Cost of living in Rome vs Sydney and Melbourne

Rome is cheaper than Sydney and Melbourne on the big-ticket items, rent and transport above all. Salaries are usually lower too, so the real question is where your income comes from.

The short version

Asking rents in Rome averaged €19.75 per square metre a month in October 2026 [1]. A 60 m² flat works out at roughly €1,190 a month, compared with a median Sydney unit at A$780 a week [2].
An unlimited monthly Rome public transport pass costs €35, and the annual pass €250 [3]. Sydney caps adult Opal fares at A$50 a week [6].
An espresso at the bar in Rome averaged €1.19 in June 2026 [8].
If you're not working in Italy, voluntary public health cover costs at least €2,000 a year [9].
We've used about A$1.63 to the euro, the rate in mid-2026 [10]. Currency swings can move your budget by 10% in either direction.

The big comparison table

Here's how the main monthly costs line up. Rome figures are converted at about A$1.63 per euro and rounded [10]. Australian prices are in Australian dollars.

Cost	Rome (2026)	Sydney (2026)	Melbourne (2026)
Rent, typical flat	~€1,190 a month for 60 m² (~A$1,940) [1]	Median unit A$780 a week, ~A$3,380 a month [2]	Median unit A$600 a week, ~A$2,600 a month [2]
Rent, house or bigger flat	~€1,580 for 80 m² (~A$2,580) [1]	Median house A$835 a week [2]	Median house A$600 a week [2]
Single public transport fare	€1.50 for 100 minutes [4]	Peak train up to 10 km A$4.33 [6]	Full fare up to A$5.70 [7]
Daily transport cap	€8.50 (24-hour ticket via tap&go) [4]	A$19.30 Mon–Thu [6]	A$11.40 [7]
Monthly transport	€35 pass (~A$57) [3]	Up to ~A$217 at the A$50 weekly cap [6]	Varies with zone and pass
Espresso at the bar	~€1.19 (~A$1.95) [8]	Usually several times more for a café coffee	Usually several times more for a café coffee
Public health cover if not working	From €2,000 a year (voluntary SSN) [9]	Medicare (residents)	Medicare (residents)

The rent comparison isn't perfectly like for like. Domain's medians cover all units, not a fixed size, and Rome's figures are asking prices. Still, the gap is wide enough to matter.

Rent: where the money goes

Rent is the line that makes Rome feel affordable to people coming from Sydney. Even central zones are below the Sydney unit median once you convert. In October 2026, asking rents ran from about €17 per m² in EUR to nearly €30 in the Centro Storico [1].

What catches people out is the extras. Building fees (spese condominiali), the council's TARI waste tax and utilities are often on top. Budget a few hundred euros a month more than the headline rent, especially in winter if your building has central heating.

And rents are climbing. Rome's asking rents were up 8.76% on a year earlier [1], faster than Sydney units (4.0%) or Melbourne units (4.3%) over the year to September 2026 [2].

Transport: Rome wins easily

Rome's public transport is cheap by any Australian standard, even if the metro network is small and buses can be patchy.

BIT ticket: €1.50, valid for 100 minutes on buses and trams, or one metro ride [4].
Tap&go: tap a contactless card or phone. Once you've spent enough in 24 hours, the system automatically caps you at a 24-hour ticket for €8.50 [4]. Short-term passes rose in July 2025; the single fare stayed at €1.50 [5].
Monthly and annual passes: €35 a month or €250 a year for unlimited travel within Rome on the Metrebus network [3]. Commuting from outside the city costs more, with zone-based Metrebus Lazio passes from €59.50 a month [3].

Compare that with Sydney's A$50 weekly Opal cap [6] or Melbourne's A$11.40 daily cap from 2026 [7]. A Rome commuter on the annual pass pays about €21 a month.

Many Romans skip a car altogether. If you do drive, fuel, insurance and the restricted traffic zones (ZTL) in the centre add up fast.

Food, coffee and eating out

Coffee

The Italian espresso at the bar is a national institution and the price is watched closely. Rome's average was €1.19 in June 2026, up from €0.95 in 2021 [8]. That's still cheaper than most Italian cities, where it sits between €1.20 and €1.40 [8]. A cappuccino costs a bit more, and sitting down at a table in a tourist square can double the price.

Groceries

Supermarket shopping in Rome is generally cheaper than in Australia for fresh produce, pasta, cheese, wine and olive oil. Imported and "foreign" items cost more, so that jar of Vegemite from home is a luxury. Discount chains such as Lidl and Eurospin keep the basics down, and neighbourhood markets like Testaccio, Trionfale and the Esquilino market are good for seasonal fruit and veg.

Eating out

A neighbourhood trattoria lunch or a pizza and a beer is far kinder on the wallet than a Sydney pub meal. Prices jump around the Pantheon, Piazza Navona and anywhere with a picture menu. Tipping isn't expected the way it is in the US; many places add a small cover charge (coperto) instead.

Healthcare and other fixed costs

If you work in Italy as an employee or self-employed, you're registered with the national health service at no extra charge. If you're on an elective residence permit or otherwise not working locally, voluntary registration costs a share of your worldwide income, with a minimum of €2,000 and a maximum of about €2,789 a year [9]. Students pay a flat €700 [9].

Other costs to budget for:

Phone and internet. Italian mobile plans are cheap compared with Australia. Home fibre is widely available in Rome.
Private health insurance. Optional, but many expats keep it for faster specialist appointments.
Flights home. The real budget-killer. A trip back to Australia each year can rival several months of Rome transport and coffee combined.
Paperwork. Translations, apostilles, permit fees and stamp duty (marca da bollo) add up in year one.

So, is Rome cheaper?

For most Australians, yes, on rent and transport, and often on food. The catch is income. Italian salaries are typically lower than Australian ones, so Rome works best if you:

earn in Australian dollars or another strong currency while working remotely
have savings, a pension or rental income from home
land an international employer, such as one of the UN agencies headquartered in Rome

If you'll be earning a local Italian salary, run your numbers carefully before you sign a lease.

Want real numbers from Aussies already living it? Join Cooee Italy, our Facebook group for Australians in Italy, and ask what people actually spend each month. Join the community.

Cost of living in Rome: cheaper rent, €1.19 coffee and a €35 transport pass