Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sighisoara and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Sighisoara: $935 a month against $1,337 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

45

Cost of Living Index in Sighisoara
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Sighisoara Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Sighisoara

🇷🇴 Romania

$935

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,337

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $935 in Sighisoara versus $1,337 in Bucharest.

Sighisoara $935
Bucharest $1,337

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,507 in Sighisoara versus $2,029 in Bucharest.

Sighisoara $1,507
Bucharest $2,029

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,079 in Sighisoara versus $2,721 in Bucharest.

Sighisoara $2,079
Bucharest $2,721

Living in Sighisoara costs roughly 30% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Sighisoara 31% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.56 RON 49.97

$14.45 RON 68.4

-26.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$37.09 RON 176

$58.1 RON 275

-36.13%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.36 RON 39.54

$7.53 RON 35.65

11.02%

Cappuccino

$2.14 RON 10.14

$3.45 RON 16.33

-37.97%

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

$2.09 RON 9.87

$2.46 RON 11.65

-15.04%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.32 RON 10.97

$2.23 RON 10.54

4.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.17 RON 10.27

$3.76 RON 17.78

-42.29%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.79 RON 13.22

$4.19 RON 19.84

-33.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.50 RON 7.08

$1.62 RON 7.67

-7.41%

White Bread (500g)

$1.18 RON 5.57

$1.30 RON 6.13

-9.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.43 RON 6.75

$1.70 RON 8.05

-15.88%

Eggs

$3.51 RON 16.59

$3.79 RON 17.93

-7.39%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.33 RON 34.69

$8.86 RON 41.90

-17.27%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.32 RON 34.66

$6.90 RON 32.67

6.09%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.43 RON 35.16

$12.14 RON 57.4

-38.80%

Apples (1kg)

$1.03 RON 4.86

$1.30 RON 6.17

-20.77%

Banana (1kg)

$1.65 RON 7.80

$1.60 RON 7.55

3.12%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.83 RON 8.66

$1.57 RON 7.42

16.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.43 RON 11.50

$2.68 RON 12.67

-9.33%

Potato (1kg)

$0.73 RON 3.45

$0.81 RON 3.82

-9.88%

Onion (1kg)

$0.95 RON 4.50

$0.79 RON 3.73

20.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.00 RON 4.71

$0.91 RON 4.30

9.89%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.01 RON 4.79

$0.97 RON 4.58

4.12%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.16 RON 24.43

$6.41 RON 30.34

-19.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.50 RON 35.47

$6.18 RON 29.24

21.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 RON 6.00

$1.23 RON 5.83

3.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.68 RON 7.95

$1.67 RON 7.91

0.60%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.65 RON 3.07

$0.87 RON 4.10

-25.29%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.98 RON 99.3

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.81 RON 3.83

$0.66 RON 3.10

22.73%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 RON 4.66

$0.60 RON 2.85

65.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.62 RON 40.77

$6.19 RON 29.28

39.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.73 RON 8.17

$1.93 RON 9.15

-10.36%

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

$28.2K RON 133.4K

$28.7K RON 135.9K

-1.86%

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

$24.3K RON 115.0K

$26.3K RON 124.6K

-7.71%

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

$59.0 RON 279

$196 RON 926

-69.82%

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

$8.38 RON 39.64

$8.49 RON 40.19

-1.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$8.35 RON 39.53

$9.05 RON 42.84

-7.73%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.7 RON 245

$49.54 RON 234

4.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.03 RON 118

Cinema Ticket

$9.69 RON 45.85

$8.24 RON 39.01

17.60%

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

$585 RON 2,767

$636 RON 3,007

-7.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$9,663 RON 45.7K

$14.6K RON 69.0K

-33.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.8 RON 415

$88.5 RON 419

-0.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.36 RON 224

$38.77 RON 183

22.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.9 RON 468

$78.8 RON 373

25.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$108 RON 511

$90.6 RON 428

19.27%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$319 RON 1,510

$695 RON 3,288

-54.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$249 RON 1,179

$446 RON 2,109

-44.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$535 RON 2,530

$1,084 RON 5,130

-50.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$489 RON 2,316

$712 RON 3,368

-31.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,554 RON 7,355

$3,797 RON 18.0K

-59.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,059 RON 5,010

$2,202 RON 10.4K

-51.91%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$595 RON 2,817

$1,354 RON 6,406

-56.03%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.65

6.75

-1.48%

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

Last update for Sighisoara: October 19, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sighisoara

$249 26.7%

Bucharest

$446 33.3% 78.8% $196

Groceries & Markets

Sighisoara

$207 22.1%

Bucharest

$225 16.9% 9% $19

Eating Out

Sighisoara

$169 18.1%

Bucharest

$226 16.9% 33.2% $56

Clothing & Footwear

Sighisoara

$154 16.5%

Bucharest

$133 10% 13.3% $20

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sighisoara

$76 8.1%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 181% $137

Sport & Entertainment

Sighisoara

$71 7.6%

Bucharest

$66 4.9% 7.2% $5.1

Getting Around

Sighisoara

$8.3 * 0.9%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 238% $20

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 $319 in Sighisoara and $695 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 127% 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: $37.00 in Sighisoara vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $207 vs $225 per month, with Sighisoara cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Sighisoara

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

02:24 2:24 AM

Same time as Sighisoara

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

32,570

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Sighisoara Bucharest 220 km

From you

Sighisoara
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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

Sighisoara vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sighisoara and Bucharest differ by about 43% in total monthly costs ($935 vs $1,337 including rent). Sighisoara is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 127% lower in Bucharest. 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: $319 in Sighisoara versus $695 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 9% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $935 per month in Sighisoara versus $1,337 in Bucharest – a 43% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $935 in Sighisoara versus $1,337 in Bucharest, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Sighisoara but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Sighisoara 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, Sighisoara 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 Sighisoara gentler on the wallet – expenses run 43% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.