Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Monte Carlo and Monaco

For one person, living is cheaper in Monte Carlo: $8,149 a month against $10.3K in Monaco, rent and utilities included – about $26,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Monaco outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

398

Cost of Living Index in Monte Carlo
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Monte Carlo Living Index
504

Cost of Living Index in Monaco
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Monaco Living Index

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Monte Carlo

🇲🇨 Monaco

$8,149

/mo nomad

Monaco

🇲🇨 Monaco

$10.3K

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Monte Carlo and in Monaco

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $8,149 in Monte Carlo versus $10.3K in Monaco.

Monte Carlo $8,149
Monaco $10.3K

Estimated couple costs with rent: $12.8K in Monte Carlo versus $11.8K in Monaco.

Monte Carlo $12.8K
Monaco $11.8K

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $17.4K in Monte Carlo versus $13.3K in Monaco.

Monte Carlo $17.4K
Monaco $13.3K

Living in Monte Carlo costs roughly 21% less than in Monaco, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Monte Carlo 504% above, Monaco 666% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$42.14 €37.49

$19.61 €17.45

114.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$124 €111

$170 €152

-27.09%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.37 €10.11

$12.13 €10.79

-6.27%

Cappuccino

$4.10 €3.64

$3.58 €3.18

14.53%

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

$9.12 €8.11

$6.22 €5.53

46.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$10.69 €9.51

$4.41 €3.92

142.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$10.07 €8.96

$10.05 €8.94

0.20%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$13.59 €12.09

$8.68 €7.72

56.57%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.29 €2.04

$1.74 €1.55

31.61%

White Bread (500g)

$5.11 €4.55

$3.31 €2.95

54.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.39 €3.91

$4.16 €3.70

5.53%

Eggs

$4.60 €4.09

$4.93 €4.38

-6.69%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$21.62 €19.23

$13.67 €12.16

58.16%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$17.00 €15.13

$16.47 €14.65

3.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.75 €20.23

$18.29 €16.27

24.38%

Apples (1kg)

$6.06 €5.39

$3.24 €2.88

87.04%

Banana (1kg)

$7.42 €6.60

$2.84 €2.53

161.27%

Oranges (1kg)

$4.84 €4.31

$2.64 €2.35

83.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$8.59 €7.64

$3.49 €3.11

146.13%

Potato (1kg)

$5.65 €5.02

$2.36 €2.10

139.41%

Onion (1kg)

$5.48 €4.87

$2.76 €2.45

98.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$5.14 €4.57

$1.84 €1.64

179.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$6.00 €5.34

$8.04 €7.15

-25.37%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.06 €10.72

$14.08 €12.52

-14.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$16.86 €15.00

$6.64 €5.90

153.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.02 €1.80

$1.56 €1.39

29.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.34 €3.86

$4.31 €3.83

0.70%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.00 €1.78

$2.19 €1.95

-8.68%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$37.45 €33.31

$23.67 €21.05

58.22%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.41 €4.82

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.28 €2.03

$1.53 €1.36

49.02%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$112 €99.7

$90.5 €80.5

23.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.37 €2.11

$2.25 €2.00

5.33%

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

$53.4K €47.5K

$47.7K €42.4K

12.03%

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

$42.7K €38.0K

$38.5K €34.3K

10.89%

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

$526 €467

$415 €369

26.63%

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

$58.1 €51.7

$42.04 €37.40

38.15%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$96.8 €86.1

$64.8 €57.6

49.44%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$534 €475

$230 €205

131.85%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$56.6 €50.3

$53.1 €47.19

6.65%

Cinema Ticket

$17.61 €15.67

$13.57 €12.07

29.77%

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

$3,552 €3,160

$2,191 €1,949

62.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$16.7K €14.9K

$45.2K €40.2K

-63.01%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$225 €200

$151 €135

48.72%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$77.0 €68.5

$82.5 €73.4

-6.71%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$197 €175

$168 €150

16.98%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$278 €248

$733 €652

-62.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,812 €2,501

$9,183 €8,168

-69.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$5,272 €4,689

$8,192 €7,287

-35.65%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$11.4K €10.1K

$16.0K €14.2K

-28.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$8,350 €7,427

34.98%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$107.8K €95.9K

$72.1K €64.1K

49.52%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$85.3K €75.8K

$54.4K €48.4K

56.85%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$8,669 €7,711

$8,858 €7,879

-2.13%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.25

-38.46%

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

Last update for Monte Carlo: October 11, 2026

Last update for Monaco: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Monte Carlo

$5.3K 64.7%

Monaco

$8.2K 79.2% 55.4% $2.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Monte Carlo

$680 8.4%

Monaco

$522 5.1% 23.3% $159

Groceries & Markets

Monte Carlo

$638 7.8%

Monaco

$473 4.6% 26% $166

Eating Out

Monte Carlo

$577 7.1%

Monaco

$346 3.4% 40% $231

Sport & Entertainment

Monte Carlo

$569 7%

Monaco

$257 2.5% 54.8% $312

Clothing & Footwear

Monte Carlo

$350 4.3%

Monaco

$511 4.9% 46% $161

Getting Around

Monte Carlo

$62 0.8%

Monaco

$40 * 0.4% 35.6% $22

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,812 in Monte Carlo and $9,183 in Monaco. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Monaco pays 2% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $124 in Monte Carlo vs $170 in Monaco. Groceries flip the comparison at $638 vs $473, with Monaco cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇨 Monte Carlo

🇲🇨 Monaco

🕒 Local time

11:20 11:20 AM

Same time as Monte Carlo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

15,507

39,050 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Monte Carlo Monaco 1 km

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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

Monte Carlo vs Monaco: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monte Carlo and Monaco differ by about 27% in total monthly costs ($8,149 vs $10.3K including rent). Monte Carlo is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 2% lower in Monaco. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $2,812 in Monte Carlo versus $9,183 in Monaco. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Monte Carlo – a meal for two runs $124 versus $170 in Monaco. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $8,149 per month in Monte Carlo versus $10.3K in Monaco – a 27% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $3,000. Monte Carlo is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Monte Carlo and Monaco are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Monte Carlo gentler on the wallet – expenses run 27% less than in Monaco. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.