Write down the bills you already know
Begin with rent or mortgage, internet, mobile plans and other regular commitments. Use the amount your household pays, not the full property cost if you share it. Keep one-off moving costs and refundable deposits separate from recurring monthly spending.
If rent includes some utilities, record what is included before adding estimates. A single combined payment and its underlying bills should not both appear in the total.
- Housing and shared building costs.
- Food, household supplies and personal care.
- Electricity, water and communications.
- Transport, insurance and annual bills.
- Childcare, health, subscriptions and other commitments.
- Savings or a contingency amount chosen by you.
Put every item on the same time basis
A weekly amount multiplied by four represents 28 days. For an average calendar-month provision, use weekly amount × 52 ÷ 12. For annual bills, divide by 12. These are budgeting conventions, not a prediction of a particular month’s bank balance.
Converting costs without losing the missing weeks
- €100 of groceries a week becomes €433.33 per average month.
- €360 of annual insurance becomes a €30 monthly provision.
- A €20 weekly commute becomes €86.67 per average month if it runs for all 52 weeks.
- Adjust the travel weeks for leave and remote work before using that annual assumption.
Use the local tools for the uncertain lines
Estimate your bus or driving costs from the journeys you actually make. If you regularly cross to Gozo, add completed return trips. For utilities, use account type, registered occupants, consumption and billing days rather than a generic household average.
The electricity and water tools are residential tariff estimates. They do not read your account or reproduce every adjustment on a bill. When a real bill arrives, replace the estimate and keep a note of the difference.
Sources: REWS: residential electricity tariffs; REWS: residential water tariffs; Malta Public Transport: fares and free travel.
Treat refundable deposits consistently
BCRS applies a €0.10 deposit to eligible single-use beverage containers. If you record groceries including deposits, a refund reduces that spending when received. Do not count the refund twice as both a discount and additional income.
The deposit calculator can help estimate the value of eligible containers you have collected. Eligibility depends on the scheme and product, so a bottle-shaped container is not automatically worth a refund.
Review one month, then improve the assumptions
Keep the first version simple enough to maintain. Compare it with actual spending after a month and change the few categories that caused the largest gap. Separate a one-off expense from a recurring underestimate.
If you are considering a move to Malta, create two versions using actual rental quotes and different transport choices. Leave unconfirmed costs visible. A range of plausible budgets is more honest than an invented universal cost of living.
Make it your own
Put your numbers to work.
Adjust the inputs, see the workings and save a result with the assumptions attached.
Build your monthly budgetSources and review
This guide was checked on 3 November 2026. Tariffs and conditions can change. Follow the operator or regulator links before making a commitment. Read our editorial policy.