Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chisinau and Rădăuți

For one person, living is cheaper in Rădăuți: $744 a month against $1,288 in Chisinau, rent and utilities included – about $6,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

63

Cost of Living Index in Chisinau
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Chisinau Living Index
36

Cost of Living Index in Rădăuți
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Rădăuți Living Index

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Chisinau

🇲🇩 Moldova

$1,288

/mo nomad

Rădăuți

🇷🇴 Romania

$744

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chisinau and in Rădăuți

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

A single person spends $1,288 per month in Chisinau vs $744 in Rădăuți, rent included.

Chisinau $1,288
Rădăuți $744

A couple spends around $1,978 per month in Chisinau vs $1,211 in Rădăuți, rent included.

Chisinau $1,978
Rădăuți $1,211

A family of three spends $2,669 per month in Chisinau vs $1,677 in Rădăuți, rent included.

Chisinau $2,669
Rădăuți $1,677

Chisinau costs about 73% more than Rădăuți, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both Chisinau and Rădăuți are more affordable than the global median – Chisinau 5% lower, Rădăuți 45% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.34 MDL 201

$8.77 RON 41.51

29.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.1 MDL 890

$42.33 RON 200

18.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.65 MDL 154

$8.16 RON 38.63

6.00%

Cappuccino

$2.11 MDL 37.44

$2.06 RON 9.77

2.43%

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

$1.19 MDL 21.09

$1.51 RON 7.15

-21.19%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.85 MDL 15.08

$1.24 RON 5.85

-31.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.26 MDL 40.11

$1.33 RON 6.30

69.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 MDL 35.53

$2.08 RON 9.86

-3.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.24 MDL 21.99

$1.07 RON 5.06

15.89%

White Bread (500g)

$0.73 MDL 13.03

$1.03 RON 4.86

-29.13%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.46 MDL 25.97

$1.45 RON 6.85

0.69%

Eggs

$2.78 MDL 49.31

$2.05 RON 9.71

35.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.65 MDL 171

$7.43 RON 35.14

29.88%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.26 MDL 93.5

$5.20 RON 24.61

1.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$8.83 MDL 157

$9.04 RON 42.76

-2.32%

Apples (1kg)

$0.93 MDL 16.44

$0.61 RON 2.89

52.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 MDL 33.25

$1.28 RON 6.06

46.09%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 MDL 37.47

$1.45 RON 6.88

45.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.28 MDL 40.57

$1.72 RON 8.13

32.56%

Potato (1kg)

$0.68 MDL 12.00

$0.78 RON 3.67

-12.82%

Onion (1kg)

$0.52 MDL 9.22

$0.54 RON 2.56

-3.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 MDL 23.32

$0.72 RON 3.40

81.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 MDL 14.82

$0.77 RON 3.63

7.79%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.36 MDL 59.6

$3.59 RON 16.99

-6.41%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.64 MDL 82.4

$6.44 RON 30.48

-27.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 MDL 21.60

$0.66 RON 3.11

84.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 MDL 33.46

$1.04 RON 4.90

80.77%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.41 MDL 7.21

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.72 MDL 244

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.20 MDL 39.04

$0.80 RON 3.78

175.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.32 MDL 5.75

$0.86 RON 4.09

-62.79%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$4.98 MDL 88.5

$7.51 RON 35.52

-33.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.74 MDL 30.95

$1.70 RON 8.03

2.35%

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

$29.9K MDL 530.9K

$28.0K RON 132.7K

6.61%

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

$28.6K MDL 507.6K

$25.5K RON 120.4K

12.29%

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

$244 MDL 4,334

$98.8 RON 467

147.09%

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

$9.37 MDL 166

$9.65 RON 45.66

-2.90%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$10.56 MDL 187

$8.15 RON 38.55

29.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.29 MDL 751

$38.44 RON 182

10.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.91 MDL 371

Cinema Ticket

$8.21 MDL 146

$6.28 RON 29.71

30.73%

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

$436 MDL 7,737

$363 RON 1,718

19.98%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,764 MDL 102.4K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$78.4 MDL 1,392

$52.1 RON 246

50.62%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.66 MDL 846

$29.43 RON 139

61.94%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$113 MDL 1,998

$74.9 RON 354

50.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$114 MDL 2,031

$79.0 RON 374

44.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$677 MDL 12.0K

$208 RON 984

225.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$430 MDL 7,640

$155 RON 734

177.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,249 MDL 22.2K

$415 RON 1,965

200.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$831 MDL 14.8K

$315 RON 1,492

163.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,607 MDL 46.3K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,981 MDL 35.2K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$880 MDL 15.6K

$959 RON 4,539

-8.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.1

7.08

28.53%

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

Last update for Chisinau: October 17, 2026

Last update for Rădăuți: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chisinau

$430 33.4%

Rădăuți

$155 20.9% 63.9% $275

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chisinau

$264 20.5%

Rădăuți

$117 15.7% 55.8% $147

Groceries & Markets

Chisinau

$192 14.9%

Rădăuți

$169 22.7% 11.7% $22

Eating Out

Chisinau

$165 12.8%

Rădăuți

$141 19% 14.6% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Chisinau

$159 12.3%

Rădăuți

$106 14.2% 33.3% $53

Sport & Entertainment

Chisinau

$59 4.6%

Rădăuți

$51 6.9% 13.1% $7.7

Getting Around

Chisinau

$19 1.5%

Rădăuți

$5.1 * 0.7% 73.3% $14

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $677 in Chisinau versus $208 in Rădăuți. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 9% higher in Rădăuți, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $50.0 in Chisinau versus $42.00 in Rădăuți. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $192 vs $169 – making Rădăuți the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇲🇩 Chisinau

🇷🇴 Rădăuți

🕒 Local time

07:48 7:48 AM

Same time as Chisinau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

750,000 Capital

31,074

💱 Currency

Moldovan Leu MDL L

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MDL = 5.63 USD

100 MDL = 5.01 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MDL – Moldovan Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇩 Moldovan Leu (L)

Moldovan Leu exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 17.76 MDL (100 MDL = 5.63 USD). 1 EUR = 19.97 MDL (100 MDL = 5.01 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 22, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to MDL in detail →

On the map

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Chisinau Rădăuți 240 km

From you

Chisinau
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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

Chisinau vs Rădăuți: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Chisinau is pricier by about 73%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in clothing.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,932 per month in Chisinau and $1,117 in Rădăuți. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Rădăuți, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $1,288 in Chisinau and $744 in Rădăuți. That's a gap of about 73%.

Kindergarten costs $436 per month in Chisinau and $363 in Rădăuți. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Rădăuți, where all-in costs run around $744, than in Chisinau at $1,288. In Rădăuți it covers expenses comfortably, while in Chisinau it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Rădăuți – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Rădăuți. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Chisinau makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.