Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Hamilton and Rome

For one person, living is cheaper in Hamilton: $1,647 a month against $1,998 in Rome, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

80

Cost of Living Index in Hamilton
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Hamilton Living Index
97

Cost of Living Index in Rome
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Rome Living Index

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Hamilton

🇳🇿 New Zealand

$1,647

/mo nomad

Rome

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,998

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Hamilton and in Rome

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Hamilton and in Rome actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,647 in Hamilton versus $1,998 in Rome.

Hamilton $1,647
Rome $1,998

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,571 in Hamilton versus $3,117 in Rome.

Hamilton $2,571
Rome $3,117

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,496 in Hamilton versus $4,236 in Rome.

Hamilton $3,496
Rome $4,236

Living in Hamilton costs roughly 18% less than in Rome, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in utilities.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Hamilton 22% above, Rome 48% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.78 NZ$20.83

$16.69 €14.84

-29.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.6 NZ$130

$65.8 €58.5

11.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$8.47 NZ$14.98

$11.08 €9.85

-23.56%

Cappuccino

$3.32 NZ$5.86

$2.10 €1.87

58.10%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.26 NZ$3.99

$2.91 €2.59

-22.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.38 NZ$4.20

$1.48 €1.32

60.81%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.24 NZ$11.04

$5.62 €5.00

11.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.44 NZ$9.63

$6.68 €5.94

-18.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.46 NZ$2.59

$1.72 €1.53

-15.12%

White Bread (500g)

$1.25 NZ$2.20

$2.27 €2.02

-44.93%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 NZ$3.46

$2.99 €2.66

-34.45%

Eggs

$5.25 NZ$9.29

$4.75 €4.23

10.53%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$5.56 NZ$9.84

$14.53 €12.92

-61.73%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$7.32 NZ$12.95

$12.63 €11.24

-42.04%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.83 NZ$20.92

$19.86 €17.67

-40.43%

Apples (1kg)

$2.64 NZ$4.68

$2.64 €2.35

Banana (1kg)

$2.29 NZ$4.05

$2.28 €2.03

0.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.22 NZ$5.70

$2.46 €2.19

30.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$6.30 NZ$11.14

$2.42 €2.15

160.33%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 NZ$3.48

$1.38 €1.22

42.75%

Onion (1kg)

$1.39 NZ$2.46

$1.55 €1.38

-10.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.56 NZ$4.52

$1.32 €1.17

93.94%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.96 NZ$1.70

$0.55 €0.49

74.55%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.97 NZ$44.16

$7.31 €6.50

241.59%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.71 NZ$18.95

$5.44 €4.84

96.88%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.88 NZ$6.87

$1.58 €1.40

145.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.93 NZ$6.95

$2.62 €2.33

50.00%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.42 NZ$2.52

$1.63 €1.45

-12.88%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$40.33 NZ$71.3

$39.26 €34.92

2.73%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$3.52 NZ$6.22

$6.51 €5.79

-45.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.68 €1.50

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.24 €29.57

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.70 NZ$3.01

$2.17 €1.93

-21.66%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$26.4K NZ$46.6K

$35.3K €31.4K

-25.44%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$23.1K NZ$40.9K

$35.4K €31.5K

-34.77%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$56.1 NZ$99.2

$203 €181

-72.37%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$35.89 NZ$63.5

$11.50 €10.22

212.09%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$54.2 NZ$95.8

$32.03 €28.49

69.09%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$25.00 NZ$44.21

$65.9 €58.6

-62.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$28.03 NZ$49.58

$22.89 €20.36

22.46%

Cinema Ticket

$13.86 NZ$24.52

$11.23 €9.99

23.42%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$666 NZ$1,178

$484 €430

37.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.4K NZ$39.6K

$16.5K €14.7K

35.52%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$60.8 NZ$108

$71.0 €63.1

-14.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$37.29 NZ$65.9

$36.51 €32.47

2.14%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.0 NZ$163

$84.9 €75.5

8.42%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$104 NZ$183

$122 €108

-14.81%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,082 NZ$1,913

$1,222 €1,087

-11.47%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$751 NZ$1,327

$881 €784

-14.84%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,488 NZ$2,632

$2,537 €2,257

-41.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,309 NZ$2,314

$1,721 €1,530

-23.95%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,890 NZ$6,880

$8,274 €7,359

-52.98%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,506 NZ$7,969

$3,084 €2,743

46.11%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,634 NZ$4,658

$1,942 €1,728

35.59%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

6.83

3.52

94.03%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Hamilton: October 10, 2026

Last update for Rome: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Hamilton

$751 45.6%

Rome

$881 44.1% 17.4% $131

Groceries & Markets

Hamilton

$295 17.9%

Rome

$329 16.5% 11.5% $34

Eating Out

Hamilton

$220 13.4%

Rome

$251 12.6% 14% $31

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Hamilton

$146 8.9%

Rome

$246 12.3% 68.7% $100

Clothing & Footwear

Hamilton

$132 8%

Rome

$141 7.1% 6.9% $9.1

Sport & Entertainment

Hamilton

$53 3.2%

Rome

$88 4.4% 67.5% $36

Getting Around

Hamilton

$50 * 3%

Rome

$61 3% 22.6% $11

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,082 in Hamilton and $1,222 in Rome. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Hamilton pays 36% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $74.0 in Hamilton vs $66.0 in Rome. Groceries flip the comparison at $295 vs $329, with Hamilton cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇿 Hamilton

🇮🇹 Rome

🕒 Local time

04:47 4:47 AM

17:47 5:47 PM

11 h behind Hamilton

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

169,500

2,848,084 Capital

💱 Currency

New Zealand Dollar NZD $

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 NZD = 0.565 USD

1 NZD = 0.503 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to NZD – New Zealand Dollar Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇿 New Zealand Dollar ($)

New Zealand Dollar exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 1.77 NZD (1 NZD = 0.565 USD). 1 EUR = 1.99 NZD (1 NZD = 0.503 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to NZD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Hamilton Rome 18,480 km ≈ 24 h nonstop flight

From you

Hamilton
Rome

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Hamilton vs Rome: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Hamilton is cheaper overall, especially in groceries, eating out, and clothing. The 21% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 36% higher in Hamilton, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,082 in Hamilton versus $1,222 in Rome. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Hamilton – a meal for two runs $74.0 versus $66.0 in Rome. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $1,647 per month in Hamilton versus $1,998 in Rome – a 21% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $1,647 in Hamilton versus $1,998 in Rome, a $2,500 budget is realistic in Hamilton but tight or insufficient in Rome. The gap between the two cities makes Hamilton the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

For families, Hamilton is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in Rome, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, Hamilton and Rome are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Hamilton gentler on the wallet – expenses run 21% less than in Rome. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.