Italy might seem like a dream for budget travelers and expats—but after 20 years here, I can tell you: some things are shockingly affordable, and others will drain your wallet fast. From €1 espresso to $8 gas, I’m breaking down what really costs what in Italy.
We’re diving into the surprising truth about how much life in Italy actually costs. I’ll share personal stories—like how bureaucracy eats up more than just time, why I stopped buying peanut butter, and the unexpected places where Italy offers incredible value for money.
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30 Comments
Italian Locals HATE Me for Revealing These Secret Spots https://youtu.be/dRc7bvYB3Mw
Looking forward to your house tour.
Great advice
At the end of the video you said it. The secret spots are the ones I did not find when I was in Catania and Taormina two weeks ago. Well Taormina probably do not have any but in Catania my girlfriend and I got tired of the restaurants ripping tourists off so the last four days we bought all our food in a Lidl supermarket in stead. The airbnb charged around 80 euros per night and was really good.
I never drank coffee until I visited Italy as a graduate student. I came back loving coffee and figuring I must be doing something wrong at home. I unlocked the secret to making coffee for myself, and now I can’t skip it. I certainly love having macchiati in Italy!
Gas and tolls are NO joke.. I spent over 100 euros in tolls driving from Naples to Vicenza to watch a soccer match.
Love the videos-keep them coming. Your name sounded familiar — have read/watched your cycling stuff for years.
Drinking espresso in 2 minutes? 😳 You are fast! 🤣 Do you drink it as an energy booster? I never experienced any effect of this kind.
For me drinking coffee takes at least half an hour (if I am alone) or 2 hours with friends. 😊
I started drinking coffee, when I was 15…in high school we would drink at least 3 coffees a day…
You did not mention what income taxes and IVA are like in Italy.
About to arrive at StMariaNovella train station and I'll be forever looking out for you Gregor! 😊 my first Italian experience has been fab so far. Turin is gorgeous!❤
I do not drink coffee or wine, is there hope for me when we vacation there?
We did Florence, Rome, and Vico Equense!! My husband said why there!! It's a stop or two before Sorrento and a lot less crowded!! They have a great gelato at Gelateria Gabrielle!!! The Hotel Oriente had it's own private beach area below the cliffs. It was dated but charming. and we would have used it but we went last October. The mayor of Vico Equense was out in the main square every night talking with the locals and tourists!! We went over to Sorrento and it was a mob scene!! We didn't even bother going to Amalfi!!
Gregor can you please talk about things to watch out for and or do while in 1 day in Naples and also Pompeii . ❤
Dear Gregor, have you wondered how Italians can live well? I think you should explain many things that perhaps you do not know. In Italy 80% of the inhabitants live in homes that they own. To spend less on food we know the differences between supermarkets. We know where it costs less and with excellent quality. For gasoline, despite the high price our cars have latest generation engines. Low displacement with low consumption and high performance, they also comply with low smog emissions (EU rules). So many km per liter unlike the bison you drive in the United States, few km per liter and skyrocketing pollution. To live well in Italy you need to know where to live and the cost of living. I live in a city near Milan, with my salary I could earn over 40% of the value if I went to live in Sicily. I can say this with certainty because I have a house by the sea in that region. I would recommend choosing a small city, well served by transport and all modern comforts. With rents no higher than 600 euros, or buy it at prices lower than 100,000 euros. My wife and I own two houses, our monthly budget is about 3,000 euros. Every weekend we go to museums and natural areas. We have lunch and dinner out.
We know how hunters on a prey where to eat well spending very little. If we can do it, I think an American can do it better. The secret starts with the house (rent/ownership), the region chosen, and the knowledge of the places to buy.
Here's a tip for saving money travelling within Italy. A 3-day train ticket for €35 or a 5-day ticket for €59. Valid on all regional trains (not Intercity or Frecciarossa), unlimited travel. The offer is called Italia in Tour
Italian coffee is like a thimble of concentrated coffee sludge unless you take it diluted as a latte or cappuccino. Nobody drinks it for the taste there. No savoring. That's why it's fast. A cappuccino on the other hand is a delight. They might look at you weird if you order it in the afternoon because they consider it a breakfast drink, but I don't care. Might as well enjoy it!
I like the jacket. Could you please wrtie the brand?
Thanks for the vid! Confirming what I've found in my research; some things are crazy cheap, some things are surprisingly expensive. But I've mostly been looking at hotels and food for our trip, not actual groceries and long-term apartment rentals with piazza views. For example, when you did the video about going to All'antico Vinaio, I was surprised that the Favalosa sandwich was only 8 euro as big as it was. By comparison, I checked the menu for the AAV stores in LA, and they are charging $20 for it! But to the previous point, it looks to me that eating in restaurants is really no more pricey there than here in SoCal, and it mostly depends on the dish. I did notice at one of the wineries we planned to visit that bottles were about $10, but people who have "membership" can bring in a gallon jug and get it filled for about 3 EU.
🇮🇹 🥰👍👍
In Miami we have a "media colada" for a dollar.
We are going on a tour in the Fall. Thank you for all your info!
Nothing will kill a Starbucks habit like getting coffee in Italy. In Italy, the coffee at a gas station beat the pants off Starbucks.
Hi I have a question. Is there a sleeper/night train from Rome to Venice?
Our first trip to Italy was last Feb. We did a lot of research, made our own arrangements, stayed in ABNBs, walked and used busses snd trains. As you said, we were shocked at the low cost at restaurants and combined with no tips we did not think twice about eating out. I'm no spring chicken and to think I had never tasted a really good cup of coffee until then. We toured Rome, Florence and Venice with a day trip yo Tuscany. Upon my return I quickly went out and bought an espresso machine and pasta making tools. Oh, the wine! Great and inexpensive. Here the "house" wine is usually marginal, there its excellent and very inexpensive, and lets not forget the olive oil. I'll be back soon.
Do you tip the barista?
Me and my wife had one cappucino, one americano and two delicious crausants stuffed with raspberry jam in San Remo’s cafe last summer. And when the waitress brought us the bill of 5 euro and 50 cents, I could not believe my eyes for few seconds…I almost fell from chair !!!😂
Really well done, Gregor. I lived and worked in Rome for around 12 years, most recently 2017-2022 with my wife and daughter (11-16 years old). Due to my academic and administrative work, we wanted a comfy apartment in the Prati neighborhood. We had two outside spaces and had great views of the Tiber, but rent was 4000 Euro inclusive. Smaller places with no character were nearly as expensive, so we chose to enjoy Prati for ease of transportation to work, proximity to Centro and the Vatican and the walking trails along the river. Loved it. Bureaucracy was hard and laborious, you just learn to live with it and somehow get thru the grueling insanity of it all. Our car was an added necessity since we wanted to travel on weekends to the countryside and our daughter was in middle / high school and on the Italian girls basketball team, so practices, etc. made public transport for certain things difficult. My daughter and I just beca,e Italian citizens thru law, so I grew up in an Italian-American family in Providence, RI, and so my wife shopped everyday at the local markets and I love cooking traditional Roman and Italian cuisine. We only eat at local trattorie that we know the owners and having been going to for years, but food is not exactly cheap. Excellent quality if not inexpensive, though what you get for your money in Italy is ten times the quality of what you purchase — whether in markets or restaurants — from the States. Gas / petrol was 9 Euro a liter at times, depending on what was happening in the world; and we chose a private medical facility when my daughter needed knee surgery because resources in the public services — which are ok for everyday sorts of things — were scant and questionable. My salary was set to compensate for a lot of these costs, so while we didn’t save more than we would have I’d we lived in the USA, we would not have been able to enjoy the quality of life we had if I simply transferred my US salary to Rome. What tilts the scale is the quality of life, whether that’s the cafe culture; sitting in a piazza with a cold Perini beer or a liter of local wine for apperitivo or cena; enjoying a fabulous pranzo and a long afternoon break from work; or talking a restful walk to daily evening Mass at San Pietro or a local parish; heading to an Italian hillside town in Umbria or Tuscany or Lazio or Campagnia for a few days; or jumping on a train to spend a week in a Venezia or Palermo or Salzburg or Paris or Copenhagen or, etc. We were blessed —- the covid pandemic however (as you know) was a nightmare, as Rome was completed shut down for 18 months, and at times it was very scary and unfamiliar. I remember going into Saint Peter’s Basilica one day and being told by the Swiss guard at the entrance to “enjoy an amazing experience” —- I was the only living person / tourist in the basilica at that moment. Same when we went to the Blue Grotto in Capri with close friends on their boat. The Grotto was completely empty, so we were able to jump in the water for a fast swim. Amazing! Those experiences were not possible apart from covid. Regardless, the cost of living in Italy is both higher and lower than one normally anticipates. But if someone has the opportunity to move and live abroad especially in Italy, please jump at the chance of such a gift of grace, it is a rare moment that can totally transform how you understand your place in the universe.
I always buy authentic LV and Gucci. After spending $300 to buy a high-quality bag at kisluxs , I found that I would never spend 9K to buy a certain brand of bag…the price increase is so ridiculous
So right about the cost and quality of coffee! What surprised me most about costs in Italy was being ripped off in an official Vodafone store in Palermo where they charged my wife almost 4 times the advertised price for the Dolce Vita tourist sim. Do your homework and stand your ground, or better yet avoid Vodafone and get an esim, which worked perfectly for me. Other than than, our time in Italy has been delightful.
When traveling to Italy, it’s our little tradition to stop at an 24hr Autogrill to go to the bathroom, have a caffè and a cornetto. You know the caffè slaps, because the coffee machine is always on and hot. The crema is soooo thick and delicious, so I’ll guess I’ll have another one, ok honey?
Checking in the apartment/hotel/what have you, lay down a little after 700 Kim’s through Switzerland and Piemonte, then down to the lungomare for an apero cena or two. That’s what’s gonna happen for wifey and me in June.