Cost of living per month

Emmaspoon wrote:

Hi
Please can anyone tell me how much is the average spend a month for food, bills, going out etc
Thanks

depends on where on the island you live and your family unit etc because cost of living for two varies to the cost of living for a family of four

please provide some more information and i will provide you with the details you require

Thanks for the reply we are looking at mellieha we know that the rent is around 700 but not sure about other costs

Sorry forgot to say we are just two adults

Okay- 2 people 
Gas 15-20 euro for a canister lasts approximately 3 months dependent on usage ( mainly just cooking )
Electric providing your on the correct tarrif I would be expecting to pay no more than 75-100euro a month however heaters/ air con can add to this cost

Water - is included with  the electric bill - however you will probably want to include bottled water which will be on average about 2€ for 6 bottles and I would expect to use 2-3 crates a week especially when it's hot  however it all depends on how much water you actually drink  - I love to keep hydrated so I propbably drink more than most

Food -again this all depends on what your used to - you can budget quite well if you use places like lidl and pavi for your main shop and fruit and veg vans etc  I would budget between 200-250 a month however you can eat well for a lot less than this

Eating out - an average main meal price accross can be about 8-9 euro depending on the restaurant however portions sizes are quite decent so well worth the money

Accommodation - I would say for milleiha 700 euros is probably a reasonable rent depending on the size of the property looking today you can get two beds for about 585 euros
However please remember if your renting through an agent you will be required to pay half a month rent in fees

Travel - bus if you apply for the www.tallinja.com card (you can order now with your passport - allow two -four weeks delivery )  a single journey is 75cts to a maximum of 26€ a month  for an adult card and 25cts to - max of 2€ a week if your a concession (age disability child etc )

Internet/  home phone  you will be looking at paying 20-30 euros dependent on the package you take and the speed of the Internet  - two companies offer fixed line broadband go and melita - Vodafone offers 4g at home broadband too now

Anything else you would like to know please ask

Thanks for  information.
Ivana

Thanks so much for the info really appreciated

We are french and we live in Mellieha. It is the more expensive of the iland. We pay 700 € for an appartment of 100 M² 3 rooms a room for washing and it is a new flat !!
Melieha is very nice !!

Thanks everyone for your detailed replies - especially you, Rob Very helpful for us, too

in malta if you share the flat you need minimum 250 euro for flat and for food another minimum 400 euros

400 euro a month for food ?? Where are you shopping fortnam and mason ??? Even for 2 people I don't spend that

depent what are you eating my friend,if you eat pasta and cheap sausages maiby you spend less but i am shoping in sliema in scots and in tower,come one day buy from here,i am single and i dont cook.if you live in marsaskala of corse is cheaper coz in sliema you cannot find flat under 600euro.change the place and you will see the diferense.nice evening

I don't eat cheap sausages , I cook from scratch - I shop around etc  I still think 400 euros for food for one person is an awful lot of money to spend but each to their own

bernie_iris_fabian_david wrote:

Thanks everyone for your detailed replies - especially you, Rob Very helpful for us, too

Rob is always helpful

have nice evening my friend
and enjoy your meals

200-250 pm on food... If you eat well - fruit, greens, normal meat, chicken and all that then 20/day is a struggle for two people. That's if you cook from scratch. That's what we spent on food when living in Gozo for 8 months in 2013... about 600/month.

Food is a lot more expensive in Malta than it is in Spain, Portugal... it's cheaper than the UK though. We struggled to spend 20/day on groceries in Menorca, Tenerife (north)... most days it'd come to about 15/day for the exact same stuff we'd pay 20-25 for in Malta. Our diet hasn't changed much since 2013 lol.

We don't buy processed foods, prepared meals, etc. Most days it's fresh baguettes, salad, a couple bell peppers, 500g chicken or turkey, 5l water, 2-3 kilos of fresh fruit (bananas, kiwis, papayas, mangoes, peaches, apples, pears, whatever - normally a good mix), 100-200 g nuts (walnuts, hazelnuts), pasta/rice, a couple fresh pastries, soup (mostly in Spain), croutons, yoghurt, some fish and potatoes for grilling and then random non-daily purchases like spices, olive oil, etc.

I also enjoy an occasional beef steak or some pork ribs but that's like once a week tops. I marinade them in good and modestly priced (Spain) or meh and overpriced (Malta) wine.

We drink about a bottle of red wine a week - so four bottles a month for two people. That's like 50 ml/day per person so that's not where the money goes lol.

It's very, veeery cheap to live on a diet like that in Spain. Not so in Malta.

Edit: I just looked at our past budgets and basically in Gozo we had to budget to fit into 600/month (and we'd often skip certain items in order to not go over). In Spain we spent about 500 and never even looked at food prices (and bought more fresh produce than we could afford to buy in Gozo).

Are you are from Serbia?How long you live in Malta? ,befor was per person 300E.And I had a flat in Msida in that time.I live in Malta,in a past 8 years.Till 2010.Year.I'm from Serbia.And just want to move in Malta,with a child of 5 years.I'm Single mother ,and if you can help me ,about the fees,per months.And which place is the best,for live in Malta.?

Honest advice please!

My husband has just arrived in Malta and is working for Betway in gzira. The company are providing hotel accommodation whilst he looks for an apartment for us (I can't move out until Xmas) we looked online a lot before we moved and thought that 500-600 euro was a decent budget for a 2/3 bed apartment within walking distance of his office. However now he's there the first estate agent is saying we won't find anything below €1000 is this right or is he trying it on?!

Gzira is expensive and property prices have risen however if you use an agent then of course they are going to try and shoe horn you into a place tha suits them - my advice look on Malta park , speak to landlords direct and be prepared to haggle for example if I take the property for two years can I get rent for ... It doesn't always al work but it's a decent start , landlords love people who are interested in long lets

Great advice as always! Thanks Rob.nice to know we are not being totally un realistic. We also thought about Msida and Taxbiex, would they been any cheaper?

Chelleclover wrote:

Great advice as always! Thanks Rob.nice to know we are not being totally un realistic. We also thought about Msida and Taxbiex, would they been any cheaper?

As always , it depends on the property!

Ta'xbiex tends to be more expensive as lots of new fancy big apartments, and embassies, but there are other properties, I'd guess Msida is less, again depends where. Shop around and don;t just trust one agent, they want you in an expensive place, they make more commission

Emmaspoon wrote:

Thanks for the reply we are looking at mellieha we know that the rent is around 700 but not sure about other costs

I have lived i mellieha 2.5 years.

Yes you can rent with a budget of €700, you should get something nice (depending on your requirements, and the landlord, and the property, penthouse with sea view now may be more!).

I don't spend €100 pm on electric/water though with two you may spend more than me, I use A/C when I need it which puts the bill up, and I'm home all day- if you're at work your a/c and heating costs will be lower than mine.

In winter I'd get through a gas cylinder in 10-14 days for heating

You won't get a main meal for €9 in many places here either.

You should factor in that most people don't only go out locally but will travel to St Julians, Sliema , Valletta sometimes to meet others. Cost of drinks and food varies a lot depending where you go, so it will depend what you like and who you hang out with! Though overall its massively cheaper than UK I think.

I don't think you can really tell someone else how much their food bill will be, as you can see from earlier comments, everyone has different preferences about what to by, where to shop, what they cook, how often they eat in or out.etc 

Shout if you need any specific Mellieha info

Thanks so much for the info this is great