Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Cluj-Napoca

For one person, living is cheaper in Cluj-Napoca: $1,424 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $31,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
68

Cost of Living Index in Cluj-Napoca
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Cluj-Napoca Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Cluj-Napoca

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,424

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Cluj-Napoca

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in London and in Cluj-Napoca actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,048 in London versus $1,424 in Cluj-Napoca.

London $4,048
Cluj-Napoca $1,424

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,903 in London versus $2,141 in Cluj-Napoca.

London $5,903
Cluj-Napoca $2,141

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,758 in London versus $2,858 in Cluj-Napoca.

London $7,758
Cluj-Napoca $2,858

Living in London is roughly 184% more expensive than in Cluj-Napoca, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 199% above, Cluj-Napoca 5% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.36 £19.68

$12.23 RON 58.5

115.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$109 £81.1

$55.3 RON 264

96.47%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.00

$9.39 RON 44.88

14.06%

Cappuccino

$5.59 £4.17

$3.79 RON 18.12

47.49%

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

$3.00 £2.24

$2.40 RON 11.48

25.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 £1.66

$2.33 RON 11.13

-4.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.65 £7.20

$3.20 RON 15.29

201.56%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.26 £6.16

$4.11 RON 19.65

100.97%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.57 RON 7.52

25.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 £1.56

$1.41 RON 6.73

48.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.59 £1.94

$1.80 RON 8.61

43.89%

Eggs

$5.37 £4.01

$3.70 RON 17.67

45.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.12 £9.79

$9.23 RON 44.13

42.15%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.03 £8.23

$7.16 RON 34.22

54.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.73 £13.23

$11.81 RON 56.5

50.13%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 £2.37

$1.37 RON 6.56

131.39%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 £1.03

$1.60 RON 7.64

-13.75%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$1.87 RON 8.93

50.80%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.36 £2.51

$2.31 RON 11.04

45.45%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 £1.27

$0.92 RON 4.38

84.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 £1.33

$0.88 RON 4.19

102.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 £1.11

$0.96 RON 4.60

55.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 £1.36

$0.96 RON 4.58

89.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.85 £17.80

$6.33 RON 30.28

276.78%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.44 £10.03

$7.50 RON 35.84

79.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.32

$1.22 RON 5.82

154.92%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.35

$1.75 RON 8.36

156.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.13 £3.08

$0.70 RON 3.36

490.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$266 £199

$43.90 RON 210

505.88%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.98 £4.46

$0.81 RON 3.88

638.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.39 £2.53

$0.82 RON 3.92

313.41%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.6 £42.21

$8.25 RON 39.45

585.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.21 £1.65

$1.98 RON 9.47

11.62%

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

$38.3K £28.6K

$28.3K RON 135.2K

35.31%

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

$41.0K £30.6K

$24.6K RON 117.6K

66.75%

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

$372 £278

$152 RON 726

145.31%

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

$18.66 £13.93

$8.05 RON 38.49

131.80%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.53 £30.26

$9.37 RON 44.78

332.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 £41.82

$48.94 RON 234

14.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.10 £12.76

$22.31 RON 107

-23.35%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.40

$9.32 RON 44.54

92.60%

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

$2,946 £2,199

$577 RON 2,760

410.11%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$47.6K £35.5K

$12.3K RON 58.8K

287.41%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £86.8

$87.3 RON 417

33.17%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 £42.47

$43.70 RON 209

30.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £95.5

$99.8 RON 477

28.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 £115

$107 RON 512

43.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,935 £2,191

$662 RON 3,165

343.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 £1,686

$539 RON 2,575

319.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,250 £3,919

$1,247 RON 5,959

321.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,859 £2,881

$836 RON 3,997

361.47%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.2K £12.8K

$4,596 RON 22.0K

273.92%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,278 £6,179

$3,264 RON 15.6K

153.61%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,621 £4,196

$1,293 RON 6,183

334.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.78

6.65

-28.12%

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

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Last update for Cluj-Napoca: November 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 55.8%

Cluj-Napoca

$539 37.8% 76.1% $1.7K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$432 10.7%

Cluj-Napoca

$169 11.9% 60.8% $262

Eating Out

London

$396 9.8%

Cluj-Napoca

$215 15.1% 45.8% $181

Groceries & Markets

London

$360 8.9%

Cluj-Napoca

$231 16.2% 36% $130

Getting Around

London

$305 7.6%

Cluj-Napoca

$52 3.6% 83.1% $254

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Cluj-Napoca

$152 10.7% 25.7% $53

Sport & Entertainment

London

$92 2.3%

Cluj-Napoca

$68 4.7% 26.5% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,935 in London and $662 in Cluj-Napoca. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays about 4.3 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $109 in London vs $55 in Cluj-Napoca for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $360 vs $231 per month, with Cluj-Napoca cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇷🇴 Cluj-Napoca

🕒 Local time

17:16 5:16 PM

19:16 7:16 PM

2 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

324,576

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 RON = 0.209 USD

1 RON = 0.186 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.78 RON (1 RON = 0.209 USD). 1 EUR = 5.37 RON (1 RON = 0.186 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Cluj-Napoca 1,790 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Cluj-Napoca

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

London vs Cluj-Napoca: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cluj-Napoca is about 65% cheaper overall, especially in transport, eating out, and groceries. That difference adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay in London is about 4.3 times higher, 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: $2,935 in London versus $662 in Cluj-Napoca. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Cluj-Napoca runs roughly 83% less than in London. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your budget.

Childcare runs $2,946 in London versus $577 in Cluj-Napoca. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

For families, Cluj-Napoca is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in London, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Expats usually find Cluj-Napoca gentler on the wallet – expenses run 65% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.