Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Guelma and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Guelma: $523 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $9,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

25

Cost of Living Index in Guelma
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Guelma Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Guelma

🇩🇿 Algeria

$523

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $523 in Guelma versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Guelma $523
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $849 in Guelma versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Guelma $849
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,176 in Guelma versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Guelma $1,176
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Guelma costs roughly 61% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Guelma 61% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.15 DZD 421

$14.49 RON 68.6

-78.26%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$16.77 DZD 2,245

$58.1 RON 275

-71.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.86 DZD 517

$7.48 RON 35.40

-48.40%

Cappuccino

$0.69 DZD 91.7

$3.44 RON 16.29

-79.94%

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

$0.59 DZD 79.1

$2.37 RON 11.22

-75.11%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.24 DZD 31.92

$2.30 RON 10.88

-89.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.57 DZD 210

$3.70 RON 17.51

-57.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 DZD 292

$4.16 RON 19.69

-47.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.87 DZD 117

$1.67 RON 7.90

-47.90%

White Bread (500g)

$0.15 DZD 19.62

$1.37 RON 6.50

-89.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.15 DZD 154

$1.72 RON 8.14

-33.14%

Eggs

$1.19 DZD 159

$3.64 RON 17.22

-67.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.00 DZD 1,071

$9.08 RON 42.98

-11.89%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.01 DZD 536

$6.84 RON 32.35

-41.37%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.59 DZD 1,953

$12.00 RON 56.8

21.58%

Apples (1kg)

$2.02 DZD 270

$1.23 RON 5.80

64.23%

Banana (1kg)

$2.69 DZD 360

$1.63 RON 7.73

65.03%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.07 DZD 143

$1.57 RON 7.45

-31.85%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.96 DZD 129

$2.54 RON 12.01

-62.20%

Potato (1kg)

$0.63 DZD 84.0

$0.79 RON 3.75

-20.25%

Onion (1kg)

$0.45 DZD 60.4

$0.77 RON 3.66

-41.56%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.77 DZD 103

$0.87 RON 4.13

-11.49%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.25 DZD 33.57

$0.99 RON 4.70

-74.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.59 DZD 347

$6.31 RON 29.86

-58.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.52 DZD 873

$6.20 RON 29.34

5.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 DZD 145

$1.19 RON 5.63

-9.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 DZD 248

$1.57 RON 7.45

17.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.24 DZD 32.10

$0.86 RON 4.08

-72.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$5.76 DZD 771

$21.10 RON 99.8

-72.70%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.57 DZD 75.9

$0.64 RON 3.05

-10.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.45 DZD 60.1

$0.60 RON 2.86

-25.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.31 DZD 711

$6.43 RON 30.43

-17.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.36 DZD 47.73

$1.96 RON 9.25

-81.63%

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

$31.9K DZD 4.3M

$29.0K RON 137.2K

10.03%

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

$34.3K DZD 4.6M

$26.6K RON 126.0K

28.61%

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

$36.43 DZD 4,877

$196 RON 927

-81.40%

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

$9.29 DZD 1,244

$8.04 RON 38.04

15.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$12.07 DZD 1,616

$9.35 RON 44.21

29.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.53 DZD 3,016

$50.2 RON 238

-55.15%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$4.39 DZD 587

$8.15 RON 38.55

-46.13%

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

$337 DZD 45.2K

$628 RON 2,971

-46.29%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$4,258 DZD 570.0K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-69.77%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$31.79 DZD 4,256

$89.6 RON 424

-64.52%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$34.13 DZD 4,569

$38.32 RON 181

-10.93%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$69.6 DZD 9,315

$79.3 RON 375

-12.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$80.8 DZD 10.8K

$90.4 RON 428

-10.64%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$142 DZD 19.0K

$678 RON 3,209

-79.07%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$92.4 DZD 12.4K

$448 RON 2,121

-79.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$267 DZD 35.8K

$1,083 RON 5,125

-75.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$197 DZD 26.3K

$725 RON 3,430

-72.87%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$959 DZD 128.4K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

-74.44%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,053 DZD 140.9K

$2,195 RON 10.4K

-52.05%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$302 DZD 40.4K

$1,329 RON 6,290

-77.28%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.3

6.75

-21.48%

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

Last update for Guelma: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Guelma

$174 33.3%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 29.5% $51

Clothing & Footwear

Guelma

$97 18.6%

Bucharest

$134 10% 37.6% $37

Accommodation & Living

Guelma

$92 17.7%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 385% $356

Eating Out

Guelma

$60 11.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 272% $165

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Guelma

$58 11.1%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 269% $155

Sport & Entertainment

Guelma

$31 6%

Bucharest

$67 5% 113% $35

Getting Around

Guelma

$9.5 1.8%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 196% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $142 in Guelma and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 340% 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: $17.00 in Guelma vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $174 vs $225 per month, with Guelma cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇿 Guelma

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

04:20 4:20 AM

06:20 6:20 AM

2 h ahead of Guelma

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

120,847

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Algerian Dinar DZD د.ج

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 DZD = 7.47 USD

1,000 DZD = 6.64 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to DZD – Algerian Dinar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇩🇿 Algerian Dinar (د.ج)

Algerian Dinar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 134 DZD (1,000 DZD = 7.47 USD). 1 EUR = 151 DZD (1,000 DZD = 6.64 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 DZD in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Guelma Bucharest 1,810 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Guelma
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

Guelma vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Guelma and Bucharest differ by about 157% in total monthly costs ($523 vs $1,340 including rent). Guelma is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 340% 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: $142 in Guelma versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $523 per month in Guelma versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 157% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Guelma runs roughly 266% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $523 in Guelma versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Guelma but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Guelma 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, Guelma 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 Guelma gentler on the wallet – expenses run 157% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.