Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Fier and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Fier: $964 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Fier
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Fier Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Fier

🇦🇱 Albania

$964

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $964 in Fier versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Fier $964
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,522 in Fier versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Fier $1,522
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,081 in Fier versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Fier $2,081
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Fier costs roughly 28% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Fier 29% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.03 ALL 808

$14.49 RON 68.6

-30.78%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.19 ALL 2,995

$58.1 RON 275

-35.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.70 ALL 298

$7.48 RON 35.40

-50.53%

Cappuccino

$2.21 ALL 178

$3.44 RON 16.29

-35.76%

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

$2.18 ALL 175

$2.37 RON 11.22

-8.02%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.93 ALL 74.8

$2.30 RON 10.88

-59.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.81 ALL 146

$3.70 RON 17.51

-51.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.40 ALL 274

$4.16 RON 19.69

-18.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 ALL 174

$1.67 RON 7.90

29.34%

White Bread (500g)

$1.15 ALL 92.3

$1.37 RON 6.50

-16.06%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.13 ALL 172

$1.72 RON 8.14

23.84%

Eggs

$3.61 ALL 291

$3.64 RON 17.22

-0.82%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.49 ALL 1,006

$9.08 RON 42.98

37.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.64 ALL 695

$6.84 RON 32.35

26.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.33 ALL 1,073

$12.00 RON 56.8

11.08%

Apples (1kg)

$1.31 ALL 106

$1.23 RON 5.80

6.50%

Banana (1kg)

$2.47 ALL 199

$1.63 RON 7.73

51.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.73 ALL 139

$1.57 RON 7.45

10.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.44 ALL 116

$2.54 RON 12.01

-43.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.00 ALL 80.2

$0.79 RON 3.75

26.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 ALL 81.8

$0.77 RON 3.66

32.47%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.06 ALL 85.3

$0.87 RON 4.13

21.84%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 ALL 47.63

$0.99 RON 4.70

-40.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.61 ALL 371

$6.31 RON 29.86

-26.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.53 ALL 848

$6.20 RON 29.34

69.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.49 ALL 120

$1.19 RON 5.63

25.21%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.07 ALL 167

$1.57 RON 7.45

31.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.51 ALL 40.76

$0.86 RON 4.08

-40.70%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$17.91 ALL 1,442

$21.10 RON 99.8

-15.12%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.45 ALL 198

$0.64 RON 3.05

282.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.19 ALL 95.6

$0.60 RON 2.86

98.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$18.29 ALL 1,473

$6.43 RON 30.43

184.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.11 ALL 170

$1.96 RON 9.25

7.65%

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

$18.6K ALL 1.5M

$29.0K RON 137.2K

-35.75%

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

$35.1K ALL 2.8M

$26.6K RON 126.0K

31.72%

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

$97.8 ALL 7,873

$196 RON 927

-50.09%

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

$18.56 ALL 1,495

$8.04 RON 38.04

130.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$18.60 ALL 1,498

$9.35 RON 44.21

98.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.4 ALL 4,545

$50.2 RON 238

12.36%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$9.56 ALL 770

$8.15 RON 38.55

17.30%

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

$243 ALL 19.6K

$628 RON 2,971

-61.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,149 ALL 656.2K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-42.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.38 ALL 3,977

$89.6 RON 424

-44.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.78 ALL 3,847

$38.32 RON 181

24.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.6 ALL 7,776

$79.3 RON 375

21.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 ALL 9,091

$90.4 RON 428

24.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$236 ALL 19.0K

$678 RON 3,209

-65.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$180 ALL 14.5K

$448 RON 2,121

-59.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$402 ALL 32.4K

$1,083 RON 5,125

-62.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$317 ALL 25.5K

$725 RON 3,430

-56.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,198 ALL 96.5K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

-68.07%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$987 ALL 79.5K

$2,195 RON 10.4K

-55.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$559 ALL 45.0K

$1,329 RON 6,290

-57.93%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.39

6.75

-20.15%

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

Last update for Fier: October 13, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Fier

$261 27.1%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 13.8% $36

Accommodation & Living

Fier

$180 18.7%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 149% $268

Eating Out

Fier

$146 15.2%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 54.1% $79

Clothing & Footwear

Fier

$138 14.3%

Bucharest

$134 10% 2.9% $4.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Fier

$135 14%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 58.1% $78

Sport & Entertainment

Fier

$76 7.8%

Bucharest

$67 5% 12% $9

Getting Around

Fier

$28 2.9%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 0.4% $0.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $236 in Fier and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 138% 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: $37.00 in Fier vs $58.0 in Bucharest. Groceries flip the comparison at $261 vs $225, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Fier

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

09:34 9:34 AM

10:34 10:34 AM

1 h ahead of Fier

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

55,845

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Albanian Lek ALL L

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 ALL = 1.24 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to ALL – Albanian Lek Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇦🇱 Albanian Lek (L)

Albanian Lek exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 90.53 ALL (100 ALL = 1.1 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to ALL in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Fier Bucharest 680 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Fier
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

Fier vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Fier and Bucharest differ by about 39% in total monthly costs ($964 vs $1,340 including rent). Fier is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 138% lower in Bucharest. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $236 in Fier versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $964 per month in Fier versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 39% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Fier runs roughly 18% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $964 in Fier versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Fier but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Fier 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 Fier gentler on the wallet – expenses run 39% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.