Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Drammen and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,644 in Drammen, rent and utilities included – about $15,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Drammen
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Drammen Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Drammen

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,644

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Drammen and in Bucharest

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,644 in Drammen versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Drammen $2,644
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,996 in Drammen versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Drammen $3,996
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,349 in Drammen versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Drammen $5,349
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Drammen is roughly 97% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Drammen is 96% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.14 NOK 199

$14.49 RON 68.6

45.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$124 NOK 1,170

$58.1 RON 275

114.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 NOK 101

$7.48 RON 35.40

43.18%

Cappuccino

$5.04 NOK 47.44

$3.44 RON 16.29

46.51%

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

$3.94 NOK 37.13

$2.37 RON 11.22

66.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 NOK 18.71

$2.30 RON 10.88

-13.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.22 NOK 106

$3.70 RON 17.51

203.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.98 NOK 65.7

$4.16 RON 19.69

67.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.48 NOK 23.30

$1.67 RON 7.90

48.50%

White Bread (500g)

$4.19 NOK 39.48

$1.37 RON 6.50

205.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.73 NOK 44.52

$1.72 RON 8.14

175.00%

Eggs

$4.64 NOK 43.71

$3.64 RON 17.22

27.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.55 NOK 128

$9.08 RON 42.98

49.23%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.24 NOK 143

$6.84 RON 32.35

122.81%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$30.80 NOK 290

$12.00 RON 56.8

156.67%

Apples (1kg)

$3.23 NOK 30.42

$1.23 RON 5.80

162.60%

Banana (1kg)

$2.71 NOK 25.47

$1.63 RON 7.73

66.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.37 NOK 31.71

$1.57 RON 7.45

114.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.81 NOK 54.7

$2.54 RON 12.01

128.74%

Potato (1kg)

$2.61 NOK 24.61

$0.79 RON 3.75

230.38%

Onion (1kg)

$2.89 NOK 27.23

$0.77 RON 3.66

275.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.03 NOK 28.51

$0.87 RON 4.13

248.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.35 NOK 22.14

$0.99 RON 4.70

137.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$16.74 NOK 158

$6.31 RON 29.86

165.29%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.55 NOK 146

$6.20 RON 29.34

150.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.36 NOK 31.58

$1.19 RON 5.63

182.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.15 NOK 39.11

$1.57 RON 7.45

164.33%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.37 NOK 31.68

$0.86 RON 4.08

291.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$91.5 NOK 862

$21.10 RON 99.8

333.79%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.86 NOK 112

$0.64 RON 3.05

1753.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NOK 17.07

$0.60 RON 2.86

201.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$69.4 NOK 653

$6.43 RON 30.43

979.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.27 NOK 21.35

$1.96 RON 9.25

15.82%

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

$45.6K NOK 429.1K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

57.18%

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

$45.1K NOK 424.8K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

69.42%

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

$261 NOK 2,459

$196 RON 927

33.37%

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

$33.66 NOK 317

$8.04 RON 38.04

318.66%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.0 NOK 499

$9.35 RON 44.21

467.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.6 NOK 740

$50.2 RON 238

56.40%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$17.96 NOK 169

$8.15 RON 38.55

120.37%

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

$236 NOK 2,225

$628 RON 2,971

-62.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.5K NOK 145.5K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

9.75%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$98.9 NOK 931

$89.6 RON 424

10.37%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$59.2 NOK 557

$38.32 RON 181

54.46%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$131 NOK 1,233

$79.3 RON 375

65.25%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$150 NOK 1,414

$90.4 RON 428

66.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,346 NOK 12.7K

$678 RON 3,209

98.42%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,004 NOK 9,447

$448 RON 2,121

123.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,043 NOK 19.2K

$1,083 RON 5,125

88.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,560 NOK 14.7K

$725 RON 3,430

115.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$10.4K NOK 97.5K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

176.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,335 NOK 59.6K

$2,195 RON 10.4K

188.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,627 NOK 34.1K

$1,329 RON 6,290

172.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.54

6.75

-32.74%

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

Last update for Drammen: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Drammen

$1K 38%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 55.3% $555

Groceries & Markets

Drammen

$499 18.9%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 54.9% $273

Eating Out

Drammen

$356 13.5%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 36.7% $130

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Drammen

$348 13.2%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 38.7% $135

Clothing & Footwear

Drammen

$198 7.5%

Bucharest

$134 10% 32.3% $64

Getting Around

Drammen

$126 4.8%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 77.6% $98

Sport & Entertainment

Drammen

$114 4.3%

Bucharest

$67 5% 41.9% $48

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,346 in Drammen and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Drammen pays 173% 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: $124 in Drammen vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $499 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Drammen

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

16:38 4:38 PM

17:38 5:38 PM

1 h ahead of Drammen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

104,625

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Drammen Bucharest 2,000 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

Drammen
Bucharest

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

Drammen vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Drammen and Bucharest differ by about 97% in total monthly costs ($2,644 vs $1,340 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 173% higher in Drammen, 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: $1,346 in Drammen versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,644 per month in Drammen versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 97% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 334% less than in Drammen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,644 in Drammen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Drammen. The gap between the two cities makes Bucharest 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, Drammen and Bucharest 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 Bucharest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 97% less than in Drammen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.