Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lomza and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $1,483 in Lomza, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Lomza outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

73

Cost of Living Index in Lomza
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Lomza Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Lomza

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,483

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,483 in Lomza versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Lomza $1,483
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,144 in Lomza versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Lomza $2,144
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,805 in Lomza versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Lomza $2,805
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Lomza is roughly 11% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Lomza is 10% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$9.52 zł 37.00

$14.49 RON 68.6

-34.30%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$46.51 zł 181

$58.1 RON 275

-19.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.00 zł 34.98

$7.48 RON 35.40

20.32%

Cappuccino

$3.66 zł 14.22

$3.44 RON 16.29

6.40%

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

$2.64 zł 10.25

$2.37 RON 11.22

11.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.76 zł 10.73

$2.30 RON 10.88

20.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.71 zł 18.28

$3.70 RON 17.51

27.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.05 zł 19.61

$4.16 RON 19.69

21.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.03 zł 3.98

$1.67 RON 7.90

-38.32%

White Bread (500g)

$1.07 zł 4.15

$1.37 RON 6.50

-21.90%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.39 zł 5.39

$1.72 RON 8.14

-19.19%

Eggs

$3.42 zł 13.29

$3.64 RON 17.22

-6.04%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.65 zł 41.39

$9.08 RON 42.98

17.29%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.81 zł 26.44

$6.84 RON 32.35

-0.44%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.64 zł 45.24

$12.00 RON 56.8

-3.00%

Apples (1kg)

$1.18 zł 4.60

$1.23 RON 5.80

-4.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 zł 6.27

$1.63 RON 7.73

-1.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.36 zł 9.15

$1.57 RON 7.45

50.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.00 zł 11.66

$2.54 RON 12.01

18.11%

Potato (1kg)

$0.79 zł 3.06

$0.79 RON 3.75

Onion (1kg)

$0.88 zł 3.42

$0.77 RON 3.66

14.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.38 zł 5.34

$0.87 RON 4.13

58.62%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.59 zł 2.28

$0.99 RON 4.70

-40.40%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.82 zł 22.63

$6.31 RON 29.86

-7.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.66 zł 25.88

$6.20 RON 29.34

7.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 zł 4.29

$1.19 RON 5.63

-7.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 zł 6.51

$1.57 RON 7.45

7.01%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.12 zł 4.34

$0.86 RON 4.08

30.23%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$29.42 zł 114

$21.10 RON 99.8

39.43%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.59 zł 6.17

$0.64 RON 3.05

148.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.59 zł 2.28

$0.60 RON 2.86

-1.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$9.37 zł 36.39

$6.43 RON 30.43

45.72%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.60 zł 6.23

$1.96 RON 9.25

-18.37%

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

$30.1K zł 116.8K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

3.70%

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

$26.9K zł 104.6K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

1.09%

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

$316 zł 1,227

$196 RON 927

61.28%

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

$8.65 zł 33.59

$8.04 RON 38.04

7.59%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$17.11 zł 66.5

$9.35 RON 44.21

82.99%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$32.54 zł 126

$50.2 RON 238

-35.22%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.27 zł 90.4

$25.33 RON 120

-8.13%

Cinema Ticket

$8.12 zł 31.54

$8.15 RON 38.55

-0.37%

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

$509 zł 1,978

$628 RON 2,971

-18.92%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.3K zł 40.1K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-26.73%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$74.7 zł 290

$89.6 RON 424

-16.61%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$40.74 zł 158

$38.32 RON 181

6.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$90.1 zł 350

$79.3 RON 375

13.65%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$95.7 zł 372

$90.4 RON 428

5.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$608 zł 2,363

$678 RON 3,209

-10.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$496 zł 1,927

$448 RON 2,121

10.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$969 zł 3,766

$1,083 RON 5,125

-10.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$809 zł 3,142

$725 RON 3,430

11.56%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,957 zł 11.5K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

-21.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,539 zł 9,864

$2,195 RON 10.4K

15.65%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.87

6.75

1.78%

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

Last update for Lomza: October 11, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lomza

$496 33.5%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 9.6% $48

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lomza

$342 23%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 37.6% $128

Groceries & Markets

Lomza

$220 14.8%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 2.3% $5.1

Eating Out

Lomza

$202 13.7%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 11.3% $23

Clothing & Footwear

Lomza

$136 9.1%

Bucharest

$134 10% 1.2% $1.7

Sport & Entertainment

Lomza

$49 3.3%

Bucharest

$67 5% 36.4% $18

Getting Around

Lomza

$38 2.6%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 26.6% $10

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $608 in Lomza and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $47.00 in Lomza vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $220 vs $225 per month, with Lomza cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇵🇱 Lomza

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

01:34 1:34 AM

02:34 2:34 AM

1 h ahead of Lomza

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

62,711

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Polish Złoty PLN zł

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 PLN = 0.257 USD

1 PLN = 0.229 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to PLN – Polish Złoty Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇵🇱 Polish Złoty (zł)

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 3.89 PLN (1 PLN = 0.257 USD). 1 EUR = 4.37 PLN (1 PLN = 0.229 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 PLN in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Lomza Bucharest 1,020 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Lomza
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

Lomza vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Lomza and Bucharest differ by about 11% in total monthly costs ($1,483 vs $1,340 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $2,224 in Lomza and $2,011 in Bucharest to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $608 in Lomza versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,483 per month in Lomza versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 11% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 39% less than in Lomza. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,483 in Lomza, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Lomza. 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, Lomza 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 11% less than in Lomza. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.