Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Italy and North Macedonia

Name: North Macedonia
Address: MK

For one person, living is cheaper in North Macedonia: $940 a month against $1,843 in Italy, rent and utilities included – about $10,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for about half of the difference.

88

Cost of Living Index in Italy
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Italy Living Index
45

Cost of Living Index in North Macedonia
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North Macedonia Living Index

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🇮🇹 Italy

$1,843

/mo nomad

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

$940

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Italy and in North Macedonia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,843 in Italy versus $940 in North Macedonia.

Italy $1,843
North Macedonia $940

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,816 in Italy versus $1,393 in North Macedonia.

Italy $2,816
North Macedonia $1,393

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,788 in Italy versus $1,847 in North Macedonia.

Italy $3,788
North Macedonia $1,847

Internal cost variation is higher in Italy: monthly costs span $1,038 to $2,555, compared to $730–$1,112 in North Macedonia. City choice carries more weight in Italy.

Living in Italy is roughly 96% more expensive than in North Macedonia on average.

Italy (35% above) and North Macedonia (31% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.46 €18.33

$7.37 MKD 405

177.61%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$79.5 €71.2

$27.76 MKD 1,527

186.38%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.15 €9.99

$5.37 MKD 295

107.64%

Cappuccino

$2.04 €1.83

$1.67 MKD 91.7

22.16%

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

$3.10 €2.78

$1.62 MKD 89.0

91.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.40 €1.25

$1.18 MKD 65.0

18.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.51 €4.94

$2.15 MKD 118

156.28%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.14

$2.69 MKD 148

113.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.57 €1.41

$1.29 MKD 70.8

21.71%

White Bread (500g)

$2.38 €2.13

$0.73 MKD 40.03

226.03%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.90 €2.60

$1.56 MKD 85.6

85.90%

Eggs

$4.07 €3.65

$2.21 MKD 121

84.16%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.44 €15.63

$8.29 MKD 456

110.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.56 €11.25

$6.77 MKD 372

85.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$20.17 €18.07

$12.23 MKD 673

64.92%

Apples (1kg)

$2.58 €2.31

$1.16 MKD 64.0

122.41%

Banana (1kg)

$2.19 €1.96

$1.43 MKD 78.7

53.15%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.68 €2.40

$1.33 MKD 73.2

101.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 €2.93

$1.77 MKD 97.4

84.75%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 €1.70

$0.94 MKD 51.8

102.13%

Onion (1kg)

$1.82 €1.63

$0.97 MKD 53.3

87.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.57 €1.41

$0.67 MKD 36.88

134.33%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.55 €0.49

$0.51 MKD 28.10

7.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$6.69 €6.00

$3.26 MKD 179

105.21%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 €7.16

$5.48 MKD 301

45.80%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 €1.59

$0.99 MKD 54.7

78.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.11

$1.34 MKD 73.9

75.37%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.91 €1.71

$0.70 MKD 38.48

172.86%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$43.44 €38.92

$25.31 MKD 1,392

71.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.62 €5.03

$1.26 MKD 69.1

346.03%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.71 €1.54

$0.68 MKD 37.38

151.47%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.64 €30.14

$6.68 MKD 367

403.59%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.03 €1.82

$1.47 MKD 80.8

38.10%

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

$35.3K €31.6K

$33.9K MKD 1.9M

4.10%

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

$36.7K €32.9K

$27.7K MKD 1.5M

32.58%

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

$227 €203

$144 MKD 7,922

57.35%

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

$11.59 €10.39

$17.29 MKD 951

-32.97%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$30.38 €27.22

$18.06 MKD 994

68.22%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.8 €46.39

$26.80 MKD 1,475

93.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.70 €21.24

$14.58 MKD 802

62.55%

Cinema Ticket

$10.60 €9.50

$6.51 MKD 358

62.83%

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

$568 €509

$289 MKD 15.9K

96.66%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.5K €10.3K

$4,691 MKD 258.1K

145.64%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.5 €81.1

$66.4 MKD 3,654

36.30%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$38.55 €34.55

$38.71 MKD 2,130

-0.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$103 €92.0

$88.1 MKD 4,848

16.50%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$131 €117

$103 MKD 5,675

26.99%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$826 €740

$306 MKD 16.8K

169.73%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$646 €579

$241 MKD 13.3K

168.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,400 €1,255

$533 MKD 29.3K

162.53%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,054 €945

$357 MKD 19.7K

195.18%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,662 €3,282

$1,930 MKD 106.2K

89.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,301 €2,062

$1,360 MKD 74.8K

69.21%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,886 €1,690

$732 MKD 40.3K

157.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

4.69

-24.09%

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

Last update for Italy: October 24, 2026

Last update for North Macedonia: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Italy

$646 35.1%

North Macedonia

$241 25.6% 62.7% $405

Groceries & Markets

Italy

$348 18.9%

North Macedonia

$191 20.4% 45% $157

Eating Out

Italy

$279 15.1%

North Macedonia

$122 13% 56.1% $156

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Italy

$269 14.6%

North Macedonia

$179 19.1% 33.2% $89

Clothing & Footwear

Italy

$163 8.9%

North Macedonia

$133 14.2% 18.3% $30

Sport & Entertainment

Italy

$73 4%

North Macedonia

$40 4.2% 45.4% $33

Getting Around

Italy

$65 3.5%

North Macedonia

$33 3.5% 49.8% $33

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $729 in Italy, $274 in North Macedonia. Capital cities: $1,297 in Rome vs $394 in Skopje.

National salary averages: $1,890 in Italy, $639 in North Macedonia. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 166% higher in Italy.

Dining out costs 170% more in Italy.

Public transport is 79% more expensive in Italy.

Salaries are about 3 times higher in Italy, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Italy.

Good to know

🇮🇹 Italy

🇲🇰 North Macedonia

🕒 Local time

12:06 12:06 PM

Same time as Italy

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

58,850,717

1,836,713

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

North Macedonian Denar MKD ден

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

100 MKD = 1.82 USD

100 MKD = 1.63 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇪🇺 Euro (€)

Euro exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 29, 2026: 1 USD = 55.02 MKD (100 MKD = 1.82 USD). 1 EUR = 61.4 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

USD to EUR in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Italy North Macedonia 740 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Italy
North Macedonia

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 North Macedonia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,843 per month in Italy and $940 in North Macedonia, North Macedonia comes out about 49% cheaper. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in North Macedonia: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $729 in Italy and $274 in North Macedonia. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In North Macedonia, $1,500 covers most cities easily; in Italy it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you’ll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you’re after: North Macedonia wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.