Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cluj-Napoca and Elbasan

For one person, living is cheaper in Elbasan: $887 a month against $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca, rent and utilities included – about $6,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

68

Cost of Living Index in Cluj-Napoca
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Cluj-Napoca Living Index
42

Cost of Living Index in Elbasan
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Elbasan Living Index

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Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,424

/mo nomad

Elbasan

🇦🇱 Albania

$887

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cluj-Napoca and in Elbasan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca versus $887 in Elbasan.

Cluj-Napoca $1,424
Elbasan $887

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,141 in Cluj-Napoca versus $1,399 in Elbasan.

Cluj-Napoca $2,141
Elbasan $1,399

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,858 in Cluj-Napoca versus $1,912 in Elbasan.

Cluj-Napoca $2,858
Elbasan $1,912

Living in Cluj-Napoca is roughly 61% more expensive than in Elbasan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cluj-Napoca is 5% above, Elbasan is 34% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.23 RON 58.1

$9.95 ALL 802

22.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.3 RON 263

$36.83 ALL 2,967

50.04%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 RON 44.61

$6.76 ALL 544

38.91%

Cappuccino

$3.79 RON 18.01

$1.72 ALL 138

120.35%

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

$2.40 RON 11.41

$1.40 ALL 113

71.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.06

$0.65 ALL 52.7

258.46%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 RON 15.20

$2.14 ALL 172

49.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 RON 19.54

$2.74 ALL 220

50.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 RON 7.47

$1.90 ALL 153

-17.37%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 RON 6.69

$0.94 ALL 75.4

50.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.80 RON 8.56

$1.57 ALL 127

14.65%

Eggs

$3.70 RON 17.57

$2.60 ALL 210

42.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.23 RON 43.87

$10.33 ALL 832

-10.65%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.16 RON 34.02

$5.91 ALL 476

21.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.81 RON 56.1

$11.30 ALL 910

4.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.37 RON 6.52

$1.20 ALL 96.8

14.17%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$2.25 ALL 182

-28.89%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 RON 8.88

$1.39 ALL 112

34.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 RON 10.97

$1.14 ALL 91.6

102.63%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 RON 4.35

$1.00 ALL 80.2

-8.00%

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 RON 4.16

$1.04 ALL 83.8

-15.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.96 RON 4.57

$0.83 ALL 66.6

15.66%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 RON 4.55

$0.66 ALL 53.5

45.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.33 RON 30.10

$4.34 ALL 350

45.85%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.50 RON 35.62

$6.10 ALL 492

22.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 RON 5.79

$1.02 ALL 82.3

19.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 RON 8.31

$1.80 ALL 145

-2.78%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 RON 3.34

$0.47 ALL 38.21

48.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.90 RON 209

$19.64 ALL 1,582

123.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 RON 3.86

$3.60 ALL 290

-77.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 RON 3.90

$1.45 ALL 117

-43.45%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.25 RON 39.21

$14.57 ALL 1,174

-43.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 RON 9.42

$2.14 ALL 172

-7.48%

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

$28.3K RON 134.4K

$29.2K ALL 2.4M

-3.18%

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

$24.6K RON 116.9K

$29.3K ALL 2.4M

-15.97%

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

$152 RON 721

$61.7 ALL 4,970

146.05%

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

$8.05 RON 38.26

$15.34 ALL 1,236

-47.52%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.37 RON 44.52

$12.08 ALL 973

-22.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.94 RON 233

$58.0 ALL 4,671

-15.59%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.31 RON 106

$17.03 ALL 1,372

31.00%

Cinema Ticket

$9.32 RON 44.27

$4.41 ALL 355

111.34%

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

$577 RON 2,744

$142 ALL 11.4K

307.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K RON 58.4K

$1,886 ALL 151.9K

551.85%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.3 RON 415

$72.7 ALL 5,856

20.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.70 RON 208

$44.03 ALL 3,547

-0.75%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.8 RON 474

$93.4 ALL 7,522

6.90%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 RON 509

$96.4 ALL 7,767

11.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$662 RON 3,147

$297 ALL 23.9K

123.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$539 RON 2,559

$208 ALL 16.8K

158.43%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 RON 5,923

$435 ALL 35.1K

186.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 RON 3,973

$317 ALL 25.5K

164.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,596 RON 21.8K

$1,377 ALL 111.0K

233.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,264 RON 15.5K

$870 ALL 70.1K

274.98%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,293 RON 6,146

$626 ALL 50.4K

106.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.65

6.1

9.02%

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

Last update for Cluj-Napoca: November 3, 2026

Last update for Elbasan: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cluj-Napoca

$539 37.8%

Elbasan

$208 23.5% 61.3% $330

Groceries & Markets

Cluj-Napoca

$231 16.2%

Elbasan

$208 23.4% 10% $23

Eating Out

Cluj-Napoca

$215 15.1%

Elbasan

$145 16.3% 32.5% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cluj-Napoca

$169 11.9%

Elbasan

$89 10.1% 47.3% $80

Clothing & Footwear

Cluj-Napoca

$152 10.7%

Elbasan

$138 15.6% 9.3% $14

Sport & Entertainment

Cluj-Napoca

$68 4.7%

Elbasan

$67 7.5% 1.2% $0.8

Getting Around

Cluj-Napoca

$52 3.6%

Elbasan

$32 3.7% 37.3% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $662 in Cluj-Napoca and $297 in Elbasan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cluj-Napoca pays about 2.1 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $55 in Cluj-Napoca vs $37 in Elbasan for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $231 vs $208 per month, with Elbasan cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Cluj-Napoca

🇦🇱 Elbasan

🕒 Local time

06:39 6:39 AM

05:39 5:39 AM

1 h behind Cluj-Napoca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

324,576

78,703

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ALL, USD, EUR to RON – Romanian Leu Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇷🇴 Romanian Leu (lei)

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.75 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.33 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 80.56 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.44 ALL (100 ALL = 1.11 EUR).

USD to RON in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Cluj-Napoca Elbasan 690 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cluj-Napoca
Elbasan

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

Cluj-Napoca vs Elbasan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Elbasan is about 38% cheaper overall, especially in eating out, groceries, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in Cluj-Napoca is about 2.1 times higher, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $662 in Cluj-Napoca versus $297 in Elbasan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Elbasan runs roughly 55% less than in Cluj-Napoca. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $577 in Cluj-Napoca versus $142 in Elbasan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $887 in Elbasan versus $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Elbasan but tight or insufficient in Cluj-Napoca. The gap between the two cities makes Elbasan 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.

Expats usually find Elbasan gentler on the wallet – expenses run 38% less than in Cluj-Napoca. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.