Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ljubljana and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $2,111 in Ljubljana, rent and utilities included – about $9,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

102

Cost of Living Index in Ljubljana
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Ljubljana Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Ljubljana

🇸🇮 Slovenia

$2,111

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,111 in Ljubljana versus $1,351 in Bucharest.

Ljubljana $2,111
Bucharest $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,086 in Ljubljana versus $2,033 in Bucharest.

Ljubljana $3,086
Bucharest $2,033

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,062 in Ljubljana versus $2,715 in Bucharest.

Ljubljana $4,062
Bucharest $2,715

Living in Ljubljana is roughly 56% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ljubljana 58% above, Bucharest 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.87 €14.16

$14.46 RON 68.4

9.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.5 €60.2

$57.7 RON 273

17.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.07 €9.88

$7.50 RON 35.46

47.60%

Cappuccino

$2.90 €2.58

$3.43 RON 16.20

-15.45%

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

$3.22 €2.87

$2.46 RON 11.63

30.89%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.97 €1.75

$2.33 RON 11.01

-15.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.94 €3.52

$3.80 RON 17.97

3.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.43 €3.95

$4.10 RON 19.41

8.05%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.37 €1.23

$1.65 RON 7.79

-16.97%

White Bread (500g)

$2.21 €1.98

$1.35 RON 6.39

63.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.22 €2.87

$1.78 RON 8.42

80.90%

Eggs

$4.11 €3.67

$3.66 RON 17.33

12.30%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.98 €13.36

$8.57 RON 40.54

74.80%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.17 €9.07

$6.80 RON 32.17

49.56%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.01 €13.40

$11.72 RON 55.4

28.07%

Apples (1kg)

$2.29 €2.04

$1.29 RON 6.11

77.52%

Banana (1kg)

$1.72 €1.54

$1.56 RON 7.37

10.26%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.27 €2.02

$1.54 RON 7.28

47.40%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.59 €3.21

$2.48 RON 11.75

44.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.49 €1.33

$0.83 RON 3.92

79.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$0.80 RON 3.77

103.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.71 €1.53

$0.84 RON 3.98

103.57%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.89 €0.80

$0.93 RON 4.39

-4.30%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.34 €5.66

$6.44 RON 30.45

-1.55%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.91 €7.06

$6.32 RON 29.91

25.16%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.42 €1.26

$1.26 RON 5.94

12.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 €1.95

$1.60 RON 7.59

36.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.70 €1.52

$0.81 RON 3.85

109.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$41.46 €37.00

$21.13 RON 99.9

96.21%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.15 €1.92

$0.60 RON 2.86

258.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.25 €1.11

$0.61 RON 2.91

104.92%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$19.30 €17.22

$6.17 RON 29.19

212.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.90 €1.69

$1.96 RON 9.27

-3.06%

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

$29.6K €26.4K

$28.1K RON 133.1K

5.19%

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

$25.1K €22.4K

$26.3K RON 124.3K

-4.45%

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

$287 €256

$197 RON 931

45.75%

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

$16.33 €14.58

$8.34 RON 39.44

95.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.49 €37.92

$9.19 RON 43.47

362.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$54.5 €48.66

$49.87 RON 236

9.32%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.60 €21.96

$24.99 RON 118

-1.56%

Cinema Ticket

$10.49 €9.36

$8.46 RON 40.01

24.00%

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

$661 €590

$639 RON 3,023

3.39%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.9K €12.4K

$14.4K RON 68.1K

-3.47%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 €104

$90.6 RON 429

28.53%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.02 €39.29

$38.05 RON 180

15.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 €97.2

$79.7 RON 377

36.77%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$146 €130

$93.2 RON 441

56.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,123 €1,002

$673 RON 3,184

66.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$884 €789

$449 RON 2,123

96.99%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,077 €1,853

$1,098 RON 5,195

89.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,431 €1,277

$729 RON 3,448

96.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,421 €5,730

$3,740 RON 17.7K

71.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,816 €4,298

$2,189 RON 10.4K

120.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,001 €1,786

$1,323 RON 6,259

51.20%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

6.74

-47.18%

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

Last update for Ljubljana: October 5, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Ljubljana

$884 42.1%

Bucharest

$449 33.5% 49.2% $435

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ljubljana

$346 16.5%

Bucharest

$214 16% 38% $131

Groceries & Markets

Ljubljana

$307 14.6%

Bucharest

$222 16.5% 27.9% $86

Eating Out

Ljubljana

$244 11.6%

Bucharest

$226 16.8% 7.6% $19

Clothing & Footwear

Ljubljana

$187 8.9%

Bucharest

$136 10.1% 27.4% $51

Sport & Entertainment

Ljubljana

$76 3.6%

Bucharest

$67 5% 11.5% $8.7

Getting Around

Ljubljana

$57 2.7%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 50.5% $29

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,123 in Ljubljana and $673 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Ljubljana pays 51% 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: $67.0 in Ljubljana vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $307 vs $222 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇸🇮 Ljubljana

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

04:08 4:08 AM

05:08 5:08 AM

1 h ahead of Ljubljana

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

285,604 Capital

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Ljubljana Bucharest 920 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

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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

Ljubljana vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ljubljana and Bucharest differ by about 56% in total monthly costs ($2,111 vs $1,351 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 51% higher in Ljubljana, 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: $1,123 in Ljubljana versus $673 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,111 per month in Ljubljana versus $1,351 in Bucharest – a 56% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 96% less than in Ljubljana. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,351 in Bucharest versus $2,111 in Ljubljana, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Ljubljana. 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, Ljubljana 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 56% less than in Ljubljana. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.