Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Vichy and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $1,468 in Vichy, rent and utilities included – about $1,500 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Vichy outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

69

Cost of Living Index in Vichy
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Vichy Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Vichy

🇫🇷 France

$1,468

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,468 in Vichy versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Vichy $1,468
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,201 in Vichy versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Vichy $2,201
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,933 in Vichy versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Vichy $2,933
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Vichy is roughly 10% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Vichy is 9% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$7.76 €6.92

$14.49 RON 69.0

-46.45%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$54.6 €48.71

$58.1 RON 276

-5.99%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$7.29 €6.51

$7.48 RON 35.61

-2.54%

Cappuccino

$2.74 €2.44

$3.44 RON 16.38

-20.35%

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

$2.77 €2.47

$2.37 RON 11.28

16.88%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.35 €1.20

$2.30 RON 10.95

-41.30%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.55 €4.95

$3.70 RON 17.61

50.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.52 €4.03

$4.16 RON 19.81

8.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$0.94 €0.84

$1.67 RON 7.94

-43.71%

White Bread (500g)

$1.88 €1.68

$1.37 RON 6.54

37.23%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.75 €1.56

$1.72 RON 8.19

1.74%

Eggs

$1.96 €1.75

$3.64 RON 17.32

-46.15%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$23.90 €21.32

$9.08 RON 43.23

163.22%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$5.67 €5.05

$6.84 RON 32.54

-17.11%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$7.40 €6.60

$12.00 RON 57.1

-38.33%

Apples (1kg)

$1.27 €1.13

$1.23 RON 5.83

3.25%

Banana (1kg)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.63 RON 7.78

14.11%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 €2.52

$1.57 RON 7.49

79.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$1.95 €1.74

$2.54 RON 12.09

-23.23%

Potato (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$0.79 RON 3.77

72.15%

Onion (1kg)

$1.12 €1.00

$0.77 RON 3.68

45.45%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 €0.99

$0.87 RON 4.15

27.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.37 €0.33

$0.99 RON 4.73

-62.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.94 €9.76

$6.31 RON 30.03

73.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$3.47 €3.09

$6.20 RON 29.52

-44.03%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.32 €2.07

$1.19 RON 5.66

94.96%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.41 €2.15

$1.57 RON 7.50

53.50%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.86 €1.66

$0.86 RON 4.10

116.28%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$48.01 €42.82

$21.10 RON 100

127.54%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 €4.78

$0.64 RON 3.06

737.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.04 €1.82

$0.60 RON 2.87

240.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.63 €30.00

$6.43 RON 30.62

423.02%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.16 €1.93

$1.96 RON 9.31

10.20%

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

$36.2K €32.3K

$29.0K RON 138.0K

24.75%

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

$32.1K €28.6K

$26.6K RON 126.8K

20.51%

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

$134 €119

$196 RON 932

-31.73%

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

$13.43 €11.98

$8.04 RON 38.27

67.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$32.74 €29.20

$9.35 RON 44.48

250.16%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.27 €34.14

$50.2 RON 239

-23.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$25.33 RON 121

Cinema Ticket

$8.77 €7.82

$8.15 RON 38.78

7.61%

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

$790 €705

$628 RON 2,989

25.84%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$10.7K €9,586

$14.1K RON 67.0K

-23.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$65.9 €58.8

$89.6 RON 426

-26.43%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$27.99 €24.96

$38.32 RON 182

-26.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$61.8 €55.1

$79.3 RON 377

-22.10%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$46.78 €41.73

$90.4 RON 430

-48.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$746 €666

$678 RON 3,228

10.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$658 €587

$448 RON 2,134

46.70%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,355 €1,209

$1,083 RON 5,155

25.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,118 €997

$725 RON 3,450

54.20%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,410 €3,042

$3,751 RON 17.9K

-9.09%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,172 €2,829

$2,195 RON 10.4K

44.48%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,635 €1,459

$1,329 RON 6,327

23.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.79

6.75

-43.85%

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

Last update for Vichy: October 10, 2026

Last update for Bucharest: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Vichy

$658 44.8%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 31.8% $209

Groceries & Markets

Vichy

$242 16.5%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 7.1% $17

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Vichy

$180 12.3%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 18.6% $33

Eating Out

Vichy

$170 11.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 32.4% $55

Clothing & Footwear

Vichy

$91 6.2%

Bucharest

$134 10% 47% $43

Getting Around

Vichy

$71 4.8%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 60.3% $43

Sport & Entertainment

Vichy

$56 3.8%

Bucharest

$67 5% 19.2% $11

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $746 in Vichy and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Vichy pays 23% 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: $55.0 in Vichy vs $58.0 in Bucharest. Groceries flip the comparison at $242 vs $225, with Bucharest cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Vichy

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

01:50 1:50 AM

02:50 2:50 AM

1 h ahead of Vichy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

25,789

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 RON = 0.21 USD

1 RON = 0.187 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Vichy Bucharest 1,780 km ≈ 2 h 45 min nonstop flight

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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

Vichy vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Vichy and Bucharest differ by about 10% in total monthly costs ($1,468 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 23% higher in Vichy, 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: $746 in Vichy versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $1,468 per month in Vichy versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 10% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 128% less than in Vichy. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $1,468 in Vichy, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Vichy. 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, Vichy 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 10% less than in Vichy. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.