BELGRADE, CITY OF LOW LIVING COSTS

For the guests coming from countries in which average salaries are measured in thousands of euros, Belgrade is often shockingly cheap. Whether they are on a city jumping trip, on vacation or on a business trip, Belgrade is the city where they can eat, drink, have fun and find cheap accommodation. New data from website expatistan.com, which is keeping track of the living costs around the world by having the residents of major cities report the prices, shows that Belgrade is still among 10 of the cheapest capitals in Europe, but it also shows prices steadily climbing. For those who still haven’t visited Belgrade, but would love to, it would be the best if they could come this year or in next few years while Belgrade is still cheap enough, so they can get the most for their money.

More expensive cities are shown in red, and the cheapest ones in green

Presently, Belgrade holds 77. place among 96 European cities on this list. Price index is 87, meaning Belgrade is 13% cheaper than Prague, which is the reference city for Expatistan database. Some will be surprised by the relatively small difference in prices shown here, but keep in mind these are not the prices taken from places tourists usually visit, places which made some cities famously expensive (the notorious 10 Euro coffee in Venice and 10 CHF sandwich in Zurich), but those from places where most of the residents shop – prices form the green market or from the local pub.

BUDAPEST IS CLOSER THAN ZAGREB

Belgrade is the third most expensive capital city in South-eastern Europe, coming after Ljubljana and Zagreb. The differences between all major cities in the Eastern Europe are rather small, and most of the cities are in 75-90 category, so you will spend very similar amounts whether you plan a trip to Sofia, Sarajevo, Budapest or Brno. Living costs below 70 are only registered in Ukraine, Moldavia, Kosovo, and – might be hard to believe – Novi Sad in Serbia. Index of living costs in Croatia ia already above 100, in Slovenia above 120, but really pricey cities are those holding first 50 places on the list, all of them being cities in Western Europe. In the UK, as well as in Norway and Switzerland, indexes are above 200, with Zurich holding the first place with the value of 258, so the myth of 10 CHF sandwich is really not a myth.

CHEAP AND HEALTY FOOD

Lets take a look at some of the prices which together form the index of living costs. A typical lunch including a drink in city centre will cost 9€ , one kilogram of apples is just 0.8€ , while bottle of good wine costs 5.8 € . The one category in which Belgrade is really cheap is in agricultural products. When buying eggs, cheese, fruits or vegetables, the cost is 3 to 7 times lower than in most of the cities in Europe (in the UK and France 10 eggs for 10€ is quite normal). Belgrade is also a great place for fast food lovers, prices being twice as low than in other European cities. The same goes for beer, which is three times cheaper than in most other places.

Apartments for rent also come cheaper than in other big cities. A well furnished apartment in greater central Belgrade, 45m² in size, cost about 380€ per month, while in Vienna the similar apartment costs 850 Euros. This analysis again confirms that apartment renting in Belgrade through SKY Apartments company provides the best value for all visits shorter than 15 days, even with prices of monthly renting being as low as they are. This is especially true when comparing the comfort level and apliences in SKY Apartments and those in a typical long term apartment for rent. Also, our guests do not have to pay the costs of cable TV, internet or electricity. Whichever way we look at it, Belgrade is one of the cheapset cities in Europe, and cheap accommodation is one of Belgrade’s main advantages.