Cost of living comparison
Italy is 13.3% cheaper than Belgium overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 20.2% less in Italy
- Groceries
-
pay 0.2% more in Italy
- Transportation
-
pay 8.6% less in Italy
- Housing
-
pay 22.7% less in Italy
- Childcare
-
pay 19.9% less in Italy
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 9.6% less in Italy
- Clothing
-
pay 12.4% less in Italy
Expenses including housing, restaurants, childcare, clothing, entertainment and sports, and transportation are lower in Italy.
If you lived in Italy instead of Belgium, you would:
pay 20.2% less for restaurants
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$19.07
€17.40
|
$16.15
€14.74
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$10.84
€9.89
|
$10.06
€9.18
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.78
€2.53
|
$2.55
€2.33
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.46
€2.24
|
$1.22
€1.11
|
|
pay 0.2% more for groceries
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.28
€2.08
|
$2.04
€1.86
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$6.70
€6.11
|
$6.83
€6.23
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.44
€4.05
|
$5.53
€5.05
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.43
€3.13
|
$3.41
€3.11
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.78
€4.36
|
$5.05
€4.61
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.11
€1.01
|
$0.97
€0.88
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.89
€0.82
|
$0.85
€0.77
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.07
€0.98
|
$1.04
€0.95
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.16
€1.06
|
$1.31
€1.20
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.83
€0.76
|
$0.76
€0.69
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.73
€0.66
|
$0.71
€0.65
|
|
pay 8.6% less for transportation
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$6.91
€6.31
|
$7.22
€6.59
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$45.41
€41.44
|
$38.81
€35.41
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,628.35
€25,209.10
|
$28,223.13
€25,751.80
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$26.01
€23.74
|
$19.13
€17.45
|
|
pay 22.7% less for housing
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$49.35
€45.03
|
$28.87
€26.34
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$815.11
€743.73
|
$656.19
€598.73
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$705.09
€643.35
|
$511.91
€467.09
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$154.10
€140.61
|
$150.39
€137.22
|
|
pay 19.9% less for childcare
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$557.50
€508.68
|
$508.72
€464.18
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$13,740.85
€12,537.65
|
$9,465.55
€8,636.71
|
|
pay 9.6% less for entertainment and sports
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$4.34
€3.96
|
$5.01
€4.57
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.51
€3.20
|
$1.69
€1.54
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$9.08
€8.29
|
$6.20
€5.66
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$36.02
€32.87
|
$52.12
€47.56
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.48
€11.38
|
$9.39
€8.57
|
|
pay 12.4% less for clothing
|
Belgium
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$92.82
€84.69
|
$78.41
€71.55
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$43.31
€39.51
|
$33.87
€30.90
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$90.40
€82.48
|
$86.07
€78.53
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$125.11
€114.15
|
$115.43
€105.32
|
|
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