Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cluj-Napoca and Mangalia

For one person, living is cheaper in Mangalia: $1,107 a month against $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca, rent and utilities included – about $3,800 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
51

Cost of Living Index in Mangalia
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Mangalia Living Index

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Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,424

/mo nomad

Mangalia

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,107

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca versus $1,107 in Mangalia.

Cluj-Napoca $1,424
Mangalia $1,107

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,141 in Cluj-Napoca versus $1,678 in Mangalia.

Cluj-Napoca $2,141
Mangalia $1,678

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,858 in Cluj-Napoca versus $2,250 in Mangalia.

Cluj-Napoca $2,858
Mangalia $2,250

Living in Cluj-Napoca is roughly 29% more expensive than in Mangalia, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Cluj-Napoca is 5% above, Mangalia is 18% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.23 RON 58.1

$11.44 RON 54.3

6.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$55.3 RON 263

$46.28 RON 220

19.40%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 RON 44.61

$7.78 RON 36.99

20.69%

Cappuccino

$3.79 RON 18.01

$2.90 RON 13.77

30.69%

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

$2.40 RON 11.41

$2.04 RON 9.71

17.65%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.33 RON 11.06

$2.10 RON 9.98

10.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.20 RON 15.20

$2.48 RON 11.79

29.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 RON 19.54

$3.40 RON 16.14

20.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 RON 7.47

$1.61 RON 7.63

-2.48%

White Bread (500g)

$1.41 RON 6.69

$1.13 RON 5.36

24.78%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.80 RON 8.56

$1.55 RON 7.35

16.13%

Eggs

$3.70 RON 17.57

$3.08 RON 14.62

20.13%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.23 RON 43.87

$7.85 RON 37.29

17.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.16 RON 34.02

$6.65 RON 31.57

7.67%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.81 RON 56.1

$9.63 RON 45.75

22.64%

Apples (1kg)

$1.37 RON 6.52

$1.29 RON 6.13

6.20%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 RON 7.59

$1.66 RON 7.90

-3.61%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.87 RON 8.88

$1.38 RON 6.55

35.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.31 RON 10.97

$2.02 RON 9.61

14.36%

Potato (1kg)

$0.92 RON 4.35

$0.74 RON 3.50

24.32%

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 RON 4.16

$0.76 RON 3.61

15.79%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.96 RON 4.57

$0.67 RON 3.19

43.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 RON 4.55

$0.77 RON 3.66

24.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.33 RON 30.10

$6.22 RON 29.58

1.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.50 RON 35.62

$6.74 RON 32.04

11.28%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.22 RON 5.79

$0.97 RON 4.61

25.77%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.75 RON 8.31

$1.43 RON 6.81

22.38%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.70 RON 3.34

$0.82 RON 3.89

-14.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.90 RON 209

$22.40 RON 106

95.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 RON 3.86

$0.90 RON 4.26

-10.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.82 RON 3.90

$0.87 RON 4.13

-5.75%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.25 RON 39.21

$8.92 RON 42.37

-7.51%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.98 RON 9.42

$1.86 RON 8.84

6.45%

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

$28.3K RON 134.4K

$28.6K RON 135.8K

-1.06%

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

$24.6K RON 116.9K

$25.2K RON 119.5K

-2.20%

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

$152 RON 721

$164 RON 778

-7.27%

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

$8.05 RON 38.26

$5.92 RON 28.14

35.98%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.37 RON 44.52

$8.48 RON 40.27

10.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.94 RON 233

$37.18 RON 177

31.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$22.31 RON 106

$19.75 RON 93.9

12.96%

Cinema Ticket

$9.32 RON 44.27

$8.60 RON 40.85

8.37%

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

$577 RON 2,744

$377 RON 1,790

53.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$12.3K RON 58.4K

$5,802 RON 27.6K

111.86%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.3 RON 415

$72.1 RON 343

21.08%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.70 RON 208

$42.48 RON 202

2.87%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$99.8 RON 474

$91.2 RON 433

9.44%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 RON 509

$95.3 RON 453

12.44%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$662 RON 3,147

$377 RON 1,791

75.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$539 RON 2,559

$322 RON 1,531

67.14%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,247 RON 5,923

$683 RON 3,243

82.66%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$836 RON 3,973

$499 RON 2,370

67.69%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,596 RON 21.8K

$1,715 RON 8,149

167.96%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,264 RON 15.5K

$1,472 RON 6,992

121.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,293 RON 6,146

$721 RON 3,428

79.30%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.65

7.85

-15.29%

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

Last update for Cluj-Napoca: November 3, 2026

Last update for Mangalia: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cluj-Napoca

$539 37.8%

Mangalia

$322 29.1% 40.2% $216

Groceries & Markets

Cluj-Napoca

$231 16.2%

Mangalia

$200 18.1% 13.1% $30

Eating Out

Cluj-Napoca

$215 15.1%

Mangalia

$185 16.8% 13.6% $29

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cluj-Napoca

$169 11.9%

Mangalia

$178 16.1% 5.2% $8.9

Clothing & Footwear

Cluj-Napoca

$152 10.7%

Mangalia

$135 12.2% 10.9% $17

Sport & Entertainment

Cluj-Napoca

$68 4.7%

Mangalia

$54 4.9% 19.5% $13

Getting Around

Cluj-Napoca

$52 3.6%

Mangalia

$31 2.8% 40.1% $21

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $662 in Cluj-Napoca and $377 in Mangalia. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cluj-Napoca pays 79% more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $55 in Cluj-Napoca vs $46 in Mangalia for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $231 vs $200 per month, with Mangalia cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Mangalia

🕒 Local time

03:12 3:12 AM

Same time as Cluj-Napoca

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

324,576

36,364

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cluj-Napoca Mangalia 510 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cluj-Napoca
Mangalia

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 Mangalia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mangalia is about 22% cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and transport. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 79% higher in Cluj-Napoca, 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 $377 in Mangalia. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Mangalia runs roughly 49% less than in Cluj-Napoca. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $577 in Cluj-Napoca versus $377 in Mangalia. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Either city works on $2,000 a month, though Mangalia 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, Cluj-Napoca and Mangalia are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.

Expats usually find Mangalia gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Cluj-Napoca. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.