Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Solothurn and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $2,728 in Solothurn, rent and utilities included – about $16,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

133

Cost of Living Index in Solothurn
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Solothurn Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Solothurn

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,728

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,728 in Solothurn versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Solothurn $2,728
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,408 in Solothurn versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Solothurn $4,408
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,088 in Solothurn versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Solothurn $6,088
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Solothurn is roughly 103% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Solothurn is 102% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$30.10 CHF 24.79

$14.49 RON 68.6

107.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$143 CHF 118

$58.1 RON 275

146.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$18.34 CHF 15.10

$7.48 RON 35.40

145.19%

Cappuccino

$6.40 CHF 5.27

$3.44 RON 16.29

86.05%

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

$5.50 CHF 4.53

$2.37 RON 11.22

132.07%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.11 CHF 4.21

$2.30 RON 10.88

122.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.42 CHF 5.28

$3.70 RON 17.51

73.51%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.95 CHF 4.90

$4.16 RON 19.69

43.03%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.20 CHF 1.81

$1.67 RON 7.90

31.74%

White Bread (500g)

$3.71 CHF 3.05

$1.37 RON 6.50

170.80%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.42 CHF 2.81

$1.72 RON 8.14

98.84%

Eggs

$8.35 CHF 6.88

$3.64 RON 17.22

129.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.38 CHF 18.43

$9.08 RON 42.98

146.48%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$26.23 CHF 21.61

$6.84 RON 32.35

283.48%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$62.0 CHF 51.1

$12.00 RON 56.8

416.75%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 CHF 2.30

$1.23 RON 5.80

127.64%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 CHF 1.16

$1.63 RON 7.73

-14.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.46 CHF 2.85

$1.57 RON 7.45

120.38%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.31 CHF 3.55

$2.54 RON 12.01

69.69%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 CHF 1.34

$0.79 RON 3.75

106.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 CHF 1.44

$0.77 RON 3.66

125.97%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.60 CHF 1.32

$0.87 RON 4.13

83.91%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.95 CHF 0.78

$0.99 RON 4.70

-4.04%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.83 CHF 8.92

$6.31 RON 29.86

71.63%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.82 CHF 11.38

$6.20 RON 29.34

122.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.76 CHF 2.27

$1.19 RON 5.63

131.93%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.04 CHF 2.50

$1.57 RON 7.45

93.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.77 CHF 3.93

$0.86 RON 4.08

454.65%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$8.21 CHF 6.76

$0.64 RON 3.05

1182.81%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.66 CHF 3.84

$0.60 RON 2.86

676.67%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$87.2 CHF 71.8

$6.43 RON 30.43

1256.45%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.26 CHF 1.86

$1.96 RON 9.25

15.31%

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

$29.9K CHF 24.6K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

3.19%

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

$35.8K CHF 29.5K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

34.56%

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

$96.7 CHF 79.6

$196 RON 927

-50.66%

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

$30.46 CHF 25.09

$8.04 RON 38.04

278.86%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.5 CHF 44.86

$9.35 RON 44.21

482.57%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$90.0 CHF 74.2

$50.2 RON 238

79.26%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.71 CHF 13.76

$25.33 RON 120

-34.03%

Cinema Ticket

$17.70 CHF 14.57

$8.15 RON 38.55

117.18%

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

$3,585 CHF 2,952

$628 RON 2,971

470.79%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.6K CHF 16.1K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

38.82%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$142 CHF 117

$89.6 RON 424

58.01%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.66 CHF 35.14

$38.32 RON 181

11.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$162 CHF 134

$79.3 RON 375

104.64%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$251 CHF 206

$90.4 RON 428

177.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,132 CHF 933

$678 RON 3,209

66.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,020 CHF 840

$448 RON 2,121

127.61%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,823 CHF 1,501

$1,083 RON 5,125

68.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,760 CHF 1,449

$725 RON 3,430

142.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$9,738 CHF 8,021

$3,751 RON 17.7K

159.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,850 CHF 3,994

$2,195 RON 10.4K

120.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,725 CHF 5,538

$1,329 RON 6,290

405.86%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.07

6.75

-69.33%

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

Last update for Solothurn: 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

Solothurn

$1K 37.4%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 56.1% $572

Groceries & Markets

Solothurn

$622 22.8%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 63.8% $397

Eating Out

Solothurn

$459 16.8%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 50.9% $234

Clothing & Footwear

Solothurn

$269 9.9%

Bucharest

$134 10% 50.2% $135

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Solothurn

$182 6.7%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 17.5% $32

Sport & Entertainment

Solothurn

$125 4.6%

Bucharest

$67 5% 47% $59

Getting Around

Solothurn

$51 * 1.9%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 44.2% $22

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 $1,132 in Solothurn and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Solothurn pays 406% 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: $143 in Solothurn vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $622 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Solothurn

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

23:47 11:47 PM

00:47 12:47 AM

1 h ahead of Solothurn

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,599

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 18, 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 18, 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

Solothurn Bucharest 1,470 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Solothurn
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

Solothurn vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Solothurn and Bucharest differ by about 103% in total monthly costs ($2,728 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 406% higher in Solothurn, 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: $1,132 in Solothurn versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 176% higher in Solothurn. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $2,728 per month in Solothurn versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 103% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $2,728 in Solothurn, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Solothurn. 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, Solothurn 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 103% less than in Solothurn. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.