Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Dun Laoghaire and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,761 in Dun Laoghaire, rent and utilities included – about $17,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

134

Cost of Living Index in Dun Laoghaire
Learn more

Dun Laoghaire Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index

Jump to prices

Dun Laoghaire

🇮🇪 Ireland

$2,761

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Dun Laoghaire 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 Dun Laoghaire and in Bucharest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,761 in Dun Laoghaire versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Dun Laoghaire $2,761
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,416 in Dun Laoghaire versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Dun Laoghaire $4,416
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,071 in Dun Laoghaire versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Dun Laoghaire $6,071
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Dun Laoghaire is roughly 106% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Dun Laoghaire is 105% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.06 €19.60

$14.49 RON 68.7

52.24%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$101 €90.1

$58.1 RON 275

74.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.49 €11.98

$7.48 RON 35.46

80.35%

Cappuccino

$4.97 €4.41

$3.44 RON 16.31

44.48%

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

$2.99 €2.66

$2.37 RON 11.24

26.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.23 €1.98

$2.30 RON 10.90

-3.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 €6.92

$3.70 RON 17.53

110.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.51 €6.67

$4.16 RON 19.72

80.53%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.61 €1.43

$1.67 RON 7.91

-3.59%

White Bread (500g)

$2.35 €2.09

$1.37 RON 6.51

71.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.07 €1.84

$1.72 RON 8.15

20.35%

Eggs

$4.20 €3.73

$3.64 RON 17.24

15.38%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.95 €8.83

$9.08 RON 43.04

9.58%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.07 €9.84

$6.84 RON 32.40

61.84%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.54 €12.03

$12.00 RON 56.9

12.83%

Apples (1kg)

$2.82 €2.51

$1.23 RON 5.81

129.27%

Banana (1kg)

$2.14 €1.90

$1.63 RON 7.74

31.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.78 €2.47

$1.57 RON 7.46

77.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.04 €3.59

$2.54 RON 12.03

59.06%

Potato (1kg)

$1.93 €1.71

$0.79 RON 3.75

144.30%

Onion (1kg)

$1.53 €1.36

$0.77 RON 3.66

98.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 €1.16

$0.87 RON 4.13

50.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.84 €1.63

$0.99 RON 4.71

85.86%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.35 €18.07

$6.31 RON 29.90

222.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.51 €11.99

$6.20 RON 29.39

117.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.32 €2.95

$1.19 RON 5.63

178.99%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 €3.11

$1.57 RON 7.46

123.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.31 €2.05

$0.86 RON 4.08

168.60%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 100.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.09 €4.52

$0.64 RON 3.05

695.31%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.43 €1.27

$0.60 RON 2.86

138.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$37.78 €33.55

$6.43 RON 30.48

487.56%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 €1.89

$1.96 RON 9.27

8.67%

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

$38.3K €34.0K

$29.0K RON 137.4K

32.17%

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

$37.4K €33.2K

$26.6K RON 126.2K

40.43%

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

$244 €217

$196 RON 928

24.66%

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

$18.03 €16.01

$8.04 RON 38.10

124.25%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.2 €45.44

$9.35 RON 44.28

447.17%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.3 €51.8

$50.2 RON 238

16.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$15.38 €13.66

$8.15 RON 38.61

88.71%

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

$989 €878

$628 RON 2,976

57.49%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,432 €4,824

$14.1K RON 66.7K

-61.43%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.0 €87.9

$89.6 RON 425

10.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.48 €42.17

$38.32 RON 182

23.90%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$112 €99.0

$79.3 RON 376

40.66%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €116

$90.4 RON 428

44.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,470 €1,305

$678 RON 3,214

116.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,475 €1,310

$448 RON 2,124

229.03%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,599 €3,197

$1,083 RON 5,133

232.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,146 €2,794

$725 RON 3,435

334.02%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,296 €3,815

$1,329 RON 6,299

223.17%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.82

6.75

-43.41%

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

Last update for Dun Laoghaire: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Dun Laoghaire

$1.5K 53.4%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 69.6% $1K

Eating Out

Dun Laoghaire

$351 12.7%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 35.9% $126

Groceries & Markets

Dun Laoghaire

$336 12.2%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 32.9% $111

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Dun Laoghaire

$313 11.4%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 31.9% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Dun Laoghaire

$175 6.3%

Bucharest

$134 10% 23.4% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Dun Laoghaire

$89 3.2%

Bucharest

$67 5% 25.3% $23

Getting Around

Dun Laoghaire

$22 * 0.8%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 31.2% $6.7

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,470 in Dun Laoghaire and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dun Laoghaire pays 223% 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: $101 in Dun Laoghaire vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $336 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇪 Dun Laoghaire

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

05:59 5:59 AM

07:59 7:59 AM

2 h ahead of Dun Laoghaire

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

38,761

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.13 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Dun Laoghaire Bucharest 2,530 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Dun Laoghaire
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

Dun Laoghaire vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Dun Laoghaire and Bucharest differ by about 106% in total monthly costs ($2,761 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 223% higher in Dun Laoghaire, 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: $1,470 in Dun Laoghaire versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in Dun Laoghaire. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,761 per month in Dun Laoghaire versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 106% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,761 in Dun Laoghaire, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Dun Laoghaire. 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, Dun Laoghaire 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 106% less than in Dun Laoghaire. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.