Cost of living comparison
France is 9.6% cheaper than Brussels.
If you lived in France instead of Brussels, you would:
pay 5.0% less for restaurants
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$16.49
€15.47
|
$16.13
€15.13
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.90
€9.28
|
$9.98
€9.36
|
|
Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.58
€2.42
|
$2.76
€2.59
|
|
Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.54
€2.38
|
$1.88
€1.77
|
|
pay 12.5% more for groceries
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$2.31
€2.17
|
$1.66
€1.56
|
|
Local cheese (8 oz) |
$7.55
€7.08
|
$8.33
€7.81
|
|
Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.69
€4.40
|
$4.25
€3.98
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.50
€3.28
|
$3.47
€3.26
|
|
Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.96
€4.65
|
$5.22
€4.90
|
|
Apples (1 lb) |
$1.14
€1.07
|
$1.30
€1.22
|
|
Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.78
€0.74
|
$0.98
€0.92
|
|
Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.17
€1.09
|
$1.29
€1.21
|
|
Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.36
€1.27
|
$1.51
€1.42
|
|
Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.69
€0.64
|
$0.87
€0.82
|
|
Onions (1 lb) |
$0.60
€0.56
|
$1.03
€0.97
|
|
pay 6.6% less for transportation
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.71
€7.23
|
$7.84
€7.35
|
|
Monthly public transit pass |
$53.87
€50.53
|
$52.45
€49.19
|
|
New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$27,486.24
€25,778.41
|
$26,223.89
€24,594.50
|
|
Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.76
€21.34
|
$18.05
€16.93
|
|
pay 29.9% less for housing
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$55.77
€52.30
|
$30.93
€29.01
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,043.18
€978.36
|
$760.64
€713.38
|
|
1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$873.71
€819.42
|
$610.71
€572.77
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$164.26
€154.05
|
$135.03
€126.64
|
|
pay 41.2% less for childcare
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$944.84
€886.13
|
$674.24
€632.35
|
|
Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$24,473.75
€22,953.10
|
$11,309.03
€10,606.35
|
|
pay 3.0% more for entertainment and sports
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.50
€5.16
|
$6.24
€5.85
|
|
Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.72
€3.49
|
$2.93
€2.75
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$8.80
€8.25
|
$11.11
€10.42
|
|
Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.17
€32.04
|
$37.98
€35.62
|
|
Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.19
€12.37
|
$11.22
€10.52
|
|
pay 0.2% more for clothing
Brussels
|
France
|
||
---|---|---|---|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$89.22
€83.68
|
$85.18
€79.89
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$32.58
€30.56
|
$38.90
€36.49
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$97.94
€91.86
|
$90.98
€85.33
|
|
Men's business shoes (leather) |
$132.04
€123.84
|
$122.71
€115.09
|
|
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