Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Harrow and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,990 in Harrow, rent and utilities included – about $19,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

146

Cost of Living Index in Harrow
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Harrow Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Harrow

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,990

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,990 in Harrow versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Harrow $2,990
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,436 in Harrow versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Harrow $4,436
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,883 in Harrow versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Harrow $5,883
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Harrow is roughly 123% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Harrow is 121% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.97 £14.99

$14.49 RON 68.6

37.82%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$93.1 £69.8

$58.1 RON 275

60.23%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.39 £7.04

$7.48 RON 35.40

25.53%

Cappuccino

$4.54 £3.40

$3.44 RON 16.29

31.98%

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

$2.88 £2.16

$2.37 RON 11.22

21.52%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.95 £1.46

$2.30 RON 10.88

-15.22%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.48 £5.61

$3.70 RON 17.51

102.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.04 £5.28

$4.16 RON 19.69

69.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.67 RON 7.90

-2.99%

White Bread (500g)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.37 RON 6.50

35.77%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.72 RON 8.14

-1.16%

Eggs

$6.11 £4.58

$3.64 RON 17.22

67.86%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.15 £8.37

$9.08 RON 42.98

22.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.28 £6.21

$6.84 RON 32.35

21.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.32 £9.25

$12.00 RON 56.8

2.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.06 £1.55

$1.23 RON 5.80

67.48%

Banana (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.63 RON 7.73

-20.25%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.74 £1.30

$1.57 RON 7.45

10.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.19 £3.90

$2.54 RON 12.01

104.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$0.79 RON 3.75

64.56%

Onion (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$0.77 RON 3.66

105.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 £0.96

$0.87 RON 4.13

47.13%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.97

$0.99 RON 4.70

31.31%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.63 £16.98

$6.31 RON 29.86

258.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.46 £7.10

$6.20 RON 29.34

52.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.03 £1.52

$1.19 RON 5.63

70.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.57 RON 7.45

-17.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.77 £3.58

$0.86 RON 4.08

454.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$13.04 £9.78

$0.64 RON 3.05

1937.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.93 £2.95

$0.60 RON 2.86

555.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.43 RON 30.43

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.89 £1.42

$1.96 RON 9.25

-3.57%

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

$39.6K £29.7K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

36.71%

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

$43.6K £32.7K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

63.64%

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

$202 £151

$196 RON 927

3.05%

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

$15.13 £11.35

$8.04 RON 38.04

88.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.77 £29.84

$9.35 RON 44.21

325.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$78.0 £58.5

$50.2 RON 238

55.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$13.97 £10.48

$8.15 RON 38.55

71.41%

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

$1,909 £1,432

$628 RON 2,971

203.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$23.8K £17.9K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

69.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$77.8 £58.4

$89.6 RON 424

-13.20%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$58.6 £43.93

$38.32 RON 181

52.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 £78.3

$79.3 RON 375

31.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £119

$90.4 RON 428

75.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 £1,694

$678 RON 3,209

232.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,794 £1,346

$448 RON 2,121

300.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$4,113 £3,086

$1,083 RON 5,125

279.75%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,116 £2,338

$725 RON 3,430

329.79%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,410 £5,559

$3,751 RON 17.7K

97.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,360 £5,522

$2,195 RON 10.4K

235.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,100 £3,826

$1,329 RON 6,290

283.66%

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 Harrow: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Harrow

$1.8K 60%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 75% $1.3K

Eating Out

Harrow

$313 10.5%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 28.1% $88

Groceries & Markets

Harrow

$288 9.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 21.9% $63

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Harrow

$257 8.6%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 16.9% $43

Clothing & Footwear

Harrow

$180 6%

Bucharest

$134 10% 25.5% $46

Sport & Entertainment

Harrow

$106 3.5%

Bucharest

$67 5% 37.2% $39

Getting Around

Harrow

$52 * 1.7%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 45.5% $24

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 $2,258 in Harrow and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Harrow pays 284% 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: $93.0 in Harrow vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $288 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Harrow

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

17:57 5:57 PM

2 h ahead of Harrow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

149,246

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Harrow Bucharest 2,110 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Harrow
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

Harrow vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Harrow and Bucharest differ by about 123% in total monthly costs ($2,990 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 284% higher in Harrow, 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: $2,258 in Harrow versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 28% higher in Harrow. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,990 per month in Harrow versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 123% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,990 in Harrow, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Harrow. 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, Harrow 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 123% less than in Harrow. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.