Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Italy and Albania

Name: Albania
Address: AL

For one person, living is cheaper in Albania: $1,217 a month against $1,843 in Italy, rent and utilities included – about $7,500 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Italy
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Italy Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Albania
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Albania Living Index

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🇮🇹 Italy

$1,843

/mo nomad

🇦🇱 Albania

$1,217

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Italy and in Albania

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

A single person spends $1,843 per month in Italy vs $1,217 in Albania, rent included.

Italy $1,843
Albania $1,217

A couple spends around $2,816 per month in Italy vs $1,876 in Albania, rent included.

Italy $2,816
Albania $1,876

A family of three spends $3,788 per month in Italy vs $2,534 in Albania, rent included.

Italy $3,788
Albania $2,534

The regional cost range is wider in Italy ($1,038–$2,555) than in Albania ($750–$1,401), so city choice matters more there.

The cost of living in Italy is about 51% higher than in Albania on average.

Italy sits 35% above the global median, while Albania is 11% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.46 €18.32

$10.07 ALL 818

103.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.5 €71.2

$42.72 ALL 3,470

86.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.15 €9.99

$8.72 ALL 708

27.87%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.83

$2.12 ALL 172

-3.77%

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

$3.10 €2.78

$2.12 ALL 172

46.23%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 €1.25

$0.95 ALL 77.4

47.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.51 €4.94

$2.70 ALL 219

104.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.14

$3.69 ALL 300

55.56%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 €1.41

$2.21 ALL 180

-28.96%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 €2.13

$1.11 ALL 90.3

114.41%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.90 €2.60

$2.34 ALL 190

23.93%

Eggs

$4.07 €3.65

$3.59 ALL 292

13.37%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.44 €15.62

$12.54 ALL 1,019

39.07%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.56 €11.25

$8.61 ALL 699

45.88%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.17 €18.06

$15.25 ALL 1,239

32.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.58 €2.31

$1.71 ALL 139

50.88%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$2.50 ALL 203

-12.40%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 €2.40

$1.85 ALL 151

44.86%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 €2.93

$1.69 ALL 138

93.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.70

$1.06 ALL 86.2

79.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$1.16 ALL 94.5

56.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.40

$1.29 ALL 104

21.71%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.79 ALL 64.0

-30.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.69 €5.99

$4.65 ALL 378

43.87%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 €7.15

$9.66 ALL 785

-17.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 €1.59

$1.63 ALL 132

8.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.11

$2.06 ALL 168

14.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.47 ALL 38.16

306.38%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.44 €38.90

$19.73 ALL 1,602

120.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 €5.03

$3.78 ALL 307

48.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 €1.54

$3.60 ALL 293

-52.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.64 €30.12

$18.46 ALL 1,499

82.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.82

$2.34 ALL 190

-13.25%

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

$35.3K €31.6K

$34.0K ALL 2.8M

3.74%

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

$36.7K €32.9K

$28.0K ALL 2.3M

31.35%

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

$227 €203

$91.2 ALL 7,405

148.49%

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

$11.59 €10.38

$18.83 ALL 1,529

-38.45%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.21

$19.05 ALL 1,547

59.48%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.8 €46.37

$50.5 ALL 4,100

2.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.70 €21.22

$23.87 ALL 1,939

-0.71%

Cinema Ticket

$10.60 €9.50

$9.82 ALL 797

7.94%

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

$568 €508

$277 ALL 22.5K

104.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K €10.3K

$6,515 ALL 529.1K

76.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.5 €81.1

$63.1 ALL 5,125

43.47%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.55 €34.53

$47.16 ALL 3,830

-18.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €91.9

$114 ALL 9,245

-9.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €117

$119 ALL 9,657

10.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$826 €739

$561 ALL 45.6K

47.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$646 €579

$380 ALL 30.9K

69.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 €1,254

$973 ALL 79.0K

43.96%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,054 €944

$605 ALL 49.2K

74.22%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,662 €3,280

$2,786 ALL 226.2K

31.47%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,301 €2,061

$1,658 ALL 134.7K

38.77%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,886 €1,689

$748 ALL 60.8K

152.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

5.17

-31.14%

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

Last update for Italy: October 24, 2026

Last update for Albania: October 27, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Italy

$646 35.1%

Albania

$380 31.3% 41.1% $266

Groceries & Markets

Italy

$348 18.9%

Albania

$274 22.6% 21.1% $73

Eating Out

Italy

$279 15.1%

Albania

$165 13.6% 40.7% $113

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Italy

$269 14.6%

Albania

$129 10.6% 51.9% $139

Clothing & Footwear

Italy

$163 8.9%

Albania

$154 12.7% 5.4% $8.9

Sport & Entertainment

Italy

$73 4%

Albania

$70 5.8% 3.9% $2.9

Getting Around

Italy

$65 3.5%

Albania

$43 3.6% 33.5% $22

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $729 in Italy vs $469 in Albania. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,297 in Rome and $810 in Tirana.

Average salary: $1,890 in Italy vs $684 in Albania. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 55% higher in Italy.

Dining out costs 74% more in Italy.

Public transport is 115% more expensive in Italy.

Salaries are about 2.8 times higher in Italy, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Italy.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Italy

🇦🇱 Albania

🕒 Local time

11:43 11:43 AM

Same time as Italy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,850,717

2,811,655

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Albanian Lek ALL L

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 ALL = 1.23 USD

100 ALL = 1.1 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Italy Albania 610 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Italy
Albania

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

Italy vs Albania: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Albania is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 34% lower on average.

Housing costs more in Italy: a central one-bedroom averages $729 versus $469 in Albania.

Groceries, public transport, and eating out all cost less in Albania – part of why living there is about 34% cheaper overall.

Albania is the budget-friendly choice for expats. But cost isn’t everything: visa policies, language, healthcare quality, and job markets all weigh in too.