Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lezhe and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Lezhe: $1,011 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $3,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

50

Cost of Living Index in Lezhe
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Lezhe Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Lezhe

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,011

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,011 in Lezhe versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Lezhe $1,011
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,537 in Lezhe versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Lezhe $1,537
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,063 in Lezhe versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Lezhe $2,063
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Lezhe costs roughly 25% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Lezhe 25% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$5.39 ALL 434

$14.49 RON 68.6

-62.80%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.19 ALL 2,995

$58.1 RON 275

-35.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.64 ALL 293

$7.48 RON 35.40

-51.34%

Cappuccino

$1.02 ALL 82.4

$3.44 RON 16.29

-70.35%

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

$1.50 ALL 121

$2.37 RON 11.22

-36.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.64 ALL 51.3

$2.30 RON 10.88

-72.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.49 ALL 120

$3.70 RON 17.51

-59.73%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.43 ALL 195

$4.16 RON 19.69

-41.59%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.90 ALL 153

$1.67 RON 7.90

13.77%

White Bread (500g)

$0.99 ALL 79.6

$1.37 RON 6.50

-27.74%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.02 ALL 163

$1.72 RON 8.14

17.44%

Eggs

$2.66 ALL 214

$3.64 RON 17.22

-26.92%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.15 ALL 817

$9.08 RON 42.98

11.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.60 ALL 692

$6.84 RON 32.35

25.73%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.03 ALL 1,130

$12.00 RON 56.8

16.92%

Apples (1kg)

$1.91 ALL 154

$1.23 RON 5.80

55.28%

Banana (1kg)

$2.23 ALL 179

$1.63 RON 7.73

36.81%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.62 ALL 130

$1.57 RON 7.45

3.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 ALL 128

$2.54 RON 12.01

-37.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.08 ALL 87.0

$0.79 RON 3.75

36.71%

Onion (1kg)

$1.28 ALL 103

$0.77 RON 3.66

66.23%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 ALL 94.8

$0.87 RON 4.13

35.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 ALL 67.0

$0.99 RON 4.70

-16.16%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.31 ALL 347

$6.31 RON 29.86

-31.70%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.79 ALL 627

$6.20 RON 29.34

25.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.72 ALL 138

$1.19 RON 5.63

44.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 ALL 149

$1.57 RON 7.45

17.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.49 ALL 39.41

$0.86 RON 4.08

-43.02%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$18.93 ALL 1,524

$21.10 RON 99.8

-10.28%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.73 ALL 301

$0.64 RON 3.05

482.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.82 ALL 308

$0.60 RON 2.86

536.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$17.97 ALL 1,447

$6.43 RON 30.43

179.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.25 ALL 182

$1.96 RON 9.25

14.80%

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

$33.2K ALL 2.7M

$29.0K RON 137.2K

14.56%

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

$24.8K ALL 2.0M

$26.6K RON 126.0K

-7.08%

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

$60.0 ALL 4,833

$196 RON 927

-69.36%

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

$16.37 ALL 1,318

$8.04 RON 38.04

103.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$16.98 ALL 1,367

$9.35 RON 44.21

81.60%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.3 ALL 4,456

$50.2 RON 238

10.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$8.77 ALL 706

$8.15 RON 38.55

7.61%

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

$180 ALL 14.5K

$628 RON 2,971

-71.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.1K RON 66.6K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.81 ALL 4,011

$89.6 RON 424

-44.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$55.5 ALL 4,468

$38.32 RON 181

44.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$96.3 ALL 7,752

$79.3 RON 375

21.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 ALL 11.8K

$90.4 RON 428

61.60%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$482 ALL 38.9K

$678 RON 3,209

-28.87%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$308 ALL 24.8K

$448 RON 2,121

-31.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$709 ALL 57.1K

$1,083 RON 5,125

-34.54%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$429 ALL 34.6K

$725 RON 3,430

-40.76%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,694 ALL 136.4K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

-54.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,133 ALL 91.2K

$2,195 RON 10.4K

-48.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$609 ALL 49.1K

$1,329 RON 6,290

-54.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

-25.93%

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

Last update for Lezhe: 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

Lezhe

$308 30.5%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 45.3% $140

Groceries & Markets

Lezhe

$249 24.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 9.6% $24

Clothing & Footwear

Lezhe

$156 15.5%

Bucharest

$134 10% 14.4% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lezhe

$93 9.2%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 128% $120

Eating Out

Lezhe

$87 8.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 158% $138

Sport & Entertainment

Lezhe

$73 7.2%

Bucharest

$67 5% 8.7% $6.3

Getting Around

Lezhe

$44 4.3%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 35.5% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $482 in Lezhe and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 118% 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 Lezhe vs $58.0 in Bucharest. Groceries flip the comparison at $249 vs $225, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇦🇱 Lezhe

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

09:34 9:34 AM

10:34 10:34 AM

1 h ahead of Lezhe

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

65,633

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

Lezhe Bucharest 600 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Lezhe
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

Lezhe vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lezhe and Bucharest differ by about 33% in total monthly costs ($1,011 vs $1,340 including rent). Lezhe is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 118% 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: $482 in Lezhe versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,011 per month in Lezhe versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 33% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Lezhe runs roughly 11% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,011 in Lezhe versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Lezhe but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Lezhe 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 Lezhe gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.