Mercer Cost of Living Survey: Bucharest gets cheaper for expats

Bucharest went down nine places in a ranking of the most expensive cities for corporate employees working abroad, conducted by human resources consultancy company Mercer. Romania’s capital moved down to 178 in the 2015 Cost of Living Survey, from 169 in 2014. It thus remains one of the cheapest cities for expats. The ranking includes 207 cities around the globe and measures the comparative cost of more than 200 items in each location. According to the survey, most cities in Central and Eastern Europe fell in the ranking mainly due to the depreciation of local currencies against the US dollar. Three European cities are in top ten most expensive locations for expats, namely Zurich (at number 3), Geneva (5) and Bern (9). Angola's capital Luanda tops the ranking of the most expensive cities for expats, followed by Hong Kong. Bucharest is cheaper for expats than Hungary’s Budapest – which lost 35 places and is now at number 170, but is still more expensive than Bulgaria’s capital Sofia (187) and Serbia’s Belgrade (196). An expat should pay EUR 1,500 a month for renting a two-bedroom unfurnished apartment of international standards in an appropriate neighborhood in Bucharest, compared to EUR 5,989 in Luanda (Angola) and EUR 5,792 in Hong Kong. A pair of blue jeans costs EUR 94.75 in Bucharest, which is much cheaper than in Luanda – EUR 218.03. A cup of coffee also costs less in Bucharest – EUR 2.36, than in Luanda – EUR 4.19 and Hong Kong – EUR 6.87. The figures are based on the survey conducted in March 2015. Around the globe, Luanda (1), Hong Kong (2), Zurich (3), Singapore (4) and Geneva (5) top the list of most expensive cities for expats. The top ten is completed by Shanghai (6), Beijing (7), Seoul (8), Bern (9), and N’Djamena (10). On the other hand, the cheapest cities are Karachi (205), Windhoek (206) and Bishkek (207). Mercer’s survey is made to help multinational companies and governments determine remuneration levels for expatriate employees. New York is used as the base city, and all cities are compared against it. Currency movements are measured against the US dollar. Bucharest, up ten places in ranking for cost of living for expats, but still cheap Bucharest, on the practical side: Five low-cost recommendations from an expat Irina Popescu, irina.popescu@romania-insider.com