Nomad Watch

Researched Updated Oct 31, 2026 Last changed Oct 31, 2026 About costs

Cost breakdown

Digital nomad: short-term stay (1-3 months). Furnished Airbnb or coliving near center, coworking, eating out ~3x/day, travel health insurance.

Expat: long-term resident (1+ years). Renting apartment in center, mix of cooking and dining out, local health insurance, settled lifestyle.

Family: middle-class 4-person family. 2-3 bedroom in suburbs, groceries for 4, international school, car/transport, family health plan.

Local: budget-conscious local resident. Renting outside center, cooking at home, public transport, local phone plan.

Tourist: short-stay visitor (1-14 days). Hotel/Airbnb nightly, all meals at restaurants, taxis, sightseeing.

CategoryCost
Housing 1 2 3 $1,852 $1,487 $1,796 $1,235 $112
Utilities 24 33 — $90 $134 $81 —
Internet & Mobile 8 10 $58 $58 $73 $51 $2
Groceries 15 16 17 18 19 20 25 28 29 $282 $335 $837 $247 $9
Transportation 5 6 7 $95 $135 $314 $28 $20
Dining Out 21 30 31 32 $1,179 $449 $696 $185 $84
Leisure Activities 22 23 25 27 $247 $146 $2,857 $114 $31
Health Insurance 13 $68 — — — $2
Visa & Legal Fees 14 $37 $37 $150 — —
Total $3,818 $2,737 $6,857 $1,941 $260

Itemized prices

Local prices converted to the selected currency.

Food & Dining

Chicken Fillets 18 $13.46 per kg
Beef 19 $15.66 per kg
Coffee 31 32 $4.04 per cup
Beer 32 $5.05 per pint
Meal (Inexpensive) 30 $16.72 per meal
Fast Food Combo 21 $5.05 per meal
Apples 28 $3.31 per kg
Bread 16 $1.57 per loaf
Milk 15 $1.54 per liter
Rice 17 $6.16 per kg
Wine (Mid-range) 20 $9.65 per bottle
Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) $100.91 per meal
Water (1.5L bottle) 29 $1.07 per bottle

Housing

Apartment (1 bedroom) 1 4 $1,487.26 $1,179 – $1,796 per month
Coworking Space 12 $364.80 per month
Airbnb (1 month) 3 $1,852.06 per month
Coliving Space $954.09 per month

Transportation

Taxi Start 5 $3.93 per trip
Taxi per km 5 $1.80 per km
Monthly Transport Pass 6 7 $2.34 per month
Gasoline 11 $1.50 per liter
Ride-hailing (5km) 5 $13.92 per trip
Scooter Rental $168.37 per month

Services

Mobile Plan 8 $14.62 per month
Internet (60 Mbps+) 9 10 $43.75 per month
Gym Membership 23 $78.57 per month
Tennis Court (Weekend) $24.69 per hour
SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 8 $6.72 one-time

Entertainment

Cinema Ticket 22 $11.11 per ticket

Clothing

Jeans $93.63 per pair
Summer Dress $50.51 per dress
Running Shoes $141.35 per pair

Personal Care

Haircut 35 $16.84 per visit
Laundry 34 $1.50 per kg

Healthcare

Doctor Visit (GP) 26 $16.84 per visit
Pharmacy (basic meds) $8.15 per purchase

About these costs

Method
Researched
Last updated
Oct 31, 2026
Last changed
Oct 31, 2026
Exchange rate
1 USD = 0.8909 EUR on Oct 19, 2026

Checked against the sources below and compared with similar cities. Numbers in the list point to these sources.

Compared with Valletta, Bugibba, Hanoi, Berlin, Valencia

  1. Maltaexpat 2026 — St Julian's 1-bed €1,050–€1,600 (typical €1,325), 2-bed €1,350–€2,400Secondary
  2. MyRent 2-bed long let St Julian's €1,400/monthListings
  3. MyRent furnished short let St Julian's €100/nightListings
  4. MyRent St Julian's apartment long let €1,900/monthListings
  5. S.L.499.59 taxi meter maxima €3.50 flag, €2.50 first km, €1.60/kmOfficial
  6. Wikivoyage Malta bus cash fares €2.50 summer, €2.00 winter, €3.00 nightSecondary
  7. Personalised tallinja card €25; free bus travel schemeOfficial
  8. GO Smart S €5.99 / Smart M €11.99 per 28 daysOfficial
  9. GO home internet from €27.99/monthOfficial
  10. GO Home Pack Internet and TV Boost 300/30 Mbps, €38.98 per monthOfficial
  11. Malta RON 95 €1.34/litreIndex
  12. SOHO St Julian's dedicated desk from €325/monthOfficial
  13. SafetyWing Nomad Insurance Essential $62.72 per 4 weeks, ages 10-39, USDOfficial
  14. Nomad Residence Permit fees: €300 application and €100 card per personOfficial
  15. Greens Benna whole milk 1 L €1.37Listings
  16. Greens Jesper's white sliced loaf 600 g €1.40Listings
  17. Greens Tilda basmati rice gluten free 1 kg €5.49Listings
  18. Greens fresh chicken breast sliced €11.99/kgListings
  19. Greens lean beef mince €13.95 per kiloListings
  20. Greens Barton & Guestier Cabernet Sauvignon 750 ml €8.60Listings
  21. McDonald’s Malta Saverplus meals €4.50Official
  22. Eden Cinemas adult regular ticket €9.90Official
  23. 24/7 Fitness Club Malta 1-month membership €70Official
  24. Enemalta domestic bands €0.1365/kWh to 2,000 kWh, €0.1673 to 6,000, €0.2023 to 10,000Official
  25. Livingcost.org Malta national cross-check (tourist day assumptions)Index
  26. St James Sliema walk-in GP €15 weekday, €25 weekendSecondary
  27. Verdala International School 2026–27 fees: €11,700/yr K–Grade 5, €300 two-student discountOfficial
  28. Greens Red Delicious apples €2.95/kgListings
  29. Greens San Benedetto sparkling water 1.5 L €0.95 offer, €1.05 regularListings
  30. Don Pizza Bar St Julian's (Triq Wilga) — pasta €14.90–€18.90Listings
  31. La Crema St Julian's — cappuccino €3.60, large €4.00Listings
  32. Dolce Sicilia Paceville — Cisk Excel 500 ml €4.50; cappuccino €1.70Listings
  33. WSC domestic water €1.3965/m³ to 33 m³, €5.1395 above, per resident per yearOfficial
  34. WhizzFix St Julian's laundry: wash-dry-fold €8 per 6 kg; self-service wash €8Official
  35. Fade O'Clock St Julian's — classic haircut €15Official

Change history

    • Method Generated Researched
    • Airbnb (1 month) 1734.74 1852.06
    • Apartment (1 bedroom) 1098.67 1487.26
    • Apples 2.54 3.31
    • Beef 13.88 15.66
    • Beer 4.63 5.05
    40 more changes
    • Bread 1.73 1.57
    • Chicken Fillets 9.25 13.46
    • Cinema Ticket 10.41 11.11
    • Coffee 2.89 4.04
    • Coliving Space 809.55 954.09
    • Coworking Space 208.17 364.8
    • Dining Out local 115.65, nomad 693.9, expat 346.95, family 231.3, tourist 57.82 local 185.21, nomad 1178.58, expat 448.98, family 695.93, tourist 84.18
    • Doctor Visit (GP) 57.82 16.84
    • Fast Food Combo 9.83 5.05
    • Gasoline 1.56 1.5
    • Groceries local 289.12, nomad 115.65, expat 462.6, family 693.9, tourist 0 local 246.65, nomad 281.92, expat 334.7, family 836.88, tourist 8.98
    • Gym Membership 52.04 78.57
    • Haircut 23.13 16.84
    • Health Insurance local 34.69, nomad 69.39, expat 80.95, family 231.3, tourist 5.78 local 0, nomad 68.13, tourist 2.24
    • Housing local 693.9, nomad 1503.44, expat 1156.49, family 1734.74, tourist 115.65 local 1234.71, nomad 1852.06, expat 1487.26, family 1795.94, tourist 112.25
    • Internet & Mobile local 34.69, nomad 57.82, expat 57.82, family 80.95, tourist 0 local 51.06, nomad 58.37, expat 58.37, family 72.98, tourist 1.68
    • Internet (60 Mbps+) 40.48 43.75
    • Jeans 80.95 93.63
    • Laundry 9.25 1.5
    • Leisure Activities local 57.82, nomad 231.3, expat 115.65, family 231.3, tourist 34.69 local 114.38, nomad 246.94, expat 145.92, family 2856.66, tourist 31.43
    • Meal (Inexpensive) 13.88 16.72
    • Meal (Mid-range, 2 people) 63.61 100.91
    • Milk 1.39 1.54
    • Mobile Plan 23.13 14.62
    • Monthly Transport Pass 30.07 2.34
    • Pharmacy (basic meds) 11.56 8.15
    • Rice 2.08 6.16
    • Ride-hailing (5km) 9.25 13.92
    • Running Shoes 98.3 141.35
    • SIM Card (Tourist, prepaid) 23.11 6.72
    • Scooter Rental 28.91 168.37
    • Summer Dress 40.48 50.51
    • Taxi Start 5.78 3.93
    • Taxi per km 1.73 1.8
    • Tennis Court (Weekend) 17.35 24.69
    • Transportation local 28.91, nomad 57.82, expat 92.52, family 231.3, tourist 23.13 local 28.16, nomad 95.41, expat 134.7, family 314.29, tourist 20.2
    • Utilities local 92.52, nomad 57.82, expat 115.65, family 173.47, tourist 0 local 80.87, nomad 0, expat 90.26, family 133.85, tourist 0
    • Visa & Legal Fees local 0, nomad 57.82, expat 115.65, family 1734.74 local 0, nomad 37.42, expat 37.42, family 149.66
    • Water (1.5L bottle) 0.93 1.07
    • Wine (Mid-range) 13.88 9.65

    Fix pass after the batch's independent check. Coffee, Rice, Beef, Wine (Mid-range), Water (1.5L bottle), Mobile Plan, Gasoline, Coworking Space, Haircut, Laundry and Doctor Visit (GP) re-sourced from pages that load and show their number (wolt.com, greens.com.mt, greens.com.mt, whizzfix.com, fadeoclockmalta.com); Utilities, Internet & Mobile, Groceries, Transportation local, Dining Out, Leisure Activities and Visa & Legal Fees recalculated with exact per-profile formulas, Visa & Legal Fees family now covering four permit applicants (nomad.residencymalta.gov.mt); Health Insurance nomad and tourist recomputed from the dollar list price and the unsupported expat and family premiums removed; Beer re-sourced to a Paceville menu at the same price; Airbnb (1 month) monthly range and the Housing high-season multiplier removed as unsupported; Tennis Court (Weekend), Jeans, Summer Dress, Running Shoes, Coliving Space, Meal (Mid-range, 2 people), Scooter Rental and Pharmacy (basic meds) kept their values without citations after their only source page disappeared.

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