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.37 RON 6.50

$0.58 RSD 60.5

136.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.72 RON 8.14

$2.06 RSD 215

-16.50%

Eggs

$3.64 RON 17.22

$2.23 RSD 232

63.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.08 RON 42.98

$8.64 RSD 900

5.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.84 RON 32.35

$4.08 RSD 425

67.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.8

$11.32 RSD 1,180

6.01%

Apples (1kg)

$1.23 RON 5.80

$0.84 RSD 88.0

46.43%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 RON 7.73

$1.26 RSD 131

29.37%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.31 RSD 137

19.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.54 RON 12.01

$2.28 RSD 238

11.40%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 RON 3.75

$0.77 RSD 80.6

2.60%

Onion (1kg)

$0.77 RON 3.66

$0.64 RSD 67.2

20.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.87 RON 4.13

$0.56 RSD 58.0

55.36%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.99 RON 4.70

$0.61 RSD 64.1

62.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.31 RON 29.86

$4.24 RSD 442

48.82%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.20 RON 29.34

$5.32 RSD 555

16.54%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.63

$0.75 RSD 78.2

58.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.57 RON 7.45

$1.14 RSD 119

37.72%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

$0.94 RSD 98.0

-8.51%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.64 RON 3.05

$1.96 RSD 204

-67.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.60 RON 2.86

$1.28 RSD 133

-53.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

$10.99 RSD 1,146

-41.49%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 RON 9.25

$1.77 RSD 185

10.73%

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

$29.0K RON 137.2K

$30.6K RSD 3.2M

-5.10%

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

$26.6K RON 126.0K

$25.2K RSD 2.6M

5.65%

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

$196 RON 927

$152 RSD 15.8K

29.29%

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

$8.04 RON 38.04

$8.51 RSD 888

-5.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.35 RON 44.21

$33.29 RSD 3,470

-71.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 RON 238

$29.34 RSD 3,058

71.20%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$8.15 RON 38.55

$4.63 RSD 483

76.03%

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

$628 RON 2,971

$241 RSD 25.1K

160.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

$7,531 RSD 785.1K

87.00%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$89.6 RON 424

$43.42 RSD 4,527

106.38%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.32 RON 181

$22.21 RSD 2,315

72.53%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$79.3 RON 375

$90.5 RSD 9,430

-12.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.4 RON 428

$71.6 RSD 7,462

26.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$678 RON 3,209

$307 RSD 32.0K

121.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$448 RON 2,121

$264 RSD 27.5K

70.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

$417 RSD 43.5K

159.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

$375 RSD 39.1K

93.53%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

$2,106 RSD 219.5K

78.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

$1,584 RSD 165.1K

38.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

4.79

40.92%

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

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Last update for Vrsac: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Bucharest

$448 33.5%

Vrsac

$264 28.3% 41.2% $185

Eating Out

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Vrsac

$150 16.1% 33.4% $75

Groceries & Markets

Bucharest

$225 16.8%

Vrsac

$172 18.4% 23.7% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bucharest

$213 15.9%

Vrsac

$193 20.8% 9.4% $20

Clothing & Footwear

Bucharest

$134 10%

Vrsac

$102 11% 23.5% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Bucharest

$67 5%

Vrsac

$39 4.1% 42% $28

Getting Around

Bucharest

$28 2.1%

Vrsac

$12 * 1.3% 57.1% $16

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 $678 in Bucharest and $307 in Vrsac. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $58.0 in Bucharest vs $34.00 in Vrsac for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $225 vs $172 per month, with Vrsac cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🇷🇸 Vrsac

🕒 Local time

16:39 4:39 PM

15:39 3:39 PM

1 h behind Bucharest

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,883,425 Capital

31,946

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Serbian Dinar RSD din

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD

1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RSD, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

Serbian Dinar exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 104 RSD (1,000 RSD = 9.59 USD). 1 EUR = 117 RSD (1,000 RSD = 8.53 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bucharest Vrsac 390 km

From you

Bucharest
Vrsac

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 Vrsac: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bucharest and Vrsac differ by about 44% in total monthly costs ($1,340 vs $932 including rent). Vrsac 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 $1,398 in Vrsac 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 $307 in Vrsac. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 31% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,340 per month in Bucharest versus $932 in Vrsac – a 44% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $932 in Vrsac versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Vrsac but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Vrsac 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 Vrsac 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 Vrsac gentler on the wallet – expenses run 44% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.