Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Howrah and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Howrah: $382 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $11,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

19

Cost of Living Index in Howrah
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Howrah Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Howrah

🇮🇳 India

$382

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $382 in Howrah versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Howrah $382
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $505 in Howrah versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Howrah $505
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $628 in Howrah versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Howrah $628
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Howrah costs roughly 71% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Howrah 72% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.13 ₹202

$14.49 RON 68.7

-85.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$9.29 ₹882

$58.1 RON 275

-84.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.21 ₹400

$7.48 RON 35.46

-43.72%

Cappuccino

$1.43 ₹136

$3.44 RON 16.31

-58.43%

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

$0.48 ₹46.02

$2.37 RON 11.24

-79.75%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.12 ₹11.05

$2.30 RON 10.90

-94.78%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.59 ₹151

$3.70 RON 17.53

-57.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.23 ₹307

$4.16 RON 19.72

-22.36%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.60 ₹56.6

$1.67 RON 7.91

-64.07%

White Bread (500g)

$0.43 ₹40.82

$1.37 RON 6.51

-68.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$0.71 ₹67.0

$1.72 RON 8.15

-58.72%

Eggs

$1.08 ₹103

$3.64 RON 17.24

-70.33%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.40 ₹512

$9.08 RON 43.04

-40.53%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.59 ₹246

$6.84 RON 32.40

-62.13%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.00 RON 56.9

Apples (1kg)

$2.17 ₹206

$1.23 RON 5.81

76.42%

Banana (1kg)

$0.85 ₹80.7

$1.63 RON 7.74

-47.85%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.41 ₹134

$1.57 RON 7.46

-10.19%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.62 ₹58.6

$2.54 RON 12.03

-75.59%

Potato (1kg)

$0.30 ₹28.29

$0.79 RON 3.75

-62.03%

Onion (1kg)

$0.41 ₹38.93

$0.77 RON 3.66

-46.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.34 ₹32.55

$0.87 RON 4.13

-60.92%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.26 ₹24.53

$0.99 RON 4.71

-73.74%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.88 ₹463

$6.31 RON 29.90

-22.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.62 ₹1,009

$6.20 RON 29.39

71.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.40 ₹133

$1.19 RON 5.63

17.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 ₹258

$1.57 RON 7.46

73.25%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$8.58 ₹815

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.16 ₹15.20

$0.86 RON 4.08

-81.40%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 100.0

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.60 ₹57.2

$0.64 RON 3.05

-6.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.33 ₹30.90

$0.60 RON 2.86

-45.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$1.60 ₹152

$6.43 RON 30.48

-75.12%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.07 ₹102

$1.96 RON 9.27

-45.41%

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

$15.6K ₹1.5M

$29.0K RON 137.4K

-46.22%

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

$20.0K ₹1.9M

$26.6K RON 126.2K

-24.81%

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

$44.85 ₹4,259

$196 RON 928

-77.10%

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

$3.37 ₹320

$8.04 RON 38.10

-58.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$6.41 ₹609

$9.35 RON 44.28

-31.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$13.87 ₹1,317

$50.2 RON 238

-72.39%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$3.09 ₹294

$8.15 RON 38.61

-62.09%

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

$26.25 ₹2,493

$628 RON 2,976

-95.82%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,264 ₹120.1K

$14.1K RON 66.7K

-91.02%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$26.57 ₹2,523

$89.6 RON 425

-70.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.65 ₹2,436

$38.32 RON 182

-33.06%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$35.19 ₹3,341

$79.3 RON 376

-55.61%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$28.40 ₹2,697

$90.4 RON 428

-68.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$113 ₹10.7K

$678 RON 3,214

-83.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$77.7 ₹7,379

$448 RON 2,124

-82.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,133

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,435

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$354 ₹33.7K

$1,329 RON 6,299

-73.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

9.04

6.75

33.93%

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

Last update for Howrah: October 10, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Groceries & Markets

Howrah

$111 29.1%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 103% $114

Accommodation & Living

Howrah

$78 20.3%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 477% $371

Eating Out

Howrah

$64 16.7%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 254% $162

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Howrah

$55 14.3%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 290% $159

Clothing & Footwear

Howrah

$52 13.6%

Bucharest

$134 10% 157% $82

Sport & Entertainment

Howrah

$20 5.3%

Bucharest

$67 5% 232% $46

Getting Around

Howrah

$2.9 * 0.8%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 883% $25

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 $113 in Howrah and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 275% 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: $9.00 in Howrah vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $111 vs $225 per month, with Howrah cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇳 Howrah

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

03:44 3:44 AM

01:14 1:14 AM

2 h 30 min behind Howrah

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,072,161

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Indian Rupee INR ₹

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to INR – Indian Rupee Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇮🇳 Indian Rupee (₹)

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 94.96 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.35 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 16, 2026: 1 USD = 4.74 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to INR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Howrah Bucharest 6,100 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

Howrah
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

Howrah vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Howrah and Bucharest differ by about 251% in total monthly costs ($382 vs $1,340 including rent). Howrah is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 275% 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: $113 in Howrah versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 103% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $382 per month in Howrah versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 251% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $382 in Howrah versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Howrah but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Howrah 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, Howrah 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 Howrah gentler on the wallet – expenses run 251% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.