Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Gliwice and Bucharest

For one person, living costs are similar in Gliwice and in Bucharest: $1,315 and $1,351 a month, rent and utilities included.

65

Cost of Living Index in Gliwice
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Gliwice Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Gliwice

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,315

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,315 in Gliwice versus $1,351 in Bucharest.

Gliwice $1,315
Bucharest $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,934 in Gliwice versus $2,033 in Bucharest.

Gliwice $1,934
Bucharest $2,033

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,553 in Gliwice versus $2,715 in Bucharest.

Gliwice $2,553
Bucharest $2,715

Living in Gliwice costs roughly 3% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Gliwice is 2% below, Bucharest is 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.94 zł 50.6

$14.46 RON 68.4

-10.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$40.22 zł 157

$57.7 RON 273

-30.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.14 zł 35.72

$7.50 RON 35.46

21.87%

Cappuccino

$2.89 zł 11.30

$3.43 RON 16.20

-15.74%

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

$1.13 zł 4.43

$2.46 RON 11.63

-54.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.63 zł 6.39

$2.33 RON 11.01

-30.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.87 zł 11.23

$3.80 RON 17.97

-24.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 zł 11.90

$4.10 RON 19.41

-25.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.04 zł 4.06

$1.65 RON 7.79

-36.97%

White Bread (500g)

$1.32 zł 5.18

$1.35 RON 6.39

-2.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.81 zł 7.07

$1.78 RON 8.42

1.69%

Eggs

$2.88 zł 11.26

$3.66 RON 17.33

-21.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.82 zł 30.56

$8.57 RON 40.54

-8.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.36 zł 24.86

$6.80 RON 32.17

-6.47%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$9.70 zł 37.90

$11.72 RON 55.4

-17.24%

Apples (1kg)

$0.99 zł 3.86

$1.29 RON 6.11

-23.26%

Banana (1kg)

$1.89 zł 7.39

$1.56 RON 7.37

21.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.61 zł 6.29

$1.54 RON 7.28

4.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.61 zł 10.22

$2.48 RON 11.75

5.24%

Potato (1kg)

$0.88 zł 3.46

$0.83 RON 3.92

6.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.13 zł 4.41

$0.80 RON 3.77

41.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 zł 5.47

$0.84 RON 3.98

66.67%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.66 zł 2.58

$0.93 RON 4.39

-29.03%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.89 zł 19.10

$6.44 RON 30.45

-24.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.58 zł 29.64

$6.32 RON 29.91

19.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.04 zł 4.07

$1.26 RON 5.94

-17.46%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.52 zł 5.96

$1.60 RON 7.59

-5.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.06 zł 4.16

$0.81 RON 3.85

30.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.50 zł 119

$21.13 RON 99.9

44.34%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.99 zł 7.79

$0.60 RON 2.86

231.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 zł 2.39

$0.61 RON 2.91

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$10.12 zł 39.54

$6.17 RON 29.19

64.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.71 zł 6.69

$1.96 RON 9.27

-12.76%

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

$31.4K zł 122.8K

$28.1K RON 133.1K

11.64%

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

$26.7K zł 104.2K

$26.3K RON 124.3K

1.41%

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

$226 zł 885

$197 RON 931

15.02%

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

$14.00 zł 54.7

$8.34 RON 39.44

67.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.00 zł 62.5

$9.19 RON 43.47

74.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$26.64 zł 104

$49.87 RON 236

-46.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.20 zł 63.3

$24.99 RON 118

-35.17%

Cinema Ticket

$6.27 zł 24.51

$8.46 RON 40.01

-25.89%

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

$333 zł 1,302

$639 RON 3,023

-47.88%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.4K RON 68.1K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.1 zł 380

$90.6 RON 429

7.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.25 zł 173

$38.05 RON 180

16.29%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$66.1 zł 258

$79.7 RON 377

-17.03%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$75.4 zł 295

$93.2 RON 441

-19.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$516 zł 2,017

$673 RON 3,184

-23.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$472 zł 1,845

$449 RON 2,123

5.16%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$861 zł 3,367

$1,098 RON 5,195

-21.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$728 zł 2,845

$729 RON 3,448

-0.16%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,431 zł 9,500

$3,740 RON 17.7K

-35.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,782 zł 6,965

$2,189 RON 10.4K

-18.60%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,354 zł 5,294

$1,323 RON 6,259

2.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

7.23

6.74

7.27%

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

Last update for Gliwice: October 3, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Gliwice

$472 35.3%

Bucharest

$449 33.5% 4.9% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Gliwice

$256 19.2%

Bucharest

$214 16% 16.4% $42

Groceries & Markets

Gliwice

$204 15.3%

Bucharest

$222 16.5% 8.5% $17

Eating Out

Gliwice

$197 14.8%

Bucharest

$226 16.8% 14.5% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Gliwice

$127 9.5%

Bucharest

$136 10.1% 6.6% $8.4

Getting Around

Gliwice

$40 3%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 29.5% $12

Sport & Entertainment

Gliwice

$39 2.9%

Bucharest

$67 5% 70.5% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $516 in Gliwice and $673 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gliwice pays 2% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $40.00 in Gliwice vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $204 vs $222 per month, with Gliwice cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇱 Gliwice

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

07:05 7:05 AM

08:05 8:05 AM

1 h ahead of Gliwice

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

185,450

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Polish Złoty PLN zł

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 PLN = 0.256 USD

1 PLN = 0.228 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to PLN – Polish Złoty Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇱 Polish Złoty (zł)

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.91 PLN (1 PLN = 0.256 USD). 1 EUR = 4.38 PLN (1 PLN = 0.228 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

USD to PLN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Gliwice Bucharest 860 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Gliwice
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

Gliwice vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Gliwice and Bucharest differ by about 3% in total monthly costs ($1,315 vs $1,351 including rent). Gliwice is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 2% higher in Gliwice, 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: $516 in Gliwice versus $673 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,315 per month in Gliwice versus $1,351 in Bucharest – a 3% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Gliwice runs roughly 44% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,315 in Gliwice versus $1,351 in Bucharest, a $1,500 budget is realistic in Gliwice but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Gliwice 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, Gliwice 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 Gliwice gentler on the wallet – expenses run 3% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.