Cost of Living Comparison Between Mechelen and Brussels Cost of Living Comparison Between Mechelen and Brussels

😐 Solo nomad: Mechelen is 4.9% more expensive than Brussels without rent, and 19.5% cheaper with rent.

🙂 Family of 3: Mechelen is 7.3% cheaper than Brussels without rent, and 18.6% cheaper with rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.26 €20.08

$28.86 €24.92

-19.40%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$114 €98.7

$93.8 €80.9

21.90%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.79 €11.04

$14.91 €12.87

-14.22%

Cappuccino

$4.06 €3.51

$4.84 €4.18

-16.12%

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

$3.32 €2.87

$3.06 €2.65

8.50%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.14 €2.71

$3.03 €2.62

3.63%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.72 €4.94

$7.07 €6.11

-19.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.58 €3.96

$5.7 €4.92

-19.65%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.13

$1.54 €1.33

-14.94%

White Bread (500g)

$2.67 €2.31

$2.93 €2.53

-8.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 €2.03

$2.93 €2.53

-19.80%

Eggs

$3.98 €3.44

$4.81 €4.15

-17.26%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$17.5 €15.11

$16.31 €14.09

7.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.94 €10.31

$13.92 €12.02

-14.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$19.02 €16.42

$19.01 €16.41

0.05%

Apples (1kg)

$3 €2.59

$2.94 €2.54

2.04%

Banana (1kg)

$2.37 €2.04

$2.48 €2.14

-4.44%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.28 €1.96

$2.72 €2.35

-16.18%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.02 €2.61

$3.26 €2.82

-7.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.91 €1.65

$2.68 €2.31

-28.73%

Onion (1kg)

$2.16 €1.86

$2.52 €2.18

-14.29%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 €1.15

$1.66 €1.43

-19.88%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.81 €0.7

$1.12 €0.96

-27.68%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.69 €10.95

$12.2 €10.54

4.02%

Wine (Bottle)

$9.22 €7.96

$9.49 €8.19

-2.85%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.83 €1.58

$2.59 €2.23

-29.34%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.36 €2.04

$3.22 €2.78

-26.71%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.16 €2.73

$2.91 €2.51

8.59%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$55.9 €48.29

$60.8 €52.5

-7.93%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.9 €5.1

$7.43 €6.41

-20.59%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.46 €2.13

$2.44 €2.11

0.82%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$45.87 €39.6

$34.53 €29.81

32.84%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.84 €1.59

$1.86 €1.6

-1.08%

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

$33.7K €29.1K

$34.5K €29.8K

-2.15%

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

$33.1K €28.6K

$36.1K €31.2K

-8.42%

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

$207 €179

$255 €220

-18.83%

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

$24.98 €21.57

$21.51 €18.57

16.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$50.5 €43.63

$55.5 €47.88

-8.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$31.39 €27.1

$41.31 €35.67

-24.01%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.71 €11.83

$31.78 €27.44

-56.86%

Cinema Ticket

$15.09 €13.03

$14.86 €12.83

1.55%

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

$582 €502

$1,134 €979

-48.72%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.4K €11.6K

$22.7K €19.6K

-41.08%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$111 €95.4

$107 €92.1

3.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$51.1 €44.11

$49.55 €42.78

3.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 €91.6

$115 €99

-7.46%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$160 €139

$152 €132

5.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$893 €771

$1,332 €1,150

-32.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$746 €644

$1,076 €929

-30.68%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,373 €1,185

$2,320 €2,003

-40.82%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,119 €966

$1,804 €1,558

-37.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,463 €2,990

$4,847 €4,185

-28.55%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,925 €2,526

$3,782 €3,265

-22.64%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,397 €2,070

$3,582 €3,093

-33.08%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.27

3.65

-10.41%

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

Last update for Mechelen: October 28, 2025

Last update for Brussels: October 29, 2025

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