Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between The Hague and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,351 a month against $2,685 in The Hague, rent and utilities included – about $16,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

133

Cost of Living Index in The Hague
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The Hague Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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The Hague

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,685

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,351

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,685 in The Hague versus $1,351 in Bucharest.

The Hague $2,685
Bucharest $1,351

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,047 in The Hague versus $2,033 in Bucharest.

The Hague $4,047
Bucharest $2,033

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,409 in The Hague versus $2,715 in Bucharest.

The Hague $5,409
Bucharest $2,715

Living in The Hague is roughly 99% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: The Hague 100% above, Bucharest 1% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$22.22 €19.83

$14.46 RON 68.4

53.67%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$89.9 €80.2

$57.7 RON 273

55.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.31 €13.66

$7.50 RON 35.46

104.13%

Cappuccino

$4.32 €3.86

$3.43 RON 16.20

25.95%

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

$4.26 €3.80

$2.46 RON 11.63

73.17%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.19 €3.74

$2.33 RON 11.01

79.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.14 €6.37

$3.80 RON 17.97

87.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.81 €6.97

$4.10 RON 19.41

90.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.49 €1.33

$1.65 RON 7.79

-9.70%

White Bread (500g)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.35 RON 6.39

68.89%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.53 €2.26

$1.78 RON 8.42

42.13%

Eggs

$4.55 €4.06

$3.66 RON 17.33

24.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.90 €13.30

$8.57 RON 40.54

73.86%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.82 €11.44

$6.80 RON 32.17

88.53%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.01 €16.97

$11.72 RON 55.4

62.20%

Apples (1kg)

$2.63 €2.35

$1.29 RON 6.11

103.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.21 €1.97

$1.56 RON 7.37

41.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.05 €1.83

$1.54 RON 7.28

33.12%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.58 €3.20

$2.48 RON 11.75

44.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 €1.22

$0.83 RON 3.92

63.86%

Onion (1kg)

$1.29 €1.15

$0.80 RON 3.77

61.25%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.18 €1.06

$0.84 RON 3.98

40.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.87 €0.78

$0.93 RON 4.39

-6.45%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$14.60 €13.03

$6.44 RON 30.45

126.71%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.81 €5.18

$6.32 RON 29.91

-8.07%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.29 €1.15

$1.26 RON 5.94

2.38%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.89 €1.69

$1.60 RON 7.59

18.12%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.43 €3.95

$0.81 RON 3.85

446.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$93.7 €83.6

$21.13 RON 99.9

343.49%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.62 €4.12

$0.60 RON 2.86

670.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.44 €3.07

$0.61 RON 2.91

463.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$34.21 €30.53

$6.17 RON 29.19

454.46%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.63 €2.34

$1.96 RON 9.27

34.18%

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

$41.2K €36.8K

$28.1K RON 133.1K

46.45%

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

$39.2K €35.0K

$26.3K RON 124.3K

49.13%

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

$280 €250

$197 RON 931

42.27%

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

$28.43 €25.37

$8.34 RON 39.44

240.89%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.2 €48.40

$9.19 RON 43.47

490.10%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$50.2 €44.82

$49.87 RON 236

0.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$24.51 €21.87

$24.99 RON 118

-1.92%

Cinema Ticket

$17.03 €15.20

$8.46 RON 40.01

101.30%

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

$2,418 €2,157

$639 RON 3,023

278.24%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.9K €10.6K

$14.4K RON 68.1K

-17.45%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.3 €83.3

$90.6 RON 429

2.97%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.31 €38.65

$38.05 RON 180

13.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €94.5

$79.7 RON 377

32.99%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$139 €124

$93.2 RON 441

48.76%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,666 €1,487

$673 RON 3,184

147.43%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,300 €1,160

$449 RON 2,123

189.49%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,799 €2,498

$1,098 RON 5,195

154.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,275 €2,030

$729 RON 3,448

212.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,156 €5,494

$3,740 RON 17.7K

64.59%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,536 €4,048

$2,189 RON 10.4K

107.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,034 €3,600

$1,323 RON 6,259

204.84%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.4

6.74

-49.55%

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

Last update for The Hague: October 3, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

The Hague

$1.3K 47.4%

Bucharest

$449 33.5% 65.5% $851

Monthly Utilities & Internet

The Hague

$363 13.2%

Bucharest

$214 16% 40.9% $148

Eating Out

The Hague

$361 13.2%

Bucharest

$226 16.8% 37.4% $135

Groceries & Markets

The Hague

$328 12%

Bucharest

$222 16.5% 32.4% $106

Clothing & Footwear

The Hague

$172 6.3%

Bucharest

$136 10.1% 20.9% $36

Getting Around

The Hague

$133 4.9%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 78.9% $105

Sport & Entertainment

The Hague

$84 3.1%

Bucharest

$67 5% 20.8% $18

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,666 in The Hague and $673 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

The Hague pays 205% 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: $90.0 in The Hague vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $328 vs $222 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇳🇱 The Hague

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

10:19 10:19 AM

11:19 11:19 AM

1 h ahead of The Hague

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

562,839

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.189 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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The Hague Bucharest 1,820 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

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The Hague
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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

The Hague vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

The Hague and Bucharest differ by about 99% in total monthly costs ($2,685 vs $1,351 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 205% higher in The Hague, 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: $1,666 in The Hague versus $673 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,685 per month in The Hague versus $1,351 in Bucharest – a 99% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 343% less than in The Hague. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,351 in Bucharest versus $2,685 in The Hague, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in The Hague. 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, The Hague 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 99% less than in The Hague. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.