Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Italy and Bhutan

Name: Bhutan
Address: BT

For one person, living is cheaper in Bhutan: $502 a month against $1,843 in Italy, rent and utilities included – about $16,100 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
24

Cost of Living Index in Bhutan
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Bhutan Living Index

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🇮🇹 Italy

$1,843

/mo nomad

🇧🇹 Bhutan

$502

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Italy and in Bhutan

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 Bhutan actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $1,843 per month in Italy vs $502 in Bhutan, rent included.

Italy $1,843
Bhutan $502

A couple spends around $2,816 per month in Italy vs $778 in Bhutan, rent included.

Italy $2,816
Bhutan $778

A family of three spends $3,788 per month in Italy vs $1,053 in Bhutan, rent included.

Italy $3,788
Bhutan $1,053

The regional cost range is wider in Italy ($1,038–$2,555) than in Bhutan ($103–$522), so city choice matters more there.

The cost of living in Italy is about 267% higher than in Bhutan on average.

Italy sits 35% above the global median, while Bhutan is 63% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.46 €18.36

$2.65 BTN 253

672.08%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.5 €71.3

$14.13 BTN 1,346

462.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.15 €10.01

$5.01 BTN 477

122.55%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.83

$1.29 BTN 123

58.14%

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

$3.10 €2.78

$0.48 BTN 46.17

545.83%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 €1.26

$0.16 BTN 15.48

775.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.51 €4.95

$2.56 BTN 244

115.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.15

$1.62 BTN 155

254.32%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 €1.41

$0.78 BTN 74.0

101.28%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 €2.14

$0.84 BTN 80.2

183.33%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.90 €2.60

$0.99 BTN 94.1

192.93%

Eggs

$4.07 €3.66

$1.56 BTN 149

160.90%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.44 €15.65

$3.33 BTN 318

423.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.56 €11.27

$3.71 BTN 354

238.54%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.17 €18.10

$3.91 BTN 373

415.86%

Apples (1kg)

$2.58 €2.32

$2.44 BTN 232

5.74%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$1.57 BTN 150

39.49%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 €2.40

$1.59 BTN 152

68.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 €2.93

$0.92 BTN 87.6

255.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.71

$0.61 BTN 58.0

211.48%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.69 BTN 65.6

163.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.41

$0.64 BTN 60.9

145.31%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.33 BTN 31.73

66.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.69 €6.01

$3.88 BTN 369

72.42%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 €7.17

$2.91 BTN 277

174.57%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 €1.59

$0.84 BTN 80.4

110.71%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.11

$1.07 BTN 102

119.63%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.82 BTN 78.2

132.93%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.44 €38.98

$5.12 BTN 488

748.44%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 €5.04

$0.83 BTN 78.8

577.11%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 €1.54

$1.54 BTN 146

11.04%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.64 €30.18

$0.14 BTN 13.61

23928.57%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.82

$0.77 BTN 73.2

163.64%

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

$35.3K €31.7K

$16.4K BTN 1.6M

114.70%

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

$36.7K €33.0K

$15.2K BTN 1.4M

142.01%

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

$227 €203

$34.15 BTN 3,254

563.40%

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

$11.59 €10.40

$36.40 BTN 3,469

-68.16%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.26

$24.12 BTN 2,299

25.95%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.8 €46.46

$46.93 BTN 4,472

10.31%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.70 €21.26

$6.19 BTN 590

282.88%

Cinema Ticket

$10.60 €9.51

$3.16 BTN 301

235.44%

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

$568 €509

$44.49 BTN 4,240

1175.75%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K €10.3K

$588 BTN 56.0K

1859.72%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.5 €81.2

$35.65 BTN 3,397

153.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.55 €34.59

$17.58 BTN 1,675

119.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.1

$54.7 BTN 5,211

87.69%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €118

$25.70 BTN 2,449

409.69%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$826 €741

$120 BTN 11.4K

588.66%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$646 €580

$85.6 BTN 8,152

655.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 €1,256

$180 BTN 17.1K

680.07%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,054 €946

$150 BTN 14.3K

603.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,662 €3,286

$5,519 BTN 525.9K

-33.64%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,301 €2,065

$1,676 BTN 159.7K

37.27%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,886 €1,692

$322 BTN 30.7K

486.04%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

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

Last update for Italy: October 24, 2026

Last update for Bhutan: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Italy

$646 35.1%

Bhutan

$86 17% 86.8% $561

Groceries & Markets

Italy

$348 18.9%

Bhutan

$121 24.1% 65.2% $227

Eating Out

Italy

$279 15.1%

Bhutan

$70 14% 74.8% $208

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Italy

$269 14.6%

Bhutan

$95 18.9% 64.7% $174

Clothing & Footwear

Italy

$163 8.9%

Bhutan

$60 12% 63.2% $103

Sport & Entertainment

Italy

$73 4%

Bhutan

$53 10.6% 27% $20

Getting Around

Italy

$65 3.5%

Bhutan

$17 3.4% 74.1% $48

Cost Breakdown

Average rent: $729 in Italy vs $142 in Bhutan. For reference, capital cities sit at $1,297 in Rome and $128 in Thimphu.

Average salary: $1,890 in Italy vs $295 in Bhutan. The income gap affects purchasing power and how far your budget stretches in each country.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 413% higher in Italy.

Dining out costs 421% more in Italy.

Public transport is 760% more expensive in Italy.

Salaries are about 6.4 times higher in Italy, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Italy.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Italy

🇧🇹 Bhutan

🕒 Local time

22:30 10:30 PM

03:30 3:30 AM

5 h ahead of Italy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,850,717

787,424

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Bhutanese Ngultrum BTN Nu.

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1,000 BTN = 10.49 USD

1,000 BTN = 9.42 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

BTN, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.897 EUR (1 EUR = 1.11 USD).

Bhutanese Ngultrum exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 95.29 BTN (100 BTN = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 106 BTN (1,000 BTN = 9.42 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Italy Bhutan 7,000 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

Italy
Bhutan

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 Bhutan: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bhutan is the cheaper option – living costs run roughly 73% lower on average.

Housing costs more in Italy: a central one-bedroom averages $729 versus $142 in Bhutan.

Groceries, public transport, and eating out all cost less in Bhutan – part of why living there is about 73% cheaper overall.

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