Naples – While Milan confirms its reputation as a "salty" city, Naples takes revenge by establishing itself as the most affordable capital in Italy.
This is what emerges from the latest Codacons survey for the year 2025, which compared the prices of goods and services in the main cities of the Italian peninsula. The gap is stark: for the same shopping basket, living near the Madonnina costs almost double compared to the Gulf.
The numbers of the gap
The consumer association analyzed a mixed basket that included fruit and vegetables, groceries, and personal services (from dentistry to dry cleaning). The result leaves no room for doubt: in Milan, the average monthly outlay for these items reaches €598,95. This figure contrasts sharply with the €368 required in Naples, which is thus 62,3% cheaper than the Lombardy metropolis.
In the "expensive living" ranking, Aosta (€586) and Bolzano (€574) come in right behind Milan. Conversely, Naples leads the way in terms of affordability (€369, according to statistical rounding), followed by Palermo (€408) and Catanzaro (€424).
From the shopping cart to the hairdresser
Analyzing the individual items, the differences become even more tangible. In terms of food alone (a basket of 28 products including meat, bread, pasta, and fruit and vegetables), the cheapest city overall is Catanzaro (165 euros), but Naples follows closely behind at 168 euros. In Bolzano, filling the same fridge costs 220 euros.
But it is in services that Naples wins hands down:
DentistA filling in the shadow of Vesuvius costs around 70 euros, compared to the record 176 euros in Aosta.
HairdresserA blow-dry in Naples costs less than 13 euros (compared to 23,5 in Bologna), while a women's haircut costs less than 15 euros (in Trieste it costs 30).
Milan's data is curious: despite being the most expensive in almost everything (a sandwich at the bar costs 5,64 euros compared to 2,67 in Ancona), the city offers the lowest price in Italy for washing and ironing a shirt: 2,89 euros.
The alarm for 2026: the Confesercenti blow
While the city's "internal" prices are encouraging for Neapolitans, the news regarding national price increases is less rosy. Beyond regional comparisons, the increases that began on January 1st must be taken into account. The Confesercenti Campania Research Center has estimated the impact of the price increases on fuel, car insurance, highway tolls (including the ring road), and tobacco.
The price is steep: a per capita increase is expected ranging from 300 euros (for non-smokers) up to almost 500 euros for those who smoke (traditional or e-cigarettes).
The situation is especially critical for logistics: for transport companies, including trucks and buses, the increase in operating costs is estimated at around €6.700 per year per vehicle, a figure that inevitably risks being passed on to final consumer prices.
Source EDITORIAL TEAM
Comments (140)
They steal the other half
Sese na vot
But when 10 years ago?
You save money because 70% of workers in the restaurant and food/fruit sectors work illegally. Simple!
Even the salary is different compared to Milan
But what did the person who made this ranking drink, newspapers sold,
Rosario Gentilini ten times lower than Milan
Lucio Castrovillari, therefore, there are thousands of people who go to study in the north and get treatment there. Good evening.
Roberta Di Ludovico Hey, hi, the idiotic comment from the provincial boor from Milan was missing, you were the first to do it, you won a golden mongol
If only it could be read!!!! The advertising obscures the content of the article!!!
Dear government, give the money as you give it to Milan instead of paying the newspapers to say stupid, in the south you have robbed us
Antima Anty Brava who would leave his city, the beautiful Naples, for a whim
Raffaele Riccio Exactly
Enza Cammisa And yes, it's true
The state and the municipality take care of taking away what we save on groceries.
Antonella De Santis rent sky-high... blame it on hit-and-run tourism... max 2 days... and then off...
You save money in Naples because we have the art of making do, we are satisfied with the standard of living in Milan and it is very different from the city we have been in, and let's not talk about the public health services, they work differently, people are disciplined when driving, no let's talk about work, a future for children in the north is another planet, we know Naples is beautiful but this is my personal opinion, it is worth visiting and that's it ……….
Chit is dead because the air we breathe has also increased monthly and starvation pension
What do you say? I'll give you just one example: if you shop at the supermarket, you'll spend more than in Naples. While in the north, you can also find products on sale with a long shelf life.
True Parisi but not in the percentage that exists in Naples and then here there are no controls the laws are not respected, sometimes it makes me smile when people talk about a comfortable life in Naples, between criminals in disarray, public services that are literally disgusting and jobs still paid €6 an hour
To live?…and what does that mean? To be able to eat every day?…..
Monica Tortora: More than half of Neapolitans don't pay the Tari. Insurance? The same. Finally, there's a lot of black money, and therefore tax evasion.
But even the monthly rates are half the price in Milan!
Vincenzo Miranda I'll pay for everyone
Monica Tortora there are two of us
Vincenzo Miranda in fact that's why it's so tall
It's not like everything in Milan has doubled. A pizza is €50.00.
Pietro Puca but serious
Michele De Rosa eh
Nothing could be more false. Rents in some neighborhoods of Naples are on par with those in Milan, and salaries are lower. And then, if we also want to address the drama of increases in third-party liability insurance...