Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Bukit Mertajam and Buzau

For one person, living is cheaper in Bukit Mertajam: $623 a month against $979 in Buzau, rent and utilities included – about $4,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

30

Cost of Living Index in Bukit Mertajam
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Bukit Mertajam Living Index
47

Cost of Living Index in Buzau
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Buzau Living Index

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Bukit Mertajam

🇲🇾 Malaysia

$623

/mo nomad

Buzau

🇷🇴 Romania

$979

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Bukit Mertajam and in Buzau

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Bukit Mertajam and in Buzau actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $623 in Bukit Mertajam versus $979 in Buzau.

Bukit Mertajam $623
Buzau $979

Estimated couple costs with rent: $979 in Bukit Mertajam versus $1,449 in Buzau.

Bukit Mertajam $979
Buzau $1,449

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,335 in Bukit Mertajam versus $1,919 in Buzau.

Bukit Mertajam $1,335
Buzau $1,919

Living in Bukit Mertajam costs roughly 36% less than in Buzau, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities sit below the global median: Bukit Mertajam 54% lower, Buzau 27% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$1.93 MYR 7.87

$10.42 RON 49.30

-81.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$20.63 MYR 84.2

$24.71 RON 117

-16.51%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.93 MYR 16.03

$6.30 RON 29.79

-37.62%

Cappuccino

$3.14 MYR 12.80

$2.02 RON 9.58

55.45%

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

$0.72 MYR 2.93

$1.93 RON 9.12

-62.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.47 MYR 1.93

$1.50 RON 7.08

-68.67%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.30 MYR 17.52

$1.66 RON 7.85

159.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.05 MYR 24.69

$1.71 RON 8.10

253.80%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.74 MYR 7.10

$1.76 RON 8.32

-1.14%

White Bread (500g)

$1.12 MYR 4.58

$1.31 RON 6.21

-14.50%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.94 MYR 7.91

$1.45 RON 6.84

33.79%

Eggs

$2.52 MYR 10.26

$3.10 RON 14.67

-18.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.07 MYR 57.4

$7.50 RON 35.47

87.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.34 MYR 17.71

$6.62 RON 31.33

-34.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.65 MYR 39.35

$11.10 RON 52.5

-13.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.49 MYR 14.24

$0.95 RON 4.50

267.37%

Banana (1kg)

$1.79 MYR 7.32

$1.63 RON 7.72

9.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.31 MYR 9.42

$1.11 RON 5.25

108.11%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.53 MYR 6.23

$1.23 RON 5.83

24.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.33 MYR 5.42

$0.67 RON 3.18

98.51%

Onion (1kg)

$1.41 MYR 5.76

$0.78 RON 3.68

80.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 MYR 4.57

$0.48 RON 2.28

133.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.67 MYR 2.72

$0.66 RON 3.11

1.52%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.32 MYR 17.64

$6.24 RON 29.54

-30.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$19.48 MYR 79.5

$6.43 RON 30.42

202.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.65 MYR 14.91

$0.76 RON 3.58

380.26%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.05 MYR 20.60

$1.43 RON 6.77

253.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.66 RON 3.10

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.60 RON 102

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.19 MYR 4.84

$0.52 RON 2.47

128.85%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 MYR 5.11

$0.49 RON 2.32

155.10%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.03 MYR 20.50

$6.19 RON 29.27

-18.74%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.87 MYR 3.54

$1.65 RON 7.81

-47.27%

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

$41.2K MYR 168.3K

$19.4K RON 91.7K

112.74%

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

$34.4K MYR 140.4K

$21.1K RON 100.0K

62.82%

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

$62.4 MYR 255

$119 RON 563

-47.49%

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

$8.54 MYR 34.85

$7.87 RON 37.24

8.51%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$26.31 MYR 107

$7.72 RON 36.53

240.80%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.03 RON 152

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.85 RON 84.5

Cinema Ticket

$5.06 MYR 20.65

$6.89 RON 32.60

-26.56%

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

$242 MYR 989

$285 RON 1,348

-14.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.0K MYR 52.9K

$6,766 RON 32.0K

91.71%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$71.6 MYR 292

$54.5 RON 258

31.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.95 MYR 171

$57.7 RON 273

-27.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.5 MYR 357

$97.5 RON 461

-10.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$97.3 MYR 397

$84.1 RON 398

15.62%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$344 RON 1,629

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$292 RON 1,379

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$606 RON 2,867

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$423 RON 2,002

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,475 RON 6,976

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,194 RON 5,648

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$567 MYR 2,312

$850 RON 4,021

-33.33%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.18

6.97

-40.03%

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

Last update for Bukit Mertajam: October 12, 2026

Last update for Buzau: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Bukit Mertajam

$271 43.5%

Buzau

$196 20% 27.7% $75

Clothing & Footwear

Bukit Mertajam

$134 21.5%

Buzau

$132 13.5% 1.5% $2

Eating Out

Bukit Mertajam

$103 16.6%

Buzau

$152 15.5% 47.2% $49

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Bukit Mertajam

$97 15.6%

Buzau

$134 13.7% 38.2% $37

Sport & Entertainment

Bukit Mertajam

$10 * 1.6%

Buzau

$46 4.7% 353% $36

Getting Around

Bukit Mertajam

$7.5 * 1.2%

Buzau

$27 2.8% 265% $20

Accommodation & Living

Bukit Mertajam

- * 0%

Buzau

$292 29.8%

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

Buzau pays 50% 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: $21.00 in Bukit Mertajam vs $25.00 in Buzau. Groceries flip the comparison at $271 vs $196, with Buzau cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇾 Bukit Mertajam

🇷🇴 Buzau

🕒 Local time

08:15 8:15 AM

03:15 3:15 AM

5 h behind Bukit Mertajam

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

212,329

115,494

💱 Currency

Malaysian Ringgit MYR RM

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 MYR = 0.245 USD

1 MYR = 0.218 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MYR – Malaysian Ringgit Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇾 Malaysian Ringgit (RM)

Malaysian Ringgit exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.08 MYR (1 MYR = 0.245 USD). 1 EUR = 4.59 MYR (1 MYR = 0.218 EUR).

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).

USD to MYR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Bukit Mertajam Buzau 8,300 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Bukit Mertajam
Buzau

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

Bukit Mertajam vs Buzau: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bukit Mertajam and Buzau differ by about 57% in total monthly costs ($623 vs $979 including rent). Bukit Mertajam is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 50% lower in Buzau. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Shoppers in Buzau pay roughly 38% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

All in, you'll spend $623 per month in Bukit Mertajam versus $979 in Buzau – a 57% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Either city works on $1,200 a month, though Bukit Mertajam gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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, Bukit Mertajam and Buzau 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 Bukit Mertajam gentler on the wallet – expenses run 57% less than in Buzau. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.