Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Heerlen and Milan

For one person, living is cheaper in Heerlen: $2,255 a month against $2,560 in Milan, rent and utilities included – about $3,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in Heerlen
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Heerlen Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Milan
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Milan Living Index

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Heerlen

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,255

/mo nomad

Milan

🇮🇹 Italy

$2,560

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Heerlen and in Milan

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,255 in Heerlen versus $2,560 in Milan.

Heerlen $2,255
Milan $2,560

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,463 in Heerlen versus $3,895 in Milan.

Heerlen $3,463
Milan $3,895

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,672 in Heerlen versus $5,231 in Milan.

Heerlen $4,672
Milan $5,231

Living in Heerlen costs roughly 12% less than in Milan, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Heerlen 66% above, Milan 89% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.76 €21.13

$22.11 €19.66

7.46%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$97.9 €87.0

$88.7 €78.9

10.37%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$19.01 €16.90

$13.22 €11.76

43.80%

Cappuccino

$4.09 €3.64

$2.08 €1.85

96.63%

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

$3.24 €2.88

$3.82 €3.40

-15.18%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.29 €2.03

$1.83 €1.63

25.14%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.09 €5.42

$6.87 €6.11

-11.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.59 €4.97

$6.93 €6.17

-19.34%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.33 €1.19

$1.76 €1.56

-24.43%

White Bread (500g)

$2.41 €2.15

$3.29 €2.93

-26.75%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$3.57 €3.18

-28.85%

Eggs

$4.47 €3.97

$5.08 €4.52

-12.01%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.73 €10.43

$23.34 €20.76

-49.74%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$14.00 €12.45

$14.68 €13.05

-4.63%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.89 €15.91

$22.73 €20.22

-21.29%

Apples (1kg)

$2.28 €2.03

$3.07 €2.73

-25.73%

Banana (1kg)

$2.51 €2.23

$2.42 €2.15

3.72%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.11 €1.88

$3.34 €2.97

-36.83%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.32 €3.84

$4.18 €3.72

3.35%

Potato (1kg)

$1.85 €1.65

$2.41 €2.14

-23.24%

Onion (1kg)

$2.09 €1.86

$1.95 €1.74

7.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.39 €1.24

$1.81 €1.61

-23.20%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.83 €0.74

$0.57 €0.50

45.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.87 €12.34

$7.20 €6.40

92.64%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.20 €6.41

$9.60 €8.54

-25.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.26

$1.96 €1.74

-28.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.66 €2.37

$2.42 €2.15

9.92%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.60 €3.20

$2.52 €2.24

42.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$59.8 €53.2

$43.15 €38.38

38.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.27 €5.58

$7.92 €7.04

-20.83%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.69 €1.50

$2.30 €2.04

-26.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$22.38 €19.91

$64.8 €57.6

-65.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.46 €2.19

$2.20 €1.96

11.82%

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

$29.7K €26.4K

$36.1K €32.1K

-17.86%

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

$35.0K €31.1K

$37.0K €32.9K

-5.47%

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

$191 €170

$250 €223

-23.56%

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

$26.36 €23.45

$10.20 €9.08

158.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$56.0 €49.78

$29.45 €26.19

90.02%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$35.46 €31.54

$84.6 €75.3

-58.10%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.63 €24.58

$34.03 €30.27

-18.81%

Cinema Ticket

$13.40 €11.92

$11.05 €9.83

21.27%

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

$671 €597

$846 €753

-20.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$5,507 €4,898

$18.6K €16.5K

-70.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.6 €88.6

$101 €89.7

-1.26%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.56 €44.08

$51.1 €45.43

-2.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €90.1

$114 €102

-11.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$193 €172

$163 €145

18.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,120 €996

$1,689 €1,502

-33.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$938 €834

$1,165 €1,036

-19.48%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,913 €1,701

$3,436 €3,056

-44.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,587 €1,411

$2,038 €1,813

-22.15%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,938 €3,502

$10.5K €9,339

-62.50%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,810 €2,500

$5,149 €4,580

-45.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,947 €2,622

$2,190 €1,948

34.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.35

3.18

36.79%

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

Last update for Heerlen: October 18, 2026

Last update for Milan: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Heerlen

$938 41.6%

Milan

$1.2K 45.5% 24.2% $227

Eating Out

Heerlen

$360 16%

Milan

$312 12.2% 13.2% $48

Groceries & Markets

Heerlen

$333 14.8%

Milan

$420 16.4% 26.1% $87

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Heerlen

$274 12.1%

Milan

$290 11.3% 6% $16

Clothing & Footwear

Heerlen

$200 8.9%

Milan

$193 7.6% 3.1% $6.2

Getting Around

Heerlen

$89 3.9%

Milan

$73 2.8% 18.3% $16

Sport & Entertainment

Heerlen

$62 2.8%

Milan

$107 4.2% 71.5% $44

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,120 in Heerlen and $1,689 in Milan. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Heerlen pays 35% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $98.0 in Heerlen vs $89.0 in Milan. Groceries flip the comparison at $333 vs $420, with Heerlen cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Heerlen

🇮🇹 Milan

🕒 Local time

23:03 11:03 PM

Same time as Heerlen

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

87,086

1,394,798

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Heerlen Milan 650 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Heerlen
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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

Heerlen vs Milan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Heerlen wins on cost – living expenses run 14% lower than in Milan. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Heerlen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 35% higher in Heerlen, 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: $1,120 in Heerlen versus $1,689 in Milan. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Heerlen runs roughly 39% less than in Milan. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $671 in Heerlen versus $846 in Milan. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $2,255 in Heerlen versus $2,560 in Milan, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Heerlen but tight or insufficient in Milan. The gap between the two cities makes Heerlen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Heerlen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,255 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Heerlen hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Heerlen and Milan 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 Heerlen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 14% less than in Milan. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.