Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Polokwane and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Polokwane: $959 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

46

Cost of Living Index in Polokwane
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Polokwane Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Polokwane

🇿🇦 South Africa

$959

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $959 in Polokwane versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Polokwane $959
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,417 in Polokwane versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Polokwane $1,417
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,875 in Polokwane versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Polokwane $1,875
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Polokwane costs roughly 28% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Polokwane 29% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$12.24 R 202

$14.49 RON 68.6

-15.53%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$29.66 R 489

$58.1 RON 275

-48.94%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.46 R 123

$7.48 RON 35.40

-0.27%

Cappuccino

$2.38 R 39.26

$3.44 RON 16.29

-30.81%

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

$0.77 R 12.68

$2.37 RON 11.22

-67.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.88 R 14.47

$2.30 RON 10.88

-61.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.68 R 27.65

$3.70 RON 17.51

-54.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.88 R 30.95

$4.16 RON 19.69

-54.81%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.32 R 21.71

$1.67 RON 7.90

-20.96%

White Bread (500g)

$1.08 R 17.82

$1.37 RON 6.50

-21.17%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.70 R 28.03

$1.72 RON 8.14

-1.16%

Eggs

$2.65 R 43.69

$3.64 RON 17.22

-27.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.84 R 129

$9.08 RON 42.98

-13.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.59 R 75.6

$6.84 RON 32.35

-32.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.04 R 99.6

$12.00 RON 56.8

-49.67%

Apples (1kg)

$2.01 R 33.19

$1.23 RON 5.80

63.41%

Banana (1kg)

$1.85 R 30.53

$1.63 RON 7.73

13.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.81 R 29.80

$1.57 RON 7.45

15.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.96 R 32.30

$2.54 RON 12.01

-22.83%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 R 27.49

$0.79 RON 3.75

111.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.50 R 24.73

$0.77 RON 3.66

94.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.12 R 18.48

$0.87 RON 4.13

28.74%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 R 13.46

$0.99 RON 4.70

-17.17%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.68 R 44.22

$6.31 RON 29.86

-57.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$4.87 R 80.2

$6.20 RON 29.34

-21.45%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.15 R 18.88

$1.19 RON 5.63

-3.36%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.61 R 26.54

$1.57 RON 7.45

2.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.92 R 15.22

$0.86 RON 4.08

6.98%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$30.03 R 495

$21.10 RON 99.8

42.32%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.87 R 14.41

$0.64 RON 3.05

35.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.95 R 15.66

$0.60 RON 2.86

58.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$14.36 R 237

$6.43 RON 30.43

123.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.43 R 23.52

$1.96 RON 9.25

-27.04%

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

$26.1K R 430.1K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

-9.98%

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

$28.5K R 469.0K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

6.86%

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

$138 R 2,281

$196 RON 927

-29.32%

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

$38.10 R 628

$8.04 RON 38.04

373.88%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.99 R 544

$9.35 RON 44.21

252.83%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.29 R 384

$50.2 RON 238

-53.63%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 120

Cinema Ticket

$8.00 R 132

$8.15 RON 38.55

-1.84%

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

$179 R 2,946

$628 RON 2,971

-71.52%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$1,452 R 23.9K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-89.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$45.30 R 746

$89.6 RON 424

-49.45%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.73 R 622

$38.32 RON 181

-1.54%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$80.6 R 1,328

$79.3 RON 375

1.70%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.7 R 1,544

$90.4 RON 428

3.71%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$290 R 4,785

$678 RON 3,209

-57.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$203 R 3,338

$448 RON 2,121

-54.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$420 R 6,922

$1,083 RON 5,125

-61.21%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$284 R 4,683

$725 RON 3,430

-60.79%

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)

$1,343 R 22.1K

$1,329 RON 6,290

1.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.91

6.75

61.63%

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

Last update for Polokwane: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Polokwane

$210 21.8%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 1.8% $3.7

Accommodation & Living

Polokwane

$203 21.1%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 121% $246

Groceries & Markets

Polokwane

$185 19.3%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 21.5% $40

Eating Out

Polokwane

$168 17.5%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 34.3% $58

Clothing & Footwear

Polokwane

$116 12.1%

Bucharest

$134 10% 15.6% $18

Getting Around

Polokwane

$39 4.1%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 28.3% $11

Sport & Entertainment

Polokwane

$39 4.1%

Bucharest

$67 5% 69.3% $27

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $290 in Polokwane and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Polokwane pays 1% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $30.00 in Polokwane vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $185 vs $225 per month, with Polokwane cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Polokwane

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

09:34 9:34 AM

10:34 10:34 AM

1 h ahead of Polokwane

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

628,999

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

South African Rand ZAR R

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to ZAR – South African Rand Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇿🇦 South African Rand (R)

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to ZAR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Polokwane Bucharest 7,610 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Polokwane
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

Polokwane vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Polokwane and Bucharest differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($959 vs $1,340 including rent). Polokwane is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1% higher in Polokwane, 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: $290 in Polokwane versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $959 per month in Polokwane versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Polokwane runs roughly 42% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $959 in Polokwane versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Polokwane but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Polokwane 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.

Expats usually find Polokwane gentler on the wallet – expenses run 40% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.