For regional travel, expats who can spare a little extra time should definitely avoid Eurostar trains as they can be double or even triple the price of the slower above-ground trains. Public transport, on the other hand, is much more affordable. Buying a car is expensive, as is insurance, which is also notoriously slow in paying out claims. Italy has one of the world's highest prices per litre of fuel. The cost of private transport can be incredibly high. One can live quite frugally there compared to other parts of Europe.
The cost of living in these more remote parts is much lower than it is in the city centres. Increasingly, there has been a demand for retirement and second homes from both Italians and foreigners as there are still many rural properties offering excellent value for money. Even more shockingly, a small apartment in Rome can cost up to three times what one would pay in a rural area for an apartment of the same size. To rent an apartment in Milan might cost double what the same apartment would cost in Naples. Depending on where one lives in Italy, property prices and rentals will vary considerably. Reflecting this, in the 2021 Mercer Cost of Living Survey, Milan, Italy's most expensive city, ranked 36th while Rome ranked 47th out of 209 cities.Īccommodation is a large expense, usually consisting of a quarter of an expat's monthly budget. When budgeting, expats should bear in mind that Italy consistently ranks near the higher end of the cost-of-living indexes for Europe. The northern part of the country tends to be much wealthier than its southern counterpart. Prices in big cities such as Milan and Rome are considerably higher than those in rural areas, and this is largely thanks to tourism. The cost of living in Italy can fluctuate greatly depending on whether expats live in the north or south.