Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Schaffhausen and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,337 a month against $3,125 in Schaffhausen, rent and utilities included – about $21,500 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

152

Cost of Living Index in Schaffhausen
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Schaffhausen Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Schaffhausen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,125

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,125 in Schaffhausen versus $1,337 in Bucharest.

Schaffhausen $3,125
Bucharest $1,337

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,038 in Schaffhausen versus $2,029 in Bucharest.

Schaffhausen $5,038
Bucharest $2,029

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,951 in Schaffhausen versus $2,721 in Bucharest.

Schaffhausen $6,951
Bucharest $2,721

Living in Schaffhausen is roughly 134% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Schaffhausen is 131% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.70 CHF 24.46

$14.45 RON 68.4

105.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$123 CHF 101

$58.1 RON 275

111.19%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.03 CHF 14.85

$7.53 RON 35.65

139.44%

Cappuccino

$5.64 CHF 4.65

$3.45 RON 16.33

63.48%

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

$5.52 CHF 4.55

$2.46 RON 11.65

124.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.78 CHF 3.94

$2.23 RON 10.54

114.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.22 CHF 6.77

$3.76 RON 17.78

118.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.47 CHF 6.16

$4.19 RON 19.84

78.28%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.16 CHF 1.78

$1.62 RON 7.67

33.33%

White Bread (500g)

$4.06 CHF 3.35

$1.30 RON 6.13

212.31%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.12 CHF 3.40

$1.70 RON 8.05

142.35%

Eggs

$7.94 CHF 6.54

$3.79 RON 17.93

109.50%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$28.10 CHF 23.14

$8.86 RON 41.90

217.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$30.57 CHF 25.18

$6.90 RON 32.67

343.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$42.49 CHF 34.99

$12.14 RON 57.4

250.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.85 CHF 3.17

$1.30 RON 6.17

196.15%

Banana (1kg)

$2.04 CHF 1.68

$1.60 RON 7.55

27.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.21 CHF 2.65

$1.57 RON 7.42

104.46%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.54 CHF 4.57

$2.68 RON 12.67

106.72%

Potato (1kg)

$2.41 CHF 1.98

$0.81 RON 3.82

197.53%

Onion (1kg)

$2.14 CHF 1.77

$0.79 RON 3.73

170.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.37 CHF 1.96

$0.91 RON 4.30

160.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 CHF 0.97

$0.97 RON 4.58

21.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.75 CHF 8.85

$6.41 RON 30.34

67.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.87 CHF 10.60

$6.18 RON 29.24

108.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.91 CHF 2.40

$1.23 RON 5.83

136.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.84 CHF 3.16

$1.67 RON 7.91

129.94%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.04 CHF 3.33

$0.87 RON 4.10

364.37%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.6 CHF 79.5

$20.98 RON 99.3

360.20%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.02 CHF 4.95

$0.66 RON 3.10

812.12%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.72 CHF 3.07

$0.60 RON 2.85

520.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$61.4 CHF 50.5

$6.19 RON 29.28

891.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.30 CHF 1.89

$1.93 RON 9.15

19.17%

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

$43.0K CHF 35.4K

$28.7K RON 135.9K

49.67%

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

$39.6K CHF 32.6K

$26.3K RON 124.6K

50.36%

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

$234 CHF 193

$196 RON 926

19.60%

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

$31.93 CHF 26.30

$8.49 RON 40.19

276.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$62.9 CHF 51.8

$9.05 RON 42.84

594.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$107 CHF 88.5

$49.54 RON 234

116.90%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$47.27 CHF 38.93

$25.03 RON 118

88.85%

Cinema Ticket

$23.65 CHF 19.48

$8.24 RON 39.01

187.01%

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

$3,112 CHF 2,563

$636 RON 3,007

389.73%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.1K CHF 26.5K

$14.6K RON 69.0K

120.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$167 CHF 137

$88.5 RON 419

88.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 CHF 44.73

$38.77 RON 183

40.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$190 CHF 156

$78.8 RON 373

140.71%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$149 CHF 122

$90.6 RON 428

64.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,285 CHF 1,058

$695 RON 3,288

84.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,165 CHF 960

$446 RON 2,109

161.42%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,705 CHF 2,228

$1,084 RON 5,130

149.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,362 CHF 1,946

$712 RON 3,368

231.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$8,026 CHF 6,610

$3,797 RON 18.0K

111.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,459 CHF 6,967

$2,202 RON 10.4K

284.10%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$7,212 CHF 5,940

$1,354 RON 6,406

432.63%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.48

6.75

-63.26%

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

Last update for Schaffhausen: October 18, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Schaffhausen

$1.2K 37.3%

Bucharest

$446 33.3% 61.7% $719

Groceries & Markets

Schaffhausen

$630 20.2%

Bucharest

$225 16.9% 64.2% $405

Eating Out

Schaffhausen

$457 14.6%

Bucharest

$226 16.9% 50.6% $231

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Schaffhausen

$329 10.5%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 35.2% $116

Clothing & Footwear

Schaffhausen

$252 8.1%

Bucharest

$133 10% 47% $118

Sport & Entertainment

Schaffhausen

$155 5%

Bucharest

$66 4.9% 57.3% $89

Getting Around

Schaffhausen

$137 4.4%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 79.5% $109

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,285 in Schaffhausen and $695 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Schaffhausen pays 433% 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: $123 in Schaffhausen vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $630 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Schaffhausen

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

21:49 9:49 PM

22:49 10:49 PM

1 h ahead of Schaffhausen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

35,927

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 20, 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 20, 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

Schaffhausen Bucharest 1,390 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Schaffhausen
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

Schaffhausen vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Schaffhausen and Bucharest differ by about 134% in total monthly costs ($3,125 vs $1,337 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 433% higher in Schaffhausen, 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: $1,285 in Schaffhausen versus $695 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $3,125 per month in Schaffhausen versus $1,337 in Bucharest – a 134% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 360% less than in Schaffhausen. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,337 in Bucharest versus $3,125 in Schaffhausen, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Schaffhausen. 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, Schaffhausen 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 134% less than in Schaffhausen. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.