✦ Compare
Lyon vs
Rome
Cost-of-living comparison and salary equivalence. Enter your current salary to see what you'd need to earn to live equally well.
Lyon, FR vs Rome, IT at a glance — Rome, IT is 1% more expensive than Lyon, FR overall. Median 1-bed rent runs about $1,200/mo versus $900/mo. Top income tax: 43% vs 45%.
To keep the same standard of living in Rome, IT, you'd need
$75,550 / year
Rome, IT is 1% more expensive overall
Category breakdown (Rome, IT vs Lyon, FR)
- Housing+12%
- Food & groceries-7%
- Transport-4%
- Utilities+7%
- Healthcare-2%
- Goods & services-7%
◎ How Lyon, FR and Rome, IT compare
Index vs the US average — the line marks 100. Lower is cheaper.
▤ Full comparison
| Lyon, FR | Rome, IT | |
|---|---|---|
| Cost of living | ||
| Overall cost index | 99 | 100 |
| Housing | 98 | 110 |
| Food | 107 | 100 |
| Transport | 78 | 75 |
| Utilities | 112 | 120 |
| Healthcare | 82 | 80 |
| Goods & services | 107 | 100 |
| Housing | ||
| Rent, 1-bed centre | $900/mo | $1,200/mo |
| Rent, 1-bed outside | $680/mo | $900/mo |
| Rent, 3-bed centre | $1,800/mo | $2,400/mo |
| Buy price / m² centre | $6,000 | $6,500 |
| Money & purchasing power | ||
| $1,000 goes as far as | $1,005 | $998 |
| Inexpensive meal | $15 | $15 |
| Monthly transit pass | $70 | $38 |
| Taxes | ||
| Income tax (top rate) | 45% | 43% |
| VAT / sales tax | 20% | 22% |
| Social security (employee) | 22% | — |
| Corporate tax | 25% | 24% |
| Capital gains | 30% | 26% |
| Economy & salaries | ||
| Avg net salary | $2,600/mo | $1,900/mo |
| Avg annual wage (OECD, PPP) | $60,483✓ | $53,864✓ |
| Minimum wage | $2,164/mo✓ | — |
| GDP per capita | $48,986✓ | $43,309✓ |
| Inflation (annual) | 0.9%✓ | 1.5%✓ |
| Work & digital nomad | ||
| Digital-nomad visa | No | Yes |
| English proficiency | Moderate | Low |
| Coworking spaces | 30 | 40 |
| Time zone | UTC+1 | UTC+1 |
| Quality of life | ||
| Quality of life (overall) | 74 | 68 |
| Safety index | 66 | 55 |
| Healthcare index | 85 | 78 |
| Pollution index | 45 | 60 |
| Internet speed | 160 Mbps | 100 Mbps |
| Walkability | 82 | 85 |
| Public transport | 80 | 75 |
| Family-friendly | 74 | 64 |
| Tap water | Safe to drink | Safe to drink |
| Life expectancy | 83 yr✓ | 84 yr✓ |
| LGBTQ+ acceptance | High | Moderate |
| Climate | ||
| January avg | +4 °C | +8 °C |
| July avg | +22 °C | +25 °C |
| Sunny days / year | 200 | 200 |
| Rainfall / year | 830 mm | 800 mm |
| Connectivity | ||
| Flight to nearest hub | 1 h | 1 h |
Taxes & Economy & salaries: France vs Italy. Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.
✓ = official statistics (OECD (PPP), Eurostat 2026, World Bank 2025, World Bank 2024). Unmarked figures are CostTrek estimates. How we calculate these figures →
Cost of living: Lyon vs Rome — in your currency
Converted from USD at approximate rates (2026-09).
Good to know before you move to Lyon
A UNESCO-listed city where two rivers meet — France's food capital, a two-hour TGV from Paris at a fraction of its rents. Renaissance streets, a strong tech and biotech scene and easy weekend access to the Alps make it a favourite softer landing than the capital.
- Currency
- Euro (€ EUR)
- Languages
- French
- Time zone
- UTC+1
- Internet
- 160 Mbps
- English
- Fairly common
- Safety
- 66/100
- Climate
- ❄ 4°C · ☀ 22°C · 200 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- E · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Presqu'île · Croix-Rousse · Confluence · Vieux Lyon
Good to know before you move to Rome
Living inside an open-air museum — unbeatable food and history, but slow bureaucracy and patchy transit.
- Currency
- Euro (€ EUR)
- Languages
- Italian
- Time zone
- UTC+1
- Internet
- 100 Mbps
- English
- Rarely spoken
- Safety
- 55/100
- Climate
- ❄ 8°C · ☀ 25°C · 200 sunny days/yr
- Tap water
- Safe to drink
- Power
- F/L · 230V
- Driving
- Right-hand side
- Popular areas
- Trastevere · Monti · Prati
Plan your move to Lyon
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalDiscoverCars
- Airport transferWelcome Pickups
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- Tours & ticketsTiqets
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Flight compensationAirHelp
Sponsored
Plan your move to Rome
Everything you will book for the move — sorted, and updated as we add partners.
- FlightsCheapvuelos
- FlightsAviasales
- HotelsPlanetofhotels
- Car rentalLocalrent
- Airport transferWelcome Pickups
- Tours & ticketsKlook
- Tours & ticketsTiqets
- InsuranceSafetyWing
- eSIM / dataAiralo
- Luggage storageRadical Storage
- Flight compensationAirHelp
Sponsored
? Frequently asked questions
Moving from Lyon to Rome: cheaper or more expensive?
Moving from Lyon to Rome, your cost of living will be roughly 1% more expensive. Rome’s cost-of-living index is 100 versus 99 for Lyon (US = 100). Use the salary tool above to see the income you’d need to keep the same lifestyle.
Is Lyon cheaper than Rome?
Rome is about 1% more expensive than Lyon overall — its cost-of-living index is 100 versus 99 for Lyon.
Which is more expensive, Lyon or Rome?
Rome is more expensive than Lyon. Its cost-of-living index is 100 vs 99 (US = 100) — about 1% higher.
Is rent cheaper in Lyon or Rome?
Rent is cheaper in Lyon — about $900/month for a one-bedroom in the city centre, vs $1,200 in Rome.
How much do you need to earn in Rome to live like in Lyon?
To keep the same standard of living, a $75,000 salary in Lyon is worth about $75,550 in Rome. Enter your own figure in the calculator above.
Which has lower taxes, Lyon or Rome?
Italy has the lower top income-tax rate — 43% versus 45% in France.
◷ More comparisons from Lyon
How we calculate these figures →
Estimates use approximate cost-of-living indices (US average = 100) and are for general guidance only.