Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sveti Nikole and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Sveti Nikole: $847 a month against $1,351 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $6,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

41

Cost of Living Index in Sveti Nikole
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Sveti Nikole Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Sveti Nikole

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$847

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $847 in Sveti Nikole versus $1,351 in Bucharest.

Sveti Nikole $847
Bucharest $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,299 in Sveti Nikole versus $2,033 in Bucharest.

Sveti Nikole $1,299
Bucharest $2,033

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,752 in Sveti Nikole versus $2,715 in Bucharest.

Sveti Nikole $1,752
Bucharest $2,715

Living in Sveti Nikole costs roughly 37% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Sveti Nikole is 37% below, Bucharest is 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$8.91 MKD 488

$14.46 RON 68.4

-38.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$34.23 MKD 1,876

$57.7 RON 273

-40.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$5.31 MKD 291

$7.50 RON 35.46

-29.20%

Cappuccino

$1.62 MKD 88.8

$3.43 RON 16.20

-52.77%

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

$1.40 MKD 76.7

$2.46 RON 11.63

-43.09%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.98 MKD 53.6

$2.33 RON 11.01

-57.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$1.59 MKD 87.0

$3.80 RON 17.97

-58.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.81 MKD 99.1

$4.10 RON 19.41

-55.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.30 MKD 71.1

$1.65 RON 7.79

-21.21%

White Bread (500g)

$0.59 MKD 32.37

$1.35 RON 6.39

-56.30%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.15 MKD 63.2

$1.78 RON 8.42

-35.39%

Eggs

$2.50 MKD 137

$3.66 RON 17.33

-31.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.98 MKD 492

$8.57 RON 40.54

4.78%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$4.62 MKD 253

$6.80 RON 32.17

-32.06%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$12.02 MKD 659

$11.72 RON 55.4

2.56%

Apples (1kg)

$1.35 MKD 74.0

$1.29 RON 6.11

4.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 MKD 67.8

$1.56 RON 7.37

-20.51%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.23 MKD 67.7

$1.54 RON 7.28

-20.13%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.70 MKD 93.3

$2.48 RON 11.75

-31.45%

Potato (1kg)

$0.74 MKD 40.77

$0.83 RON 3.92

-10.84%

Onion (1kg)

$1.16 MKD 63.8

$0.80 RON 3.77

45.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.80 MKD 43.74

$0.84 RON 3.98

-4.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.42 MKD 23.08

$0.93 RON 4.39

-54.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$3.03 MKD 166

$6.44 RON 30.45

-52.95%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.41 MKD 351

$6.32 RON 29.91

1.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.98 MKD 53.5

$1.26 RON 5.94

-22.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 MKD 77.7

$1.60 RON 7.59

-11.25%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.72 MKD 39.23

$0.81 RON 3.85

-11.11%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$23.30 MKD 1,277

$21.13 RON 99.9

10.27%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.43 MKD 78.6

$0.60 RON 2.86

138.33%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.99 MKD 54.1

$0.61 RON 2.91

62.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$3.71 MKD 203

$6.17 RON 29.19

-39.87%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.47 MKD 80.7

$1.96 RON 9.27

-25.00%

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

$34.4K MKD 1.9M

$28.1K RON 133.1K

22.15%

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

$27.3K MKD 1.5M

$26.3K RON 124.3K

3.86%

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

$128 MKD 7,030

$197 RON 931

-34.83%

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

$15.35 MKD 841

$8.34 RON 39.44

84.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$11.85 MKD 649

$9.19 RON 43.47

28.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$22.65 MKD 1,241

$49.87 RON 236

-54.58%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$16.14 MKD 884

$24.99 RON 118

-35.41%

Cinema Ticket

$4.93 MKD 270

$8.46 RON 40.01

-41.73%

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

$303 MKD 16.6K

$639 RON 3,023

-52.57%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,086 MKD 169.1K

$14.4K RON 68.1K

-78.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$72.7 MKD 3,982

$90.6 RON 429

-19.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.69 MKD 1,736

$38.05 RON 180

-16.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$82.5 MKD 4,523

$79.7 RON 377

3.62%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$85.5 MKD 4,684

$93.2 RON 441

-8.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$239 MKD 13.1K

$673 RON 3,184

-64.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$182 MKD 9,990

$449 RON 2,123

-59.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$539 MKD 29.5K

$1,098 RON 5,195

-50.93%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$262 MKD 14.3K

$729 RON 3,448

-64.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,505 MKD 82.5K

$3,740 RON 17.7K

-59.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$1,149 MKD 63.0K

$2,189 RON 10.4K

-47.50%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$548 MKD 30.0K

$1,323 RON 6,259

-58.62%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.23

6.74

-37.24%

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

Last update for Sveti Nikole: October 5, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Sveti Nikole

$182 21.9%

Bucharest

$449 33.5% 146% $267

Groceries & Markets

Sveti Nikole

$181 21.7%

Bucharest

$222 16.5% 22.8% $41

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Sveti Nikole

$155 18.7%

Bucharest

$214 16% 37.9% $59

Eating Out

Sveti Nikole

$128 15.3%

Bucharest

$226 16.8% 76.7% $98

Clothing & Footwear

Sveti Nikole

$123 14.7%

Bucharest

$136 10.1% 10.7% $13

Getting Around

Sveti Nikole

$33 3.9%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 13.7% $4.5

Sport & Entertainment

Sveti Nikole

$33 3.9%

Bucharest

$67 5% 105% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $239 in Sveti Nikole and $673 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays 142% 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: $34.00 in Sveti Nikole vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $181 vs $222 per month, with Sveti Nikole cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇲🇰 Sveti Nikole

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

11:06 11:06 AM

12:06 12:06 PM

1 h ahead of Sveti Nikole

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

13,220

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to MKD – North Macedonian Denar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇰 North Macedonian Denar (ден)

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 54.8 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.46 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.3 RON (1 RON = 0.189 EUR).

USD to MKD in detail →

On the map

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Sveti Nikole Bucharest 440 km

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Sveti Nikole
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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

Sveti Nikole vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Sveti Nikole and Bucharest differ by about 59% in total monthly costs ($847 vs $1,351 including rent). Sveti Nikole is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 142% 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: $239 in Sveti Nikole versus $673 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $847 per month in Sveti Nikole versus $1,351 in Bucharest – a 59% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Sveti Nikole runs roughly 10% less than in Bucharest. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $847 in Sveti Nikole versus $1,351 in Bucharest, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Sveti Nikole but tight or insufficient in Bucharest. The gap between the two cities makes Sveti Nikole 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, Sveti Nikole 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 Sveti Nikole gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in Bucharest. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.