Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Stellenbosch and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Stellenbosch: $1,165 a month against $1,340 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $2,100 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

56

Cost of Living Index in Stellenbosch
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Stellenbosch Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Stellenbosch

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,165

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,165 in Stellenbosch versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Stellenbosch $1,165
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,913 in Stellenbosch versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Stellenbosch $1,913
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,660 in Stellenbosch versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Stellenbosch $2,660
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Stellenbosch costs roughly 13% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities sit below the global median: Stellenbosch 14% lower, Bucharest 1% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.29 R 120

$14.49 RON 68.6

-49.69%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$35.82 R 590

$58.1 RON 275

-38.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$4.72 R 77.8

$7.48 RON 35.40

-36.90%

Cappuccino

$2.05 R 33.74

$3.44 RON 16.29

-40.41%

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

$1.00 R 16.52

$2.37 RON 11.22

-57.81%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.77 R 12.67

$2.30 RON 10.88

-66.52%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$2.70 R 44.51

$3.70 RON 17.51

-27.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.08 R 50.7

$4.16 RON 19.69

-25.96%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.34 R 22.16

$1.67 RON 7.90

-19.76%

White Bread (500g)

$1.14 R 18.85

$1.37 RON 6.50

-16.79%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 R 30.68

$1.72 RON 8.14

8.14%

Eggs

$2.84 R 46.86

$3.64 RON 17.22

-21.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.62 R 142

$9.08 RON 42.98

-5.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.80 R 95.6

$6.84 RON 32.35

-15.20%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.51 R 124

$12.00 RON 56.8

-37.42%

Apples (1kg)

$1.74 R 28.67

$1.23 RON 5.80

41.46%

Banana (1kg)

$1.47 R 24.14

$1.63 RON 7.73

-9.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.69 R 27.78

$1.57 RON 7.45

7.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.59 R 26.17

$2.54 RON 12.01

-37.40%

Potato (1kg)

$1.09 R 17.89

$0.79 RON 3.75

37.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.53 R 25.17

$0.77 RON 3.66

98.70%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.30 R 21.50

$0.87 RON 4.13

49.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.17 R 19.36

$0.99 RON 4.70

18.18%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.52 R 58.1

$6.31 RON 29.86

-44.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.17 R 102

$6.20 RON 29.34

-0.48%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.33 R 21.93

$1.19 RON 5.63

11.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.18 R 35.91

$1.57 RON 7.45

38.85%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.86 RON 4.08

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$21.10 RON 99.8

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.61 R 10.10

$0.64 RON 3.05

-4.69%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.55 R 25.56

$0.60 RON 2.86

158.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$5.02 R 82.7

$6.43 RON 30.43

-21.93%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.40 R 23.05

$1.96 RON 9.25

-28.57%

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

$35.0K R 577.2K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

20.81%

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

$31.0K R 510.9K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

16.40%

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

$103 R 1,691

$196 RON 927

-47.61%

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

$28.53 R 470

$8.04 RON 38.04

254.85%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.28 R 565

$9.35 RON 44.21

266.63%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$29.25 R 482

$50.2 RON 238

-41.77%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.81 R 277

$25.33 RON 120

-33.64%

Cinema Ticket

$8.89 R 146

$8.15 RON 38.55

9.08%

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

$264 R 4,351

$628 RON 2,971

-57.95%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,389 R 39.4K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

-83.03%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$52.1 R 858

$89.6 RON 424

-41.89%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.72 R 473

$38.32 RON 181

-25.05%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$118 R 1,951

$79.3 RON 375

49.39%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$90.2 R 1,486

$90.4 RON 428

-0.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$698 R 11.5K

$678 RON 3,209

2.90%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$488 R 8,038

$448 RON 2,121

8.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,443 R 23.8K

$1,083 RON 5,125

33.23%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,155 R 19.0K

$725 RON 3,430

59.36%

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)

$2,556 R 42.1K

$1,329 RON 6,290

92.31%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

10.7

6.75

58.52%

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

Last update for Stellenbosch: October 12, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Stellenbosch

$488 41.9%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 8.1% $40

Groceries & Markets

Stellenbosch

$202 17.4%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 11.3% $23

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Stellenbosch

$165 14.2%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 28.9% $48

Clothing & Footwear

Stellenbosch

$130 11.2%

Bucharest

$134 10% 2.8% $3.7

Eating Out

Stellenbosch

$124 10.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 81.9% $101

Sport & Entertainment

Stellenbosch

$47 4%

Bucharest

$67 5% 41.4% $19

Getting Around

Stellenbosch

$8.4 * 0.7%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 237% $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 $698 in Stellenbosch and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Stellenbosch pays 92% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $36.00 in Stellenbosch vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $202 vs $225 per month, with Stellenbosch cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇿🇦 Stellenbosch

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

09:04 9:04 AM

10:04 10:04 AM

1 h ahead of Stellenbosch

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

19,068

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 →

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Between locations

Stellenbosch Bucharest 8,750 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

Stellenbosch
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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

Stellenbosch vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Stellenbosch and Bucharest differ by about 15% in total monthly costs ($1,165 vs $1,340 including rent). Stellenbosch is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 92% higher in Stellenbosch, 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: $698 in Stellenbosch versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 11% higher in Bucharest. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $1,165 per month in Stellenbosch versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 15% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,165 in Stellenbosch versus $1,340 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Stellenbosch but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Stellenbosch 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 Stellenbosch gentler on the wallet – expenses run 15% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.