Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Yens and Bucharest

For one person, living is cheaper in Bucharest: $1,340 a month against $3,329 in Yens, rent and utilities included – about $23,900 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

162

Cost of Living Index in Yens
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Yens Living Index
65

Cost of Living Index in Bucharest
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Bucharest Living Index

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Yens

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,329

/mo nomad

Bucharest

🇷🇴 Romania

$1,340

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,329 in Yens versus $1,340 in Bucharest.

Yens $3,329
Bucharest $1,340

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,100 in Yens versus $2,037 in Bucharest.

Yens $5,100
Bucharest $2,037

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $6,872 in Yens versus $2,734 in Bucharest.

Yens $6,872
Bucharest $2,734

Living in Yens is roughly 148% more expensive than in Bucharest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

The two cities straddle the global median: Yens is 147% above, Bucharest is 1% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.34 CHF 24.16

$14.49 RON 68.6

102.48%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$119 CHF 98.0

$58.1 RON 275

104.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.95 CHF 13.14

$7.48 RON 35.40

113.24%

Cappuccino

$6.00 CHF 4.94

$3.44 RON 16.29

74.42%

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

$4.95 CHF 4.08

$2.37 RON 11.22

108.86%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.27 CHF 3.51

$2.30 RON 10.88

85.65%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.07 CHF 7.47

$3.70 RON 17.51

145.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.69 CHF 6.34

$4.16 RON 19.69

84.86%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.13 CHF 1.76

$1.67 RON 7.90

27.54%

White Bread (500g)

$2.99 CHF 2.46

$1.37 RON 6.50

118.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.18 CHF 2.62

$1.72 RON 8.14

84.88%

Eggs

$7.17 CHF 5.91

$3.64 RON 17.22

96.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$23.95 CHF 19.73

$9.08 RON 42.98

163.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$28.06 CHF 23.11

$6.84 RON 32.35

310.23%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$39.38 CHF 32.44

$12.00 RON 56.8

228.17%

Apples (1kg)

$3.63 CHF 2.99

$1.23 RON 5.80

195.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.95 CHF 1.61

$1.63 RON 7.73

19.63%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.52 CHF 2.08

$1.57 RON 7.45

60.51%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.43 CHF 3.65

$2.54 RON 12.01

74.41%

Potato (1kg)

$1.62 CHF 1.34

$0.79 RON 3.75

105.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.94 CHF 1.60

$0.77 RON 3.66

151.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.98 CHF 1.63

$0.87 RON 4.13

127.59%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.27 CHF 1.05

$0.99 RON 4.70

28.28%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.70 CHF 8.81

$6.31 RON 29.86

69.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.98 CHF 9.87

$6.20 RON 29.34

93.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.24 CHF 1.85

$1.19 RON 5.63

88.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 CHF 2.36

$1.57 RON 7.45

82.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.58 CHF 3.77

$0.86 RON 4.08

432.56%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$98.4 CHF 81.0

$21.10 RON 99.8

366.35%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.70 CHF 6.34

$0.64 RON 3.05

1103.13%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.56 CHF 3.75

$0.60 RON 2.86

660.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$84.2 CHF 69.3

$6.43 RON 30.43

1209.18%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.36 CHF 1.94

$1.96 RON 9.25

20.41%

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

$41.9K CHF 34.5K

$29.0K RON 137.2K

44.45%

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

$39.7K CHF 32.7K

$26.6K RON 126.0K

49.04%

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

$274 CHF 225

$196 RON 927

39.70%

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

$27.35 CHF 22.52

$8.04 RON 38.04

240.17%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$51.4 CHF 42.31

$9.35 RON 44.21

449.41%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$89.6 CHF 73.8

$50.2 RON 238

78.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$45.51 CHF 37.48

$25.33 RON 120

79.67%

Cinema Ticket

$24.00 CHF 19.76

$8.15 RON 38.55

194.48%

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

$2,954 CHF 2,433

$628 RON 2,971

370.32%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$30.3K CHF 25.0K

$14.1K RON 66.6K

115.22%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$141 CHF 116

$89.6 RON 424

57.14%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$61.4 CHF 50.6

$38.32 RON 181

60.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$138 CHF 114

$79.3 RON 375

73.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$197 CHF 162

$90.4 RON 428

118.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,679 CHF 1,383

$678 RON 3,209

147.56%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,440 CHF 1,186

$448 RON 2,121

221.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,839 CHF 2,338

$1,083 RON 5,125

162.13%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,494 CHF 2,054

$725 RON 3,430

243.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$16.2K CHF 13.3K

$3,751 RON 17.7K

330.90%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$12.0K CHF 9,900

$2,195 RON 10.4K

447.57%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,329 RON 6,290

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

1.95

6.75

-71.11%

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

Last update for Yens: 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

Yens

$1.4K 43.3%

Bucharest

$448 33.5% 68.9% $991

Groceries & Markets

Yens

$558 16.8%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 59.7% $333

Eating Out

Yens

$452 13.6%

Bucharest

$225 16.8% 50.2% $227

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Yens

$352 10.6%

Bucharest

$213 15.9% 39.5% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Yens

$242 7.3%

Bucharest

$134 10% 44.6% $108

Getting Around

Yens

$147 4.4%

Bucharest

$28 2.1% 80.8% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Yens

$138 4.1%

Bucharest

$67 5% 51.6% $71

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,679 in Yens and $678 in Bucharest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $119 in Yens vs $58.0 in Bucharest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $558 vs $225 per month, with Bucharest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Yens

🇷🇴 Bucharest

🕒 Local time

07:36 7:36 AM

08:36 8:36 AM

1 h ahead of Yens

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

2,200

1,883,425 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

Romanian Leu RON lei

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 RON = 0.211 USD

1 RON = 0.188 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RON, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

Romanian Leu exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 4.73 RON (1 RON = 0.211 USD). 1 EUR = 5.32 RON (1 RON = 0.188 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

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Yens Bucharest 1,550 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight

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Yens
Bucharest

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

Yens vs Bucharest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yens and Bucharest differ by about 148% in total monthly costs ($3,329 vs $1,340 including rent). Bucharest is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You'd need roughly $4,993 in Yens and $2,011 in Bucharest to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,679 in Yens versus $678 in Bucharest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $3,329 per month in Yens versus $1,340 in Bucharest – a 148% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Bucharest runs roughly 366% less than in Yens. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $1,340 in Bucharest versus $3,329 in Yens, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Bucharest but tight or insufficient in Yens. 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, Yens 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 148% less than in Yens. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.