Cost of living comparison

compared to

Monza vs. Ames Cost of Living Summary

Monza is 1.5% cheaper than Ames.

Restaurants
pay 4.9% more in Monza
Groceries
pay 20.5% less in Monza
Transportation
pay 72.4% more in Monza
Housing
pay 5.1% less in Monza
Childcare
pay 43.2% less in Monza
Entertainment and Sports
pay 29.1% less in Monza
Clothing
pay 31.1% more in Monza

The cost of transportation, clothing, and restaurants in Monza are more expensive than in Ames. Expenses including childcare, entertainment and sports, groceries, and housing are lower in Monza.

Monza vs. Ames Cost Breakdown

If you lived in Monza instead of Ames, you would:

pay 4.9% more for restaurants

 
Ames
Monza
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant $18.00
 
$22.39
€20.00
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
$12.00
 
$11.20
€10.00
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) $2.67
 
$3.58
€3.20

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pay 20.5% less for groceries

 
Ames
Monza
Bread
1 loaf
$3.58
 
$2.24
€2.00
Local cheese (8 oz) $5.14
 
$11.46
€10.23
Milk (1 gallon) $3.28
 
$5.33
€4.76

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pay 72.4% more for transportation

 
Ames
Monza
Gasoline (1 gallon) $3.58
 
$7.86
€7.02
Monthly public transit pass $35.00
 
$67.18
€59.99
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) $25,000.00
 
$36,317.50
€32,427.79

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pay 5.1% less for housing

 
Ames
Monza
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
$71.25
 
$27.25
€24.33
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area $1,020.00
 
$1,030.16
€919.82
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center $822.75
 
$778.78
€695.37

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pay 43.2% less for childcare

 
Ames
Monza
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly $1,364.44
 
$847.27
€756.52
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters $36,151.80
 
$18,804.09
€16,790.12

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pay 29.1% less for entertainment and sports

 
Ames
Monza
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) $4.00
 
$5.60
€5.00
Cappuccino in mid-range area $5.00
 
$1.83
€1.64
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
$13.00
 
$6.72
€6.00

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pay 31.1% more for clothing

 
Ames
Monza
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
$57.94
 
$89.58
€79.98
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
$44.06
 
$44.79
€39.99
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
$90.00
 
$108.24
€96.65

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We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world. Sources: MyLifeElsewhere's cost-of-living dataset (prices updated November 2026). How we calculate this

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