Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Targu Jiu and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Targu Jiu: $966 a month against $1,354 in Bucharest, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

47

Cost of Living Index in Targu Jiu
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Targu Jiu Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Targu Jiu

🇷🇴 Romania

$966

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,354

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $966 in Targu Jiu versus $1,354 in Bucharest.

Targu Jiu $966
Bucharest $1,354

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,502 in Targu Jiu versus $2,043 in Bucharest.

Targu Jiu $1,502
Bucharest $2,043

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,038 in Targu Jiu versus $2,733 in Bucharest.

Targu Jiu $2,038
Bucharest $2,733

Living in Targu Jiu costs roughly 29% less than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$14.60 RON 70.2

$14.66 RON 70.5

-0.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$57.6 RON 277

$57.7 RON 277

-0.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.24 RON 34.81

$7.52 RON 36.14

-3.72%

Cappuccino

$3.56 RON 17.11

$3.56 RON 17.09

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

$1.02 RON 4.93

$2.47 RON 11.88

-58.70%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.21 RON 10.65

$2.18 RON 10.50

1.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.67 RON 17.66

$3.69 RON 17.73

-0.54%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.23 RON 20.33

$4.28 RON 20.57

-1.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 RON 8.03

$1.67 RON 8.04

White Bread (500g)

$1.28 RON 6.17

$1.35 RON 6.49

-5.19%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.77 RON 8.50

$1.78 RON 8.53

-0.56%

Eggs

$2.75 RON 13.21

$3.56 RON 17.12

-22.75%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.41 RON 35.64

$9.12 RON 43.86

-18.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$2.91 RON 13.99

$6.82 RON 32.77

-57.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$6.95 RON 33.41

$12.13 RON 58.3

-42.70%

Apples (1kg)

$0.91 RON 4.38

$1.26 RON 6.08

-27.78%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 RON 7.17

$1.62 RON 7.80

-8.02%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.17 RON 5.60

$1.56 RON 7.49

-25.00%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.22 RON 5.84

$2.54 RON 12.21

-51.97%

Potato (1kg)

$0.83 RON 3.97

$0.78 RON 3.76

6.41%

Onion (1kg)

$0.74 RON 3.54

$0.77 RON 3.72

-3.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.61 RON 2.92

$0.89 RON 4.27

-31.46%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.50 RON 2.40

$0.90 RON 4.32

-44.44%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$5.21 RON 25.03

$6.55 RON 31.49

-20.46%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.00 RON 14.43

$6.37 RON 30.60

-52.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.82 RON 3.93

$1.24 RON 5.98

-33.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.07 RON 5.16

$1.62 RON 7.80

-33.95%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.85 RON 4.11

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$20.71 RON 99.6

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.65 RON 3.12

$0.61 RON 2.95

6.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.61 RON 2.93

$0.61 RON 2.95

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$6.39 RON 30.70

$6.16 RON 29.62

3.73%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.93 RON 9.30

$2.00 RON 9.60

-3.50%

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

$28.8K RON 138.4K

$27.9K RON 134.4K

3.01%

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

$25.9K RON 124.3K

$25.3K RON 121.7K

2.11%

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

$196 RON 944

$192 RON 923

2.21%

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

$6.01 RON 28.88

$7.92 RON 38.06

-24.12%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$9.32 RON 44.80

$8.96 RON 43.06

4.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.49 RON 151

$49.99 RON 240

-37.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.81 RON 119

Cinema Ticket

$8.34 RON 40.09

$8.51 RON 40.90

-2.00%

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

$676 RON 3,248

$686 RON 3,297

-1.50%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$14.3K RON 68.8K

$14.4K RON 69.3K

-0.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$49.38 RON 237

$90.2 RON 434

-45.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$25.42 RON 122

$38.74 RON 186

-34.38%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$51.7 RON 248

$78.9 RON 379

-34.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$84.2 RON 405

$92.1 RON 443

-8.54%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$353 RON 1,698

$711 RON 3,419

-50.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$233 RON 1,119

$462 RON 2,220

-49.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$478 RON 2,296

$1,053 RON 5,064

-54.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$403 RON 1,938

$723 RON 3,474

-44.21%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,555 RON 12.3K

$3,634 RON 17.5K

-29.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,173 RON 10.4K

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$518 RON 2,491

$1,354 RON 6,508

-61.73%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.75

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

Last update for Targu Jiu: October 27, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Targu Jiu

$233 24.1%

Bucharest

$462 34.1% 98.4% $229

Eating Out

Targu Jiu

$221 22.9%

Bucharest

$228 16.9% 3.2% $7.1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Targu Jiu

$212 21.9%

Bucharest

$209 15.4% 1.3% $2.7

Groceries & Markets

Targu Jiu

$154 16%

Bucharest

$225 16.6% 45.9% $71

Clothing & Footwear

Targu Jiu

$95 9.8%

Bucharest

$135 10% 42.4% $40

Sport & Entertainment

Targu Jiu

$48 5%

Bucharest

$67 5% 39.1% $19

Getting Around

Targu Jiu

$3.7 * 0.4%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 652% $24

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 $353 in Targu Jiu and $711 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bucharest pays about 2.6 times more on average. How far that income stretches comes down to housing choices and lifestyle.

Dining out: $58 in Targu Jiu vs $58 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $154 vs $225 per month, with Targu Jiu cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇷🇴 Targu Jiu

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

16:55 4:55 PM

Same time as Targu Jiu

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

82,504

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

1 RON = 0.208 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Targu Jiu Bucharest 230 km

From you

Targu Jiu
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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

Targu Jiu vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Targu Jiu and Bucharest differ by about 40% in total monthly costs ($966 vs $1,354 including rent). Targu Jiu is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 62% lower in Targu Jiu. 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: $353 in Targu Jiu versus $711 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $676 in Targu Jiu versus $686 in Bucharest. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $966 per month in Targu Jiu versus $1,354 in Bucharest – a 40% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $800. Targu Jiu is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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.

It comes down to priorities – Targu Jiu wins on affordability, Bucharest on earning potential. Factor in climate, language, visa rules, and proximity to places that matter to you before deciding.