Cost-of-living rankings · Eurostat HICP 2023

Cheapest Countries to Live In

European countries ranked by overall consumer price level — the lowest cost of living first.

By ·Eurostat source →

#1 Cheapest overall
Bulgaria
Average index
100
Top–bottom spread
120
Countries ranked
31

Top 10 — Cheapest overall

Cheapest Countries to Live In (top 10)

1. 🇧🇬 Bulgaria552. 🇷🇴 Romania583. 🇵🇱 Poland604. 🇭🇺 Hungary655. 🇸🇰 Slovakia706. 🇱🇹 Lithuania747. 🇭🇷 Croatia758. 🇱🇻 Latvia769. 🇨🇿 Czechia7810. 🇬🇷 Greece78

Each value is the price level relative to the EU-27 average of 100. Below 100 is cheaper than the EU norm — lower is better for residents.

Full ranking — all 31 countries

Rank Country Cost index
1 🇧🇬 Bulgaria 55
2 🇷🇴 Romania 58
3 🇵🇱 Poland 60
4 🇭🇺 Hungary 65
5 🇸🇰 Slovakia 70
6 🇱🇹 Lithuania 74
7 🇭🇷 Croatia 75
8 🇱🇻 Latvia 76
9 🇨🇿 Czechia 78
10 🇬🇷 Greece 78
11 🇸🇮 Slovenia 86
12 🇨🇾 Cyprus 88
13 🇪🇪 Estonia 88
14 🇲🇹 Malta 88
15 🇵🇹 Portugal 88
16 🇪🇸 Spain 91
17 🇮🇹 Italy 96
18 🇩🇪 Germany 105
19 🇫🇷 France 108
20 🇬🇧 United Kingdom 109
21 🇧🇪 Belgium 112
22 🇳🇱 Netherlands 113
23 🇸🇪 Sweden 115
24 🇦🇹 Austria 116
25 🇫🇮 Finland 122
26 🇱🇺 Luxembourg 135
27 🇳🇴 Norway 140
28 🇩🇰 Denmark 142
29 🇮🇪 Ireland 142
30 🇮🇸 Iceland 153
31 🇨🇭 Switzerland 175

How to read this ranking

Each figure is a comparative price level: what a standardised basket of goods and services costs locally, with the EU-27 average normalised to 100. Because it is purchasing-power-comparable, it strips out exchange-rate distortion and lets you compare countries directly. The spread from Bulgaria (55) to Switzerland (175) is 120 index points — a large real difference in everyday costs. For affordability, weigh this against the best-value ranking, which combines income and cost.

The mid-table country, Spain (91), is a useful reference: countries above it are cheaper than typical, those below pricier. A country can rank well on one category and poorly on another — cheap groceries do not guarantee cheap rent. Open any country profile for the full per-category breakdown.

Other rankings

Most expensive →Best value →Cheapest rent →Cheapest groceries →Cheapest transport →Cheapest healthcare →

Source: Eurostat — comparative price levels (HICP) and median equivalised net income Eurostat — comparative price levels (HICP) and median equivalised net income Price-level indices, EU-27 = 100, 2023.

Read our methodology — how these indices are sourced and computed.