Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Nouakchott and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Nouakchott: $805 a month against $1,371 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $6,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

39

Cost of Living Index in Nouakchott
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Nouakchott Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
Learn more

Bucharest Living Index

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Nouakchott

🇲🇷 Mauritania

$805

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,371

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $805 in Nouakchott versus $1,371 in Bucharest.

Nouakchott $805
Bucharest $1,371

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,325 in Nouakchott versus $2,067 in Bucharest.

Nouakchott $1,325
Bucharest $2,067

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,845 in Nouakchott versus $2,764 in Bucharest.

Nouakchott $1,845
Bucharest $2,764

Living in Nouakchott costs roughly 41% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$2.50 MRU 101

$14.51 RON 69.0

-82.77%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$23.88 MRU 963

$61.2 RON 291

-61.00%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$6.15 MRU 248

$7.46 RON 35.50

-17.56%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.77 MRU 71.5

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 MRU 70.3

Cappuccino

$2.22 MRU 89.7

$3.64 RON 17.33

-39.01%

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

$1.67 MRU 67.5

$2.62 RON 12.44

-36.26%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.50 MRU 101

$2.36 RON 11.24

5.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.78 RON 18.00

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.11 RON 19.54

Milk (1 liter)

$1.53 MRU 61.7

$1.66 RON 7.90

-7.83%

White Bread (500g)

$0.26 MRU 10.46

$1.40 RON 6.64

-81.43%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.36 MRU 54.9

$1.79 RON 8.54

-24.02%

Eggs

$2.26 MRU 91.2

$3.63 RON 17.27

-37.74%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.79 MRU 233

$8.92 RON 42.43

-35.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.43 MRU 219

$6.86 RON 32.65

-20.85%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.01 MRU 283

$11.99 RON 57.0

-41.53%

Apples (1kg)

$3.08 MRU 124

$1.30 RON 6.17

136.92%

Banana (1kg)

$1.83 MRU 73.7

$1.63 RON 7.77

12.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.60 MRU 64.6

$1.49 RON 7.10

7.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.15 MRU 46.47

$2.54 RON 12.09

-54.72%

Potato (1kg)

$0.99 MRU 39.92

$0.81 RON 3.86

22.22%

Onion (1kg)

$0.86 MRU 34.80

$0.80 RON 3.79

7.50%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.72 MRU 29.15

$0.86 RON 4.07

-16.28%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 MRU 24.41

$0.94 RON 4.46

-35.11%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$10.10 MRU 407

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.52 MRU 102

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.67 MRU 67.5

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.42 MRU 97.7

$6.60 RON 31.42

-63.33%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.33 RON 30.11

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 RON 5.64

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.58 RON 7.54

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.42 MRU 17.03

$0.98 RON 4.64

-57.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.27 MRU 858

$20.91 RON 99.5

1.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.90 MRU 36.23

$0.60 RON 2.86

50.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.35 MRU 14.24

$0.62 RON 2.93

-43.55%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.65 MRU 147

$6.37 RON 30.28

-42.70%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.45 MRU 58.3

$2.02 RON 9.63

-28.22%

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

$7,536 MRU 303.9K

$28.2K RON 134.1K

-73.28%

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

$8,628 MRU 348.0K

$26.3K RON 125.0K

-67.16%

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

$128 MRU 5,171

$196 RON 933

-34.64%

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

$21.45 MRU 865

$8.60 RON 40.89

149.42%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$59.6 MRU 2,404

$9.20 RON 43.74

547.93%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$86.1 MRU 3,470

$51.0 RON 243

68.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$251 MRU 10.1K

$25.04 RON 119

901.72%

Cinema Ticket

$4.26 MRU 172

$8.26 RON 39.31

-48.43%

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

$447 MRU 18.0K

$681 RON 3,237

-34.27%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,520 MRU 303.3K

$18.7K RON 89.1K

-59.87%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$15.07 MRU 608

$93.3 RON 444

-83.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$22.68 MRU 915

$39.87 RON 190

-43.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$68.7 MRU 2,769

$80.1 RON 381

-14.27%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.04 MRU 1,857

$90.6 RON 431

-49.20%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$287 MRU 11.6K

$731 RON 3,477

-60.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$174 MRU 7,012

$470 RON 2,234

-62.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$712 MRU 28.7K

$1,110 RON 5,282

-35.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$323 MRU 13.0K

$722 RON 3,435

-55.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,749 RON 17.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,233 RON 10.6K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$626 MRU 25.3K

$1,365 RON 6,494

-54.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

196.30%

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

Last update for Nouakchott: November 3, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: November 2, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Nouakchott

$209 26%

Bucharest

$214 15.6% 2.2% $4.7

Accommodation & Living

Nouakchott

$174 21.6%

Bucharest

$470 34.3% 170% $296

Groceries & Markets

Nouakchott

$151 18.8%

Bucharest

$225 16.4% 48.5% $73

Sport & Entertainment

Nouakchott

$95 11.8%

Bucharest

$68 4.9% 28.6% $27

Eating Out

Nouakchott

$82 10.2%

Bucharest

$229 16.7% 180% $147

Clothing & Footwear

Nouakchott

$69 8.5%

Bucharest

$137 10% 99.3% $68

Getting Around

Nouakchott

$26 3.2%

Bucharest

$29 2.1% 11.2% $2.9

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $287 in Nouakchott and $731 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays about 2.2 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $24 in Nouakchott vs $61 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $151 vs $225 per month, with Nouakchott cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇷 Nouakchott

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

01:08 1:08 AM

03:08 3:08 AM

2 h ahead of Nouakchott

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

958,399 Capital

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Mauritanian Ouguiya MRU UM

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MRU = 2.48 USD

100 MRU = 2.21 EUR

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MRU – Mauritanian Ouguiya Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇷 Mauritanian Ouguiya (UM)

Mauritanian Ouguiya exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 40.33 MRU (100 MRU = 2.48 USD). 1 EUR = 45.27 MRU (100 MRU = 2.21 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 4.76 RON (1 RON = 0.21 USD). 1 EUR = 5.34 RON (1 RON = 0.187 EUR).

USD to MRU in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Nouakchott Bucharest 4,880 km ≈ 7 h nonstop flight

From you

Nouakchott
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

Nouakchott vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $805 in Nouakchott and $1,371 in Bucharest, so Nouakchott is about 41% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 54% lower in Nouakchott. 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: $287 in Nouakchott versus $731 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you’ll spend $805 per month in Nouakchott versus $1,371 in Bucharest – Nouakchott is about 41% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Nouakchott is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Nouakchott wins on affordability, Bucharest on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.