Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the Maldives and Italy

Name: Italy
Address: IT

For one person, living is cheaper in the Maldives: $1,476 a month against $1,843 in Italy, rent and utilities included – about $4,400 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

71

Cost of Living Index in the Maldives
Learn more

Maldives Living Index
88

Cost of Living Index in Italy
Learn more

Italy Living Index

Jump to prices

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,476

/mo nomad

🇮🇹 Italy

$1,843

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in the Maldives and in Italy

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,476 in the Maldives versus $1,843 in Italy.

Maldives $1,476
Italy $1,843

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,376 in the Maldives versus $2,816 in Italy.

Maldives $2,376
Italy $2,816

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,276 in the Maldives versus $3,788 in Italy.

Maldives $3,276
Italy $3,788

The Maldives ($45–$1,503) and Italy ($1,038–$2,555) have similar cost spreads. Where you settle within each country has roughly equal impact on the budget.

Living in the Maldives costs about 20% less than in Italy on average.

Both countries sit above the global median: the Maldives 8% above, Italy 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$6.31 MVR 97.3

$20.46 €18.33

-69.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$50.4 MVR 778

$79.5 €71.2

-36.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.74 MVR 150

$11.15 €9.99

-12.65%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.95 MVR 76.4

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.89 MVR 153

Cappuccino

$3.31 MVR 51.0

$2.04 €1.83

62.25%

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

$1.59 MVR 24.46

$3.10 €2.78

-48.71%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$0.29 MVR 4.44

$1.40 €1.25

-79.29%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.51 €4.94

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.74 €5.14

Milk (1 liter)

$1.85 MVR 28.58

$1.57 €1.41

17.83%

White Bread (500g)

$1.56 MVR 24.10

$2.38 €2.13

-34.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.04 MVR 16.04

$2.90 €2.60

-64.14%

Eggs

$1.74 MVR 26.81

$4.07 €3.65

-57.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$6.33 MVR 97.6

$17.44 €15.63

-63.70%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$6.49 MVR 100

$12.56 €11.25

-48.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.13 MVR 156

$20.17 €18.07

-49.78%

Apples (1kg)

$4.00 MVR 61.6

$2.58 €2.31

55.04%

Banana (1kg)

$3.00 MVR 46.33

$2.19 €1.96

36.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.86 MVR 59.5

$2.68 €2.40

44.03%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.58 MVR 39.79

$3.27 €2.93

-21.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.76 MVR 27.08

$1.90 €1.70

-7.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.75 MVR 27.05

$1.82 €1.63

-3.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.11 MVR 32.53

$1.57 €1.41

34.39%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.61 MVR 9.37

$0.55 €0.49

10.91%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$11.13 MVR 172

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 MVR 38.09

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.63 MVR 71.4

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$15.03 MVR 232

$6.69 €6.00

124.66%

Wine (Bottle)

$7.99 €7.16

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.77 €1.59

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.35 €2.11

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.62 MVR 9.54

$1.91 €1.71

-67.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$28.37 MVR 437

$43.44 €38.92

-34.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$1.97 MVR 30.35

$5.62 €5.03

-64.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.90 MVR 29.24

$1.71 €1.54

11.11%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$8.30 MVR 128

$33.64 €30.14

-75.33%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.99 MVR 15.29

$2.03 €1.82

-51.23%

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

$31.9K MVR 492.1K

$35.3K €31.6K

-9.61%

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

$30.8K MVR 474.3K

$36.7K €32.9K

-16.30%

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

$129 MVR 1,993

$227 €203

-42.94%

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

$30.04 MVR 463

$11.59 €10.39

159.19%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$68.3 MVR 1,054

$30.38 €27.22

124.92%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$62.7 MVR 967

$51.8 €46.39

21.17%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.86 MVR 322

$23.70 €21.24

-11.98%

Cinema Ticket

$8.98 MVR 139

$10.60 €9.50

-15.28%

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

$181 MVR 2,795

$568 €509

-68.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,834 MVR 43.7K

$11.5K €10.3K

-75.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$38.11 MVR 588

$90.5 €81.1

-57.90%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.0 MVR 771

$38.55 €34.55

29.70%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$86.1 MVR 1,327

$103 €92.0

-16.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$52.4 MVR 808

$131 €117

-59.97%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$930 MVR 14.3K

$826 €740

12.68%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$678 MVR 10.5K

$646 €579

5.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,939 MVR 29.9K

$1,400 €1,255

38.47%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,484 MVR 22.9K

$1,054 €945

40.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,663 MVR 41.1K

$3,662 €3,282

-27.28%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$776 MVR 12.0K

$2,301 €2,062

-66.28%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$781 MVR 12.0K

$1,886 €1,690

-58.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.56

293.26%

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

Last update for the Maldives: October 25, 2026

Last update for Italy: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Maldives

$678 46%

Italy

$646 35.1% 4.8% $32

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Maldives

$228 15.4%

Italy

$269 14.6% 18% $41

Groceries & Markets

Maldives

$218 14.8%

Italy

$348 18.9% 59.6% $130

Eating Out

Maldives

$127 8.6%

Italy

$279 15.1% 120% $152

Clothing & Footwear

Maldives

$102 6.9%

Italy

$163 8.9% 60.1% $61

Sport & Entertainment

Maldives

$81 5.5%

Italy

$73 4% 9.6% $7.7

Getting Around

Maldives

$42 2.9%

Italy

$65 3.5% 54.3% $23

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $805 in the Maldives, $729 in Italy. Capital cities: $939 in Male vs $1,297 in Rome.

National salary averages: $736 in the Maldives, $1,890 in Italy. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 10% higher in the Maldives.

Dining out costs 87% more in Italy.

Public transport is 72% more expensive in Italy.

Salaries are about 2.6 times higher in Italy, and purchasing power comes out stronger in Italy.

Good to know

🇲🇻 Maldives

🇮🇹 Italy

🕒 Local time

11:29 11:29 AM

07:29 7:29 AM

4 h behind the Maldives

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

436,330

58,850,717

💱 Currency

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.81 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to MVR – Maldivian Rufiyaa Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇲🇻 Maldivian Rufiyaa (Rf)

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.22 MVR (100 MVR = 5.81 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to MVR in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Maldives Italy 7,330 km ≈ 10 h nonstop flight

From you

Maldives
Italy

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

Maldives vs Italy: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,843 per month in Italy and $1,476 in the Maldives, the Maldives comes out about 20% 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 the Maldives: 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.

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