Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Mendrisio and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $3,034 in Mendrisio, rent and utilities included – about $20,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

148

Cost of Living Index in Mendrisio
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Mendrisio Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Mendrisio

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,034

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,034 in Mendrisio versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Mendrisio $3,034
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,758 in Mendrisio versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Mendrisio $3,758
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,483 in Mendrisio versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Mendrisio $4,483
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Mendrisio is roughly 126% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Mendrisio is 125% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$34.26 CHF 28.21

$14.49 RON 68.6

136.44%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$177 CHF 146

$58.1 RON 275

204.44%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.99 CHF 15.64

$7.48 RON 35.40

153.88%

Cappuccino

$4.80 CHF 3.96

$3.44 RON 16.29

39.53%

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

$5.41 CHF 4.46

$2.37 RON 11.22

128.27%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.37 CHF 3.60

$2.30 RON 10.88

90.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.36 CHF 6.88

$3.70 RON 17.51

125.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.03 CHF 5.79

$4.16 RON 19.69

68.99%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.18 CHF 1.80

$1.67 RON 7.90

30.54%

White Bread (500g)

$3.70 CHF 3.04

$1.37 RON 6.50

170.07%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.15 CHF 3.42

$1.72 RON 8.14

141.28%

Eggs

$7.07 CHF 5.83

$3.64 RON 17.22

94.23%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$25.44 CHF 20.95

$9.08 RON 42.98

180.18%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.11 CHF 23.15

$6.84 RON 32.35

310.96%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.04 CHF 32.15

$12.00 RON 56.8

225.33%

Apples (1kg)

$3.15 CHF 2.60

$1.23 RON 5.80

156.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.70 CHF 1.40

$1.63 RON 7.73

4.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.56 CHF 2.11

$1.57 RON 7.45

63.06%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.49 CHF 5.35

$2.54 RON 12.01

155.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.84 CHF 1.52

$0.79 RON 3.75

132.91%

Onion (1kg)

$2.13 CHF 1.76

$0.77 RON 3.66

176.62%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.34 CHF 1.93

$0.87 RON 4.13

168.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.16 CHF 0.96

$0.99 RON 4.70

17.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.74 CHF 8.84

$6.31 RON 29.86

70.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$14.64 CHF 12.06

$6.20 RON 29.34

136.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.36 CHF 2.77

$1.19 RON 5.63

182.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.08 CHF 3.36

$1.57 RON 7.45

159.87%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.03 CHF 2.50

$0.86 RON 4.08

252.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.07 CHF 5.82

$0.64 RON 3.05

1004.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$5.38 CHF 4.43

$0.60 RON 2.86

796.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$78.3 CHF 64.5

$6.43 RON 30.43

1117.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.20 CHF 1.81

$1.96 RON 9.25

12.24%

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

$34.6K CHF 28.5K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

19.40%

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

$38.6K CHF 31.8K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

44.83%

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

$304 CHF 250

$196 RON 927

55.04%

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

$25.15 CHF 20.71

$8.04 RON 38.04

212.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$48.38 CHF 39.85

$9.35 RON 44.21

417.43%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$73.1 CHF 60.2

$50.2 RON 238

45.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$21.74 CHF 17.91

$8.15 RON 38.55

166.75%

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

$3,187 CHF 2,625

$628 RON 2,971

407.53%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$38.5K CHF 31.7K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

173.10%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$107 CHF 87.8

$89.6 RON 424

18.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.52 CHF 39.14

$38.32 RON 181

24.01%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$164 CHF 135

$79.3 RON 375

107.43%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$166 CHF 137

$90.4 RON 428

83.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,381 CHF 1,137

$678 RON 3,209

103.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,199 CHF 987

$448 RON 2,121

167.35%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,083 RON 5,125

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$725 RON 3,430

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,751 RON 17.7K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,195 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,944 CHF 5,719

$1,329 RON 6,290

422.37%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.37

6.75

-64.89%

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

Last update for Mendrisio: 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

Mendrisio

$1.2K 39.5%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 62.6% $750

Groceries & Markets

Mendrisio

$594 19.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 62.1% $369

Eating Out

Mendrisio

$484 15.9%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 53.4% $258

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Mendrisio

$377 12.4%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 43.5% $164

Clothing & Footwear

Mendrisio

$218 7.2%

Bucharest

$134 10% 38.6% $84

Sport & Entertainment

Mendrisio

$117 3.8%

Bucharest

$67 5% 42.9% $50

Getting Around

Mendrisio

$46 * 1.5%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 38.8% $18

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 $1,381 in Mendrisio and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Mendrisio pays 422% 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: $177 in Mendrisio vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $594 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Mendrisio

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

17:29 5:29 PM

18:29 6:29 PM

1 h ahead of Mendrisio

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,562

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Mendrisio Bucharest 1,350 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Mendrisio
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

Mendrisio vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Mendrisio and Bucharest differ by about 126% in total monthly costs ($3,034 vs $1,340 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 422% higher in Mendrisio, 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: $1,381 in Mendrisio versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 164% higher in Mendrisio. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $3,034 per month in Mendrisio versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 126% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $3,034 in Mendrisio, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Mendrisio. 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, Mendrisio 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 126% less than in Mendrisio. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.