The total for 18 selected products and drinks in Montenegro was 49.80 euros in October 2026, 28.7% below the European Union average, according to a comparison compiled by Euronews Business using data linked to Numbeo. Montenegro shared eighth place among the cheapest markets covered with Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The same selection cost 69.84 euros on average in the EU, leaving a difference of just over 20 euros from the Montenegrin total. The figures compare the prices of the same selection across markets; they do not show how affordable the products are for local households.
At 49.70 euros, Serbia was ten cents cheaper than Montenegro, while the total in Bosnia and Herzegovina was also 49.80 euros. The selection cost 43.90 euros in North Macedonia and 45.50 euros in Kosovo. Croatia and Albania were not among the markets where the selected items totalled less than 50 euros.
What the comparison measures
The calculation is a simple, unweighted sum of selected prices, not a monthly consumer basket or a measure of purchasing power. It excludes cigarettes and covers 18 products and drinks. Since the selection includes alcoholic drinks, it is more accurately described as a total for selected products and drinks than as the cost of basic food.
Numbeo’s “Markets” category includes items such as milk, bread, meat, fruit and vegetables, as well as wine and beer. Numbeo combines user-submitted entries with data from other sources, including retailers’ websites. National results also depend on the number of contributors in individual cities, making the comparison indicative and methodologically different from official price statistics.
A separate Numbeo food-price index uses weightings, unlike the simple price total. The choice of products and the weight assigned to each can change the order of markets; data for that separate index in the same analysis refer to the middle of the year. The two measures therefore do not represent the same calculation.
Food prices and household affordability
For Montenegro, the Statistical Office of Montenegro (MONSTAT) recorded a 0.6% rise in food and non-alcoholic drink prices in September 2026 compared with August. Vegetables, milk, other dairy products and eggs, along with fruit and nuts, were among the groups that contributed most to monthly inflation, according to the office.
Overall annual inflation was 5.2%, while monthly inflation was 0.5%. Those rates cover total inflation and should not be treated as the rate of food-price growth, MONSTAT’s figures indicate.
The price ranking alone does not establish whether food is affordable for households. That assessment would require comparing incomes with the cost of representative consumption and accounting for the share of household budgets left after housing, bills and other obligations. It would also need to reflect differences between single people, families and pensioners.
