Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Esch-sur-Alzette and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $2,871 in Esch-sur-Alzette, rent and utilities included – about $18,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Esch-sur-Alzette
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Esch-sur-Alzette Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Esch-sur-Alzette

🇱🇺 Luxembourg

$2,871

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Esch-sur-Alzette 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 Esch-sur-Alzette and in Bucharest actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,871 in Esch-sur-Alzette versus $1,351 in Bucharest.

Esch-sur-Alzette $2,871
Bucharest $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,440 in Esch-sur-Alzette versus $2,033 in Bucharest.

Esch-sur-Alzette $4,440
Bucharest $2,033

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,010 in Esch-sur-Alzette versus $2,715 in Bucharest.

Esch-sur-Alzette $6,010
Bucharest $2,715

Living in Esch-sur-Alzette is roughly 112% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Esch-sur-Alzette 114% above, Bucharest 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.72 €20.27

$14.46 RON 68.4

57.12%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$56.6 €50.5

$57.7 RON 273

-1.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.37 €13.72

$7.50 RON 35.46

104.93%

Cappuccino

$4.79 €4.28

$3.43 RON 16.20

39.65%

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

$2.46 €2.20

$2.46 RON 11.63

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.46 €2.20

$2.33 RON 11.01

5.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.13 €3.69

$3.80 RON 17.97

8.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.71 €3.31

$4.10 RON 19.41

-9.51%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.80 €1.61

$1.65 RON 7.79

9.09%

White Bread (500g)

$3.76 €3.36

$1.35 RON 6.39

178.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.28 €2.93

$1.78 RON 8.42

84.27%

Eggs

$4.45 €3.97

$3.66 RON 17.33

21.58%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$31.07 €27.73

$8.57 RON 40.54

262.54%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.63 €13.95

$6.80 RON 32.17

129.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$26.29 €23.46

$11.72 RON 55.4

124.32%

Apples (1kg)

$2.72 €2.42

$1.29 RON 6.11

110.85%

Banana (1kg)

$2.01 €1.80

$1.56 RON 7.37

28.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 €2.72

$1.54 RON 7.28

98.05%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.31 €2.96

$2.48 RON 11.75

33.47%

Potato (1kg)

$3.30 €2.94

$0.83 RON 3.92

297.59%

Onion (1kg)

$2.06 €1.84

$0.80 RON 3.77

157.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.93 €1.72

$0.84 RON 3.98

129.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 €0.95

$0.93 RON 4.39

13.98%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.85 €6.11

$6.44 RON 30.45

6.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.21 €9.12

$6.32 RON 29.91

61.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.90 €3.48

$1.26 RON 5.94

209.52%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 €4.03

$1.60 RON 7.59

182.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.81 RON 3.85

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.13 RON 99.9

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.13 €9.93

$0.60 RON 2.86

1755.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.64 €3.24

$0.61 RON 2.91

496.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$44.46 €39.67

$6.17 RON 29.19

620.58%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.85 €1.65

$1.96 RON 9.27

-5.61%

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

$28.1K RON 133.1K

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

$26.3K RON 124.3K

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

$265 €236

$197 RON 931

34.47%

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

$32.31 €28.83

$8.34 RON 39.44

287.41%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$88.0 €78.5

$9.19 RON 43.47

857.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.77 €38.16

$49.87 RON 236

-14.24%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.99 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$15.99 €14.27

$8.46 RON 40.01

89.01%

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

$1,498 €1,337

$639 RON 3,023

134.35%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$69.1 €61.7

$90.6 RON 429

-23.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$39.70 €35.42

$38.05 RON 180

4.34%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$129 €115

$79.7 RON 377

62.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$155 €138

$93.2 RON 441

66.01%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,842 €1,644

$673 RON 3,184

173.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,377 €1,228

$449 RON 2,123

206.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,470 €3,096

$1,098 RON 5,195

215.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,879 €2,569

$729 RON 3,448

294.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,268 €6,486

$3,740 RON 17.7K

94.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$6,070 €5,417

$2,189 RON 10.4K

177.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,815 €3,404

$1,323 RON 6,259

188.27%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.26

6.74

-51.63%

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

Last update for Esch-sur-Alzette: October 4, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Esch-sur-Alzette

$1.4K 48.3%

Bucharest

$449 33.5% 67.4% $928

Groceries & Markets

Esch-sur-Alzette

$475 16.7%

Bucharest

$222 16.5% 53.3% $253

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Esch-sur-Alzette

$385 13.5%

Bucharest

$214 16% 44.3% $171

Eating Out

Esch-sur-Alzette

$333 11.7%

Bucharest

$226 16.8% 32.3% $107

Clothing & Footwear

Esch-sur-Alzette

$177 6.2%

Bucharest

$136 10.1% 23.3% $41

Sport & Entertainment

Esch-sur-Alzette

$75 2.6%

Bucharest

$67 5% 10.6% $8

Getting Around

Esch-sur-Alzette

$29 * 1%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 4.3% $1.3

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 $1,842 in Esch-sur-Alzette and $673 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Esch-sur-Alzette pays 188% 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: $57.0 in Esch-sur-Alzette vs $58.0 in Bucharest. Groceries flip the comparison at $475 vs $222, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇱🇺 Esch-sur-Alzette

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

13:22 1:22 PM

14:22 2:22 PM

1 h ahead of Esch-sur-Alzette

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

36,218

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Esch-sur-Alzette Bucharest 1,620 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Esch-sur-Alzette
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

Esch-sur-Alzette vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Esch-sur-Alzette and Bucharest differ by about 112% in total monthly costs ($2,871 vs $1,351 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 188% higher in Esch-sur-Alzette, 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: $1,842 in Esch-sur-Alzette versus $673 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 114% higher in Esch-sur-Alzette. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,871 per month in Esch-sur-Alzette versus $1,351 in Bucharest – a 112% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,351 in Bucharest versus $2,871 in Esch-sur-Alzette, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Esch-sur-Alzette. 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, Esch-sur-Alzette 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 112% less than in Esch-sur-Alzette. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.