Already some good replies here. What I was really thinking when seeing the questions about cost of living was that I find incomes for most people are lower than I would expect in Italy, given that the cost of living is not very different from other places in western Europe but salaries seem lower. Perhaps some make up by undeclared incomes I don't know. A lot of people seem to make just 1200 euros a month. Renting a small appartment is easily 500 euros or 700 euros in small towns.

Alex V.

I was asked by Paolo to give an answer to this thread. So here I am...

R O M E (Downtown)
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1 ROOM - 500/ 700 euros (monthly)
1 SMALL FLAT - 900/ 1600 euros (monthly)
3 ROOMS FLAT - 1800/2500 euros ( " )

Transportations:

90 MINUTES TICKET (Bus & Metro): 1,5 euro
TAXI they start from a fix of 4 euros (daytime) 6 euros (nightime)
TRAIN AIRPORT/ CITY and viceversa: 11 euros.

FOOD:

Espresso 60/ 80 cents.
Cornetto 80 cents / 1,2 euros
Cappuccino 1,2 euros
Newspaper 1 euro
Pizza 8 euros
1 bottle of mineral water 70 cents/ 2.50 euros
1 dinner at Chinese restaurant: 9/ 14 euros
1 dinner at Indian restaurant : 25/ 55 euros
1 dinner at Italian restaurant: 25/ 90 euros
1 dinnet at Japanese restaurant: 50/ 120 euros

AMUSEMENTS:

Cinema : 7,5 euros
Theatre: 12 / 35 euros
Disco : 15 / 25 euros
Museums: 4/ 15 euros
Exhibitions: 7 / 15 euros
Concerts: 20/ 75 euros

CLOTHING:

Jeans 70 / 120 euros
Shoes 90 / 240 euros
Ties 15 / 30 euros
Socks 4 / 15 euros
T-shirts 40/ 90 euros

You'd better not to go to places full of tourists, they usually are very expensive and the quality is not good. Try to go where Romans go even if English is not spoken and people don't look like welcoming.
The range of costs is rather wide: if you know the town you can get cheap good quality stuff in many places (especially in outlets). Food is much cheaper in huge supermarkets than small shops. Vegetables and fruits must be bought in street markets: the quality's excellent and prices very low.

Please, notice that Rome is extremely huge. Foreigners usually prefere the historical centre but you can have a nice life in all other areas at much cheaper costs.

> Accommodation prices :how much does it cost to rent an apartment ( flat ) in Italy ? in milan apartment could be very expansive, let's say 600€ - 3000€

> Public transportation fares : taxy - bus - trains - airlines
one bus ticket costs 1€ and you can travel for 75 minutes, monthly bus subscription is about 20€
three days bus subscription is about 6-7€
taxy at least 10€
trains and airlines are quite the same to the other country

> Gas ( benzina ) - Electricity ( KW per hour cost ) - water etc
gas is about 1.4€, electricity 0,5€ KWh, i don't know the costs of the water

> Private transportantion - Motorino ( moped ) - Car - car Insurance -
moped 1000-1500€, car insurance 250-400€

> Utilities Internet, television, telephone, cell phone
internet 15-30€ per month, television you have to pay the yearly state canon 107€, telephone 15-20€, cell phone 50-300€

> Eating out costs: Pizzeria - Trattoria - Fancy restaurants
It dipends on many things
Let's say 10-15€ for pizzeria, 40-50 for trattoria

> Cappuccino - Coffe price - 04cl beer - 1 Liter local wine - Mineral water
cappuccino 1€, coffe 0.8€, beer can 1.5€, mineral water six 1.5l bottle pack 2.5-3€

> Movie cinema - theater - live shows etc
movie cinema 4-9€, theater 9-20€

> Food cost (per month, how much does it cost per person ? ) Can you give some example of items ( milk - meat -
check this out
http://www.supermercatigs.it/upload/...ine=2009-05-13


> Healthcare costs - It it free ? how much insurance costs ?
if you have a high income you have to pay the medical ticket 9-20€

> Education and school costs
public school doesn't costs anything except the books, universities can vary a lot 400-3000€ per year

> Any other data ??


Where do you live ? ( country - small town- major town ) ? Milano

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Italiani : esperti nell'arte dell' arrangiarsi

Thanks to all the respondents so far.
Everything seems more expensive than the US except for wine ! Vino is so much cheaper ....
The link that Marco posted to the supermercati shows some actual prices, useful !

I live in Florence, Italy in Gavinana, the zone oustide the historic center, thus the prices listed below would be higher if purchased inside the city center, which is filled with tourist traps:

1.Cost of Accommodation in Italy :how much does it cost to rent an apartment ( flat ) in Italy ? My two bedroom apartment, costs approximately 760 euros per month (excluding utilities), it is 78 m2 or 839 ft2, that does not include the two terraces.

2. Cost of Public transportation - fares : A taxi from my home to the historic center, which is approximately 2 KM away, costs approximately 8 euros during the day. Florence taxi drivers tack on an extra 6 euros at night. Depending on the bus pass, a one-way ticket can cost from 1-1.50 euros. Trains and airlines, that is difficult to assess, it just depends on where you are going, and what type of train your taking. A train ticket on la Frecciarossa, a high speed train that takes two hours to travel from Milan to Florence, costs approximately 44 euros.
Many times I ride the trains and buses for free since it is an honorary system. Once I got caught and paid a fine of 45 euros. Since then I try to rely on my feet or bike to move around the city, like many others

3. Cost of Gas (benzina) - Electricity ( KW per hour cost ) - water etc utilities: Cost of electricity is 0.118690/kWh, cost of gas is approximately .12147378/mc; My gas bill from December to April was 427 euros for consuming 503mc. Water costs 1 euro/mc (the first 20 mc) after that it is 1.73 euros/mc. As residents of Florence we have to pay approximately 75 euros/year for the Quadrifoglio, the street cleanings and trash pickup service.

4. Cost of Internet with phone service is approximately 100 euros every 3 months.

5. There is a television tax, but I believe me and my roommate somehow avoid paying this.

6. My cell phone company is Wind and the service had an initial cost of 45 euros that included a basic Nokia phone. I then pay 8 euros per month to make calls and have 250 minutes of free talk time with others on the same program and phone lines. If I call someone outside of Wind, than it costs .38 euros per minute. For that reason texting is the choice of communication between me and my friends.

7. The aperitivo is quickly replacing eating out at restaurants in Florence. With the purchase of a drink, patrons can eat a spread of cold cuts, antipasti, pasta, risotto and a variety of food depending on the bar. The average and best aperitivi that I have been to cost 8 euros. A good pizza costs approximately 9 euros depending on the toppings. The smallest cup of gelato (that includes two flavors) costs about 1-1.50 euros.

8. Espresso is usually less than 1 euro and a cappuccino is 1.20 euros .A pint of birra chiara on tap, which is usually Moretti beer is about 4 euros. A liter of wine from the local enoteca, can cost about 2.50 euros depending on the type and if you bring your own bottle. A bottle of mineral water from the grocery store can cost anywhere from .30 -.50/liter

9. cost of groceries: I spend approximately 15-20 euros a week (at the economical grocery store chain, Coop. Prices would be higher if I shopped at small mom and pop shops)on: pasta(2 euros), milk (.40 euros/500 ml) biscotti (2.50 euros) ground meat (8-9 euros/kg), Romain lettuce (1.90 euros/kg), apples (1.50 euros), Tomatoes (1.80 euros/kg), and eggs (.40 euros for 4) and cheese (.80 euros for a ball of fresh mozzarella).

10. Healthcare costs in Italy- It it free ? The public healthcare system is free, but complicated to navigate and appointments for specialists must be made in person with proper documentation. I believe that there is costs attached to operations, but do not know how much. I recently visited the Pronto Socorso or emergency room and a general doctor within the public healthcare system and paid nothing. In SicilyI visited a private gynecologist and upon him learning that I was a recent immigrant, charged me nothing. I also visited a private dentist who took x-rays and checked only for cavities, he also charged me nothing since I was referred to by a friend.

I pay 16 euros a month for birth control and paid 8 euros for Augmentin (875mg + 125 mg) and for Reactin, an allergy pill that had the same ingredients as Claritin-D 12 hour, I paid about 6 euros for 14 dosages.

11. University costs are correspond to how much income a family makes. There is generally a cap on how much even the richest person can be charged. My friends have told me that University tuition varies from 250 euros – 2,000 euros per year according to income. However, Senator Gelmini recently passed a decree that will privatize the public university system, and I am sure this will change the costs of education.

12. general costs of Living in Italy: It is difficult to completely assess the cost of living in Italy.There is so much bureaucracy that causes many things in Florence to be done in the black market, or people exchange favors in order to survive and avoid taxes. Even the contract for my apartment does not list the true rental cost, in order for the owner to avoid paying taxes, and putting down false costs on contracts is the rule, not the exception here. Many times I ask friends to do me favors, like write a medical prescription, getting me a free appointment with a private doctor,lending me a computer etc... In turn for those things I have to translate some paragraphs in English or just spend time drinking a cappuccino with that person. The Italians rely on a network of friends for favors and exchange of services in order to live comfortably.

I just found this related thread about the MONTHLY LIVING EXPENSES IN ITALY

Monthly living expenses in Italy?

Thanks everyone for all your helpful posts! I am really relieved to have found this thread.

I am thinking of moving to Italy and studying at the University for Foreigners in Perugia. Do you think it's possible to find a small flat (that allows pets) within the vicinity that costs less than... say, 700 euros (+ utilities)?

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avatar by kelli

I think so, kitten, there should be no problem in finding a flat at that price.

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^ Thanks, Zidanie5! I say 700 euros, but of course I'm hoping for something cheaper. I'm looking online for accommodation and am frankly overwhelmed.

I have one site that seems decent: Student Linving Umbria Accommmodation

Can someone tell me if that's the sort of prices I should be looking at (without utilities included)? I have to get a studio apartment because of my pet.

There's another site here: http://www.incentroresidence.com/rooms.htm but it doesn't list the prices. Would that be okay too?

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avatar by kelli

Those prices seem quite good, to find something even cheaper you would need to look very good at your university, best offers are not advertised on the web but on little papers flying around

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