Money and taxes

Cost of Living in Rome (2026)

By Alessandro MichelizziFacts checked October 24, 2026

Average asking rent (Q3 2026)

€19.2 per m² a month, about €1,150 for 60 m² (Idealista)

Rent range by district, 60 m²

About €730 (Roma est-Autostrade) to €1,700 (Centro)

Lazio household spending (2025)

€2,979.50 a month on average; median €2,524 (ISTAT)

Transit pass

€35 a month or €250 a year (Metrebus Roma)

Waste tax (TARI) 2026

About €242 a year for 2 people in 60 m², before surcharges

Water (Acea Ato 2, 2026)

From €0.5971 per m³ in residents' first band

Voluntary health service enrollment

At least €2,000 a year, where it applies

How much does it cost to live in Rome?

The closest official figure is regional. ISTAT, Italy's national statistics institute, puts average household spending in Lazio at €2,979.50 a month in 2025. That is about 7% above the national average of €2,782.36.

The median household in Lazio spent €2,524, so most spend less than the average. Your own number depends mostly on rent, which this guide covers first.

The chart sets single cost items side by side, each from its own source. It is not a full budget. Phone, internet, insurance, building charges and leisure are left out because they vary too widely to state from one source.

Rent by area in Rome

Idealista, the property portal, publishes average asking rents from its listings. In the third quarter of 2026, Rome averaged €19.2 per m² a month, up 6.9% on a year earlier. Idealista tracks 34 districts in the city.

What a 60 m² apartment would ask at each area's average:

The last column multiplies Idealista's averages, so treat it as a starting point. These are asking prices on current listings, not signed rents. More districts, lease types and how to search are in Renting an Apartment in Rome.

Rent can rise each year. A lease can include an annual update tied to ISTAT's inflation index. Idealista estimated in October 2026 that Rome tenants with an annual update would pay about €60 a month more at renewal.

That estimate uses three-room apartments and ISTAT's FOI inflation index for September 2026, up 4%. If your landlord taxes the rent under the cedolare secca (flat-rate rental tax), no inflation update can be charged while that option lasts. Ask which regime applies before you sign.

The rule sits in Legislative Decree 23/2011, article 3. From January 1, 2027, the cedolare secca moves into a new consolidated income tax code (D.Lgs. 117/2026). The business news site PMI.it reports that it carries over without substantive changes. More in Cedolare Secca.

Electricity, gas and water

Electricity and gas have no Rome-specific rate. ARERA, Italy's energy regulator, publishes national reference prices for the regulated services kept for vulnerable customers (for example, people over 75):

• Electricity: 43.43 cents per kWh, taxes included, from October 1, 2026, for ARERA's typical customer using 2,000 kWh a year. Prices change each quarter; ARERA puts that customer's spending for all of 2026 at €665.38, about €55 a month.
• Gas: 162.02 cents per cubic meter in September 2026. At that price, ARERA's typical 1,100 cubic meters a year would cost about €150 a month.

These are benchmarks: a free-market contract has its own price. How to compare offers is in Cost of Living in Italy and Setting Up Utilities in Italy.

Water is local. In Rome it comes from the water utility Acea Ato 2, whose 2026 rates took effect on January 1, 2026:

Both account types also pay fixed yearly charges: €85.34 for a non-resident account, and for residents €28.45 multiplied by a household factor in Acea's table. Acea publishes a separate rate for shared building meters, so ask whether water is billed to you or through the building.

TARI: Rome's waste tax in 2026

TARI (tassa sui rifiuti, waste tax) pays for rubbish collection. In Rome it is set by Roma Capitale, the city government, and run with AMA, the city's waste company. The city council approved the 2026 rates on July 21, 2026, with effect from January 1.

The city put the average increase for households at about 5.19% in 2026. The bill has two parts: a charge per square meter and a fixed amount per year. Both depend on how many people live in the home.

The bill also adds TEFA, a tax set by the Metropolitan City of Rome, and surcharges set by ARERA.

How Rome applies it:

• Floor area. You declare the net internal area, without terraces and balconies, but with cellars and covered parking.
• People counted. Residents are counted from the registry. A home with no registered resident is presumed to have 3 occupants unless you prove otherwise.
• Registration. File the TARI declaration with AMA within 90 days of moving in, online with SPID (Italy's digital identity login) or by the other methods on AMA's site.
• No automatic switch. Registering your residence does not move the TARI account. You must file it yourself.
• Payment. From 2026, TARI is paid in 4 installments on account, due February 28, May 31, August 31 and November 30. In 2026 only, the first was due March 31. The balance at the new rates comes on the next bill.

Households with an ISEE (Italy's means-test indicator) of up to €9,796 get 25% off, with no application beyond filing the ISEE declaration with INPS (the national social security institute). The discount appears on the following year's bill. More in TARI.

Getting around: Metrebus passes

One Metrebus Roma pass covers ATAC buses, trams and metro, plus regional trains within Rome. Prices as of October 2026:

The discounts in the table are for Rome residents, with one exception. Non-resident students qualify for the student pass with a scholarship or a place in a Casa dello studente (student residence). Routes are in The Rome Metro and Public Transport.

Groceries, eating out and other household spending

ISTAT's 2025 figures for Lazio show where the money goes, against the national average:

Food takes 19.3% of household spending in Lazio. Health spending is the outlier: Lazio households spent more than any region except Valle d'Aosta.

ISTAT's housing figure for Lazio, €1,078.26 a month, includes €713.39 of imputed rent. That is an estimated rental value for owners, not money paid. For renters, Idealista's asking rents above are the better guide.

Health care costs

What you pay depends on your permit. Workers and holders of work or family permits enroll in the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale (SSN, national health service) on the same terms as Italians.

Other legal residents must buy health insurance valid in Italy or enroll voluntarily. Voluntary enrollment costs at least €2,000 a year under national law, based on income (at least €700 for students). It covers dependent family members.

The formula and how to pay are in Voluntary SSN Enrollment. Which ASL (local health authority) covers your district is in Living in Rome. Budget for out-of-pocket care too: Lazio households spent €147.71 a month on health in 2025.

Childcare and school

Roma Capitale runs municipal nurseries (asili nido) for children up to 3. The monthly fee depends on your ISEE and on the hours you choose. Meals are included.

Three rules shape the cost:

• ISEE authorization. You must let the city fetch your child's ISEE from INPS when you apply. Otherwise the maximum fee applies.
• Fees are fixed. They are due whether or not your child attends.
• Main enrollment window. For 2026/27 it ran from February 24 to March 30, 2026. Families who gain Rome residence after that can apply late (fuori termine) for places that free up.

The city's online simulator calculates your fee from the year, service, hours and ISEE. Families looking at private options can start with International Schools in Rome.

Monthly cost components with sources

Common problems and fixes

Asking whether one salary covers Rome. Newcomers often ask online whether a given income is enough for Rome. The answer turns on the district. Price the rent for your area first, then add the other lines.

Paying non-resident rates before you register. Rome's transit discounts are for residents. A home with no registered resident is taxed for 3 occupants, and non-resident water accounts lack the subsidized band. Register your residence soon after you move in, then update TARI and ask Acea which rate your contract uses. See Registering Residency in Italy.

A TARI bill in the previous tenant's name. The account does not transfer by itself. Roma Capitale asks you to call AMA on 060606 before paying, and to file your own declaration within 90 days.

Students budgeting from general averages. Students regularly ask what a month in Rome costs. Household averages do not fit a student. Check the transit rules: the student pass needs residence, a scholarship or a student residence place.

A rent increase at renewal. If your lease has an annual inflation update, expect it. Ask before you sign whether the landlord uses the cedolare secca, which suspends that update.

Do you need help with this?

Most people can build a Rome budget from these sources on their own. It gets harder when you are choosing a district from abroad, or when a visa application depends on proving the numbers.