{"id":697640,"date":"2026-01-15T12:38:15","date_gmt":"2026-01-15T12:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/697640\/"},"modified":"2026-01-15T12:38:15","modified_gmt":"2026-01-15T12:38:15","slug":"gorgeous-european-country-named-cheapest-for-british-expats-beating-spain-and-portugal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/697640\/","title":{"rendered":"Gorgeous European country named cheapest for British expats \u2014 beating Spain and Portugal"},"content":{"rendered":"

A study comparing the cost of living in six European countries found this gorgeous place was the most affordable for British expats, despite higher energy costs<\/p>\n

12:12, 15 Jan 2026Updated 12:12, 15 Jan 2026<\/p>\n

\"Woman<\/p>\n

This gorgeous spot is the cheapest in Europe(Image: Kathrin Ziegler via Getty Images)<\/p>\n

YourOverseasHome examined the price of everyday necessities across six European nations alongside the UK, with one breathtaking country emerging as the clear winner for British expatriates.<\/a><\/p>\n

Jet-setting<\/a> can raise numerous queries, from which drinks to steer clear of mid-flight to precisely what airport security scanners detect.<\/p>\n

Travel specialists at eShores gathered the most searched-for travel queries and exposed the most widespread misconceptions.<\/p>\n

YourOverseasHome revealed: “Despite there being a few cities and towns that have reputations for being expensive destinations, Italy is by far the cheapest place to live long term when you’re not spending like a traveller.<\/p>\n

“This is despite the fact that energy costs more in Italy!”.<\/a><\/p>\n

\"TRAVEL:<\/p>\n

A cappucino is just over a \u00a31 in Italy(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n

“Of course, we acknowledge the fact that the true cost of living will vary significantly from region to region, but to live in a run-of-the-mill town or village outside the usual tourist hotspots, Italy is apparently the most reasonable.”<\/p>\n

Whilst electricity bills might be steeper in Italy, food shopping is typically far more budget-friendly compared to the UK.<\/p>\n

Seafood, confectionery and gin cost more than twice as much in Britain as they do in Italy, though iceberg lettuce was most economical in the UK.<\/p>\n

Brits might also slash their housing expenses in Italy, where the cost of decorating materials or hiring a domestic cleaner falls below UK rates.<\/p>\n

Electronic goods like televisions or Amazon Alexa Echo Dots came with smaller price tags in Italy compared to Britain.<\/p>\n

UK residents could also grab a cappuccino at an Italian caf\u00e9 for merely \u00a31 on average, versus roughly \u00a33.20 back home.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, dining out proved most affordable in Spain, where a three-course meal would only cost someone around \u00a313 typically.<\/p>\n

Dental visits were most budget-friendly in Spain, running about \u00a321.50 against Germany’s \u00a350.<\/p>\n

\"TRAVEL:<\/p>\n

A three course dinner out was cheapest in Spain(Image: Getty)<\/p>\n

Britons might also cut costs on entertainment by relocating overseas, with cinema tickets carrying much steeper prices in the UK than in the other nations examined.<\/p>\n

Yet certain items remained more affordable in Britain, with paracetamol retailing for nearly 10 times the cost in Italy.<\/p>\n

Greece recorded the steepest fuel charges at \u00a386 for 50 litres of unleaded petrol versus the UK’s \u00a381.<\/p>\n

In Portugal, British emigrants could make savings on petrol, where the equivalent quantity of fuel costs approximately \u00a378.<\/p>\n

Christopher Nye, chief editor at YourOverseasHome.com, commented: “We know that thousands of Britons are considering moving abroad, more so than ever! UK natives are looking to jump ship to avoid high energy costs and neverending price rises.<\/p>\n

“But if you’re moving under the assumption that you’ll be getting more for your money, you could very well be jumping from the frying pan into the fire, as prices have shot up across the eurozone too.”<\/p>\n

Following the UK, Germany was ranked as the next priciest place to reside, with Spain and France trailing behind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A study comparing the cost of living in six European countries found this gorgeous place was the most…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":697641,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5312],"tags":[325,931,2000,299,2199,5766,62802,104,183],"class_list":{"0":"post-697640","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-spain","8":"tag-amazon-alexa","9":"tag-energy-bills","10":"tag-eu","11":"tag-europe","12":"tag-italy","13":"tag-paracetamol","14":"tag-price-rises","15":"tag-spain","16":"tag-travel"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/115899158044701612","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/697640","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=697640"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/697640\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/697641"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=697640"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=697640"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=697640"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}