Cost of living comparison
compared to
Madrid vs. Bologna Cost of Living Summary
Madrid is 10.6% cheaper than Bologna.
- Restaurants
-
pay 0.7% less in Madrid
- Groceries
-
pay 21.5% less in Madrid
- Transportation
-
pay 1.9% less in Madrid
- Housing
-
pay 12.8% more in Madrid
- Childcare
-
pay 39.5% less in Madrid
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.8% less in Madrid
- Clothing
-
pay 18.3% less in Madrid
Expenses including childcare, groceries, clothing, entertainment and sports, transportation, and restaurants are lower in Madrid.
Madrid vs. Bologna Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Madrid instead of Bologna, you would:
pay 0.7% less for restaurants
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$23.36
€19.90
|
$18.10
€15.42
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$12.85
€10.95
|
$11.68
€9.95
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$3.67
€3.12
|
$3.13
€2.67
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.53
€1.30
|
$2.19
€1.87
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of restaurants
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 21.5% less for groceries
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$3.16
€2.69
|
$1.71
€1.46
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$10.92
€9.30
|
$7.25
€6.17
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.42
€5.47
|
$4.61
€3.93
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$4.29
€3.66
|
$3.36
€2.86
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$6.39
€5.44
|
$4.05
€3.45
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.28
€1.09
|
$1.18
€1.00
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$1.31
€1.11
|
$1.02
€0.87
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.44
€1.23
|
$1.19
€1.02
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.78
€1.52
|
$1.26
€1.07
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$1.01
€0.86
|
$0.94
€0.80
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.89
€0.76
|
$1.01
€0.86
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of groceries
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 1.9% less for transportation
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.86
€6.70
|
$7.08
€6.03
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$42.05
€35.82
|
$45.84
€39.06
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,147.46
€30,797.86
|
$38,541.72
€32,837.78
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$18.69
€15.92
|
$16.23
€13.83
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of transportation
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 12.8% more for housing
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$34.31
€29.23
|
$34.54
€29.43
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,106.88
€943.07
|
$1,540.98
€1,312.93
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$868.65
€740.09
|
$1,118.82
€953.24
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$186.20
€158.64
|
$153.78
€131.02
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of housing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 39.5% less for childcare
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$895.41
€762.90
|
$673.20
€573.57
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$28,611.97
€24,377.57
|
$13,119.76
€11,178.11
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of childcare
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 4.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$7.01
€5.97
|
$4.50
€3.83
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$2.16
€1.84
|
$3.20
€2.73
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.01
€5.97
|
$7.01
€5.97
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$70.19
€59.80
|
$51.05
€43.50
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$11.68
€9.95
|
$11.68
€9.95
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of entertainment and sports
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
pay 18.3% less for clothing
|
Bologna
|
Madrid
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$104.04
€88.65
|
$98.88
€84.25
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$51.78
€44.12
|
$41.27
€35.16
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$123.47
€105.19
|
$107.49
€91.58
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$192.71
€164.19
|
$125.44
€106.87
|
|
Bologna vs. Madrid - Cost of clothing
Improve prices ·
Change currency (USD)
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in Italy vs. Spain.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within Italy and Spain.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Madrid or Bologna. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.