Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Podgorica and Herceg Novi

For one person, living is cheaper in Herceg Novi: $1,234 a month against $1,328 in Podgorica, rent and utilities included – about $1,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

65

Cost of Living Index in Podgorica
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Podgorica Living Index
60

Cost of Living Index in Herceg Novi
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Herceg Novi Living Index

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Podgorica

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,328

/mo nomad

Herceg Novi

🇲🇪 Montenegro

$1,234

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Podgorica and in Herceg Novi

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,328 in Podgorica versus $1,234 in Herceg Novi.

Podgorica $1,328
Herceg Novi $1,234

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,094 in Podgorica versus $1,969 in Herceg Novi.

Podgorica $2,094
Herceg Novi $1,969

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,860 in Podgorica versus $2,705 in Herceg Novi.

Podgorica $2,860
Herceg Novi $2,705

Living in Podgorica is roughly 8% more expensive than in Herceg Novi, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in clothing.

Both cities sit below the global median: Podgorica 2% lower, Herceg Novi 9% lower.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$11.37 €10.12

$11.15 €9.91

1.97%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$44.91 €39.95

$36.61 €32.57

22.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.41 €9.26

$9.07 €8.07

14.77%

Cappuccino

$2.23 €1.98

$2.58 €2.30

-13.57%

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

$2.57 €2.29

$2.56 €2.28

0.39%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.41 €1.25

$1.63 €1.45

-13.50%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$3.14 €2.79

$2.82 €2.50

11.35%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 €3.02

$3.43 €3.05

-1.17%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.31 €1.16

$1.19 €1.06

10.08%

White Bread (500g)

$0.93 €0.83

$1.02 €0.90

-8.82%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 €1.76

$2.79 €2.49

-29.03%

Eggs

$3.53 €3.14

$3.00 €2.67

17.67%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$8.84 €7.86

$9.06 €8.06

-2.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.09 €7.19

$7.19 €6.40

12.52%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$11.95 €10.63

$12.92 €11.49

-7.51%

Apples (1kg)

$1.56 €1.39

$1.33 €1.19

17.29%

Banana (1kg)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.51 €1.34

7.95%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.78 €1.59

$1.60 €1.43

11.25%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.38 €2.11

$3.00 €2.67

-20.67%

Potato (1kg)

$0.95 €0.84

$0.87 €0.78

9.20%

Onion (1kg)

$1.02 €0.90

$1.30 €1.15

-21.54%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.45 €1.29

$1.51 €1.35

-3.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.78 €0.69

$0.94 €0.84

-17.02%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$4.26 €3.79

$3.98 €3.54

7.04%

Wine (Bottle)

$5.72 €5.08

$4.52 €4.02

26.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.08 €0.96

$1.28 €1.14

-15.62%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.51

$1.72 €1.53

-1.74%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$1.01 €0.90

$1.69 €1.50

-40.24%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$33.57 €29.86

$44.23 €39.34

-24.10%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.77 €0.68

$2.95 €2.62

-73.90%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.76 €0.67

$1.14 €1.02

-33.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$11.32 €10.07

$16.48 €14.66

-31.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.86 €1.66

$1.77 €1.57

5.08%

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

$30.9K €27.5K

$32.2K €28.6K

-4.07%

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

$25.9K €23.0K

$21.4K €19.1K

20.74%

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

$126 €112

$132 €117

-4.23%

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

$18.89 €16.80

$12.96 €11.53

45.76%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$31.22 €27.77

$33.87 €30.13

-7.82%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.05 €42.74

$55.6 €49.47

-13.61%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$13.53 €12.03

$11.01 €9.79

22.89%

Cinema Ticket

$6.34 €5.64

$7.60 €6.76

-16.58%

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

$335 €298

$442 €393

-24.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$7,336 €6,525

$7,034 €6,257

4.28%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$86.8 €77.2

$85.2 €75.8

1.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.78 €41.61

$33.74 €30.01

38.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$98.4 €87.5

$71.6 €63.7

37.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$107 €95.0

$94.3 €83.9

13.26%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$647 €576

$661 €588

-2.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$485 €431

$386 €344

25.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,317 €1,172

$1,227 €1,092

7.33%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$979 €871

$872 €776

12.27%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$2,975 €2,646

$3,727 €3,315

-20.18%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,252 €2,003

$2,355 €2,095

-4.38%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$1,162 €1,034

$1,053 €937

10.34%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.22

4.40%

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

Last update for Podgorica: October 12, 2026

Last update for Herceg Novi: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Podgorica

$485 36.5%

Herceg Novi

$386 31.3% 20.4% $99

Groceries & Markets

Podgorica

$224 16.9%

Herceg Novi

$226 18.3% 0.7% $1.7

Eating Out

Podgorica

$187 14.1%

Herceg Novi

$185 15% 1.2% $2.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Podgorica

$176 13.3%

Herceg Novi

$178 14.5% 1.3% $2.3

Clothing & Footwear

Podgorica

$152 11.5%

Herceg Novi

$128 10.4% 15.9% $24

Sport & Entertainment

Podgorica

$61 4.6%

Herceg Novi

$71 5.7% 16.6% $10

Getting Around

Podgorica

$42 3.2%

Herceg Novi

$60 4.8% 41.4% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $647 in Podgorica and $661 in Herceg Novi. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Podgorica pays 10% 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: $45.00 in Podgorica vs $37.00 in Herceg Novi. Groceries flip the comparison at $224 vs $226, with Podgorica cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇲🇪 Podgorica

🇲🇪 Herceg Novi

🕒 Local time

13:29 1:29 PM

Same time as Podgorica

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

150,799 Capital

11,059

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Podgorica Herceg Novi 60 km

From you

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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

Podgorica vs Herceg Novi: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Podgorica and Herceg Novi differ by about 8% in total monthly costs ($1,328 vs $1,234 including rent). Herceg Novi is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 10% higher in Podgorica, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $647 in Podgorica versus $661 in Herceg Novi. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in Podgorica pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Herceg Novi – a meal for two runs $37.00 versus $45.00 in Podgorica. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,234 in Herceg Novi versus $1,328 in Podgorica, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Herceg Novi but tight or insufficient in Podgorica. The gap between the two cities makes Herceg Novi the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

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, Podgorica and Herceg Novi 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 Herceg Novi gentler on the wallet – expenses run 8% less than in Podgorica. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.