Cost of living in Romania
Summary of cost of living in Romania
- Family of four estimated monthly costs: 9,244 lei
- Single person estimated monthly costs: 4,191 lei
- Romania is the 4th cheapest country in Eastern Europe (9 out of 12)
- Cost of living in Romania is cheaper than in 77% of countries in the World (59 out of 77)
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| Food | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic lunchtime menu (including a drink) in the business district | 36 lei | ||
| Combo meal in fast food restaurant (big mac meal or similar) | 20 lei | ||
| 500 gr (1 lb.) of boneless chicken breast | 13 lei | ||
| 1 liter (1 qt.) of whole fat milk | 5.13 lei | ||
| 12 eggs, large | 12 lei | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of tomatoes | 6 lei | ||
| 500 gr (16 oz.) of local cheese | 15 lei | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of apples | 4.31 lei | ||
| 1 kg (2 lb.) of potatoes | 2.65 lei | ||
| 0.5 l (16 oz) domestic beer in the supermarket | 3.40 lei | ||
| 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality | 28 lei | ||
| 2 liters of coca-cola | 5.80 lei | ||
| Bread for 2 people for 1 day | 2.54 lei | ||
| Housing | |||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in expensive area | 3,016 lei | ||
| Monthly rent for 85 m2 (900 sqft) furnished accommodation in normal area | 2,030 lei | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 2 people in 85m2 flat | 448 lei | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in expensive area | 1,944 lei | ||
| Monthly rent for a 45 m2 (480 sqft) furnished studio in normal area | 1,204 lei | ||
| Utilities 1 month (heating, electricity, gas ...) for 1 person in 45 m2 (480 sqft) studio | 301 lei | ||
| Internet 8 mbps (1 month) | 34 lei | ||
| 40” flat screen tv | 1,330 lei | ||
| Microwave 800/900 watt (bosch, panasonic, lg, sharp, or equivalent brands) | 377 lei | ||
| Laundry detergent (3 l. ~ 100 oz.) | 38 lei | ||
| Hourly rate for cleaning help | 21 lei | ||
| Clothes | |||
| 1 pair of jeans (levis 501 or similar) | 296 lei | ||
| 1 summer dress in a high street store (zara, h&m or similar retailers) | 175 lei | ||
| 1 pair of sport shoes (nike, adidas, or equivalent brands) | 333 lei | ||
| 1 pair of men’s leather business shoes | 361 lei | ||
| Transportation | |||
| Volkswagen golf 1.4 tsi 150 cv (or equivalent), with no extras, new | 77,345 lei | ||
| 1 liter (1/4 gallon) of gas | 4.87 lei | ||
| Monthly ticket public transport | 69 lei | ||
| Personal Care | |||
| Cold medicine for 6 days (tylenol, frenadol, coldrex, or equivalent brands) | 31 lei | ||
| 1 box of antibiotics (12 doses) | 38 lei | ||
| Short visit to private doctor (15 minutes) | 140 lei | ||
| 1 box of 32 tampons (tampax, ob, ...) | 19 lei | ||
| Deodorant, roll-on (50ml ~ 1.5 oz.) | 13 lei | ||
| Hair shampoo 2-in-1 (400 ml ~ 12 oz.) | 17 lei | ||
| 4 rolls of toilet paper | 5.05 lei | ||
| Tube of toothpaste | 10 lei | ||
| Standard men's haircut in expat area of the city | 34 lei | ||
| Entertainment | |||
| Basic dinner out for two in neighborhood pub | 97 lei | ||
| 2 tickets to the movies | 50 lei | ||
| 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) | 132 lei | ||
| Dinner for two at an italian restaurant in the expat area including appetisers, main course, wine and dessert | 189 lei | ||
| 1 cocktail drink in downtown club | 23 lei | ||
| Cappuccino in expat area of the city | 11 lei | ||
| 1 beer in neighbourhood pub (500ml or 1pt.) | 8 lei | ||
| Ipad wi-fi 128gb | 2,494 lei | ||
| 1 min. of prepaid mobile tariff (no discounts or plans) | 0.57 lei | ||
| 1 month of gym membership in business district | 181 lei | ||
| 1 package of marlboro cigarettes | 20 lei | ||
Map of Cost of Living in Romania
This map shows only the top cities in Romania. We also have on this page a list of all the cities available in Expatistan:
List of all the cities available in Expatistan
The color of each marker corresponds with the cost of living in the city red markers show more expensive cities green ones show cheaper cities
Moving the mouse on top of a city will show its name and the Cost of Living Index of that city.
What is the Cost of Living Index? To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a
central reference city (that happens to be Prague).
Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the
database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.
Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Cost of Living Ranking in Romania
(top cities by data quality)
| Ranking | City | Price Index * |
|---|---|---|
| 1st | Bucharest | 79 |
| 2nd | Cluj-Napoca | 78 |
| 3rd | Iasi | 70 |
| 4th | Arad | 67 |
| 5th | Craiova | 65 |
| 6th | Oradea | 65 |
| 7th | Sibiu | 64 |
| 8th | Târgu Mureş | 61 |
Price Index:
To calculate each city's Price Index value, we start by assigning a value of 100 to a central reference city (that happens to be Prague). Once the reference point has been established, the Price Index value of every other city in the database is calculated by comparing their cost of living to the cost of living in Prague.Therefore, if a city has a Price Index of 134, that means that living there is 34% more expensive than living in Prague.
Are you moving to Romania? Do you know how much money you will need there to maintain your current standard of living?
Find out what is the real equivalent in Romania of your current salary and improve your chances of a happy relocation.
Get a salary calculation for:
List of all cities available in Romania
Recent Comparisons
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 10% more expensive than in Bogotá
- Cost of living in Bucharest is about the same as in São Paulo
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 55% cheaper than in Toronto
- Cost of living in Brasov is 8% cheaper than in Lima
- Cost of living in Craiova is 72% cheaper than in New York City
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 30% more expensive than in Buenos Aires
- Cost of living in Sibiu is 11% cheaper than in Bogotá
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 37% cheaper than in Lisbon
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 27% cheaper than in Riga
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 10% cheaper than in Belgrade
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 23% cheaper than in Santiago
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 13% cheaper than in Budapest
- Cost of living in Oradea is 41% cheaper than in Granada
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 40% more expensive than in Odessa
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 8% more expensive than in Skopje
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 64% cheaper than in Tehran
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 47% cheaper than in Calgary
- Cost of living in Cluj-Napoca is 15% more expensive than in Drobeta-Turnu Severin
- Cost of living in Iasi is 10% more expensive than in Chişinău
- Cost of living in Bucharest is 23% cheaper than in Prague
Compare other countries
Prices recently added
- 1 liter of gasoline in Timisoara costs 5.10 lei (2 days ago)
- Cappuccino in expat area of the city in Bucharest costs 30 lei (3 days ago)
- Cocktail drink in downtown club in Bucharest costs 35 lei (3 days ago)
- 2 tickets to the theater (best available seats) in Bucharest costs 120 lei (3 days ago)
- 2 tickets to the movies in Bucharest costs 60 lei (3 days ago)
- 1 kg of rice in Bucharest costs 7 lei (3 days ago)
- Bread for 2 people for 1 day (250 g) in Bucharest costs 5.00 lei (3 days ago)
- 2 liters of coca-cola in Bucharest costs 7 lei (3 days ago)
- 1 bottle of red table wine, good quality in Bucharest costs 30 lei (3 days ago)
- 500 ml domestic beer in the supermarket in Bucharest costs 7 lei (3 days ago)