Cost of living comparison
Italy is 20.9% cheaper than Brussels.
If you lived in Italy instead of Brussels, you would:
pay 22.9% less for restaurants
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$15.78
€13.84
|
$14.35
€12.58
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.47
€8.30
|
$8.28
€7.26
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.56
€2.24
|
$2.18
€1.92
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$2.43
€2.13
|
$1.09
€0.95
|
|
pay 4.6% less for groceries
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.81
€1.59
|
$1.63
€1.43
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$5.85
€5.13
|
$6.40
€5.61
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$4.01
€3.52
|
$4.35
€3.81
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.00
€2.63
|
$2.89
€2.53
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$4.57
€4.01
|
$4.02
€3.53
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.04
€0.91
|
$0.85
€0.75
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.71
€0.62
|
$0.76
€0.67
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.13
€0.99
|
$0.86
€0.75
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.19
€1.05
|
$1.05
€0.92
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.64
€0.56
|
$0.60
€0.53
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.59
€0.52
|
$0.65
€0.57
|
|
pay 11.8% less for transportation
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.38
€6.47
|
$8.47
€7.43
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$52.60
€46.12
|
$36.88
€32.34
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$26,298.13
€23,060.85
|
$23,486.94
€20,595.73
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$21.52
€18.87
|
$16.94
€14.86
|
|
pay 36.7% less for housing
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$52.10
€45.69
|
$29.40
€25.78
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$972.34
€852.65
|
$560.05
€491.11
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$798.94
€700.59
|
$428.17
€375.46
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$154.55
€135.53
|
$132.43
€116.13
|
|
pay 55.0% less for childcare
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$874.41
€766.77
|
$431.71
€378.57
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$23,515.03
€20,620.36
|
$9,518.89
€8,347.12
|
|
pay 14.8% less for entertainment and sports
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$5.05
€4.43
|
$4.48
€3.93
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$3.31
€2.91
|
$1.48
€1.30
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$7.57
€6.64
|
$5.97
€5.24
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$34.71
€30.44
|
$48.62
€42.63
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$12.02
€10.54
|
$8.84
€7.75
|
|
pay 0.5% less for clothing
|
Brussels
|
Italy
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$72.32
€63.42
|
$72.84
€63.88
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$30.50
€26.75
|
$34.55
€30.29
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$88.78
€77.85
|
$82.76
€72.58
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$118.47
€103.89
|
$107.74
€94.48
|
|
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