Milan has a reputation as Italy's expensive city, and for hotels in Fashion Week it earns it. Day to day, though, it costs much what any large Italian city costs — and some of its finest sights are free. Here are real prices for transport, museums, meals and coffee, plus what a day actually adds up to.
How expensive is Milan?
Milan is the most expensive city in Italy for hotels and long-term rents, and that is what drives its reputation. Everything else — a metro ticket, a museum entry, a plate of pasta — is priced much as it is in Rome, Turin or Bologna. Where you eat and sleep matters far more than which city you are in.
Two things move prices sharply. The first is the calendar: during Fashion Week (February and September) and the Salone del Mobile design fair in April, hotel rates can double or triple and rooms sell out months ahead. The second is where you sit: the same espresso costs a euro or so at the bar and several euros at a table on the piazza.
Prices below are typical 2026 figures for guidance and can change. Where an exact fare is published — public transport, for example — we quote the official price; for meals we give the range you can expect rather than a single number.
Transport prices
One ATM ticket covers the metro, trams and buses across the urban area, so you rarely need to think about which mode you are using. If you are making more than three journeys in a day, the 24-hour ticket has already paid for itself.
Taxis are metered and must be taken from a rank or booked — you cannot hail one in the street. Airport journeys are the exception you should budget for: Malpensa is 50 km out, and the train or coach is dramatically cheaper than a taxi. See our pages on tickets and travel cards and taxis for the detail.
Museums & attractions
Museum entry in Milan is modest by European standards, typically between €5 and €17. The two exceptions people budget wrongly for are the Duomo — where the price depends on whether you add the rooftop, and whether you take the lift or the stairs — and The Last Supper, which is around €15 but sells out weeks in advance, so the real cost of leaving it late is a resold ticket at a much higher price.
The Duomo interior, the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, San Maurizio, Sant'Ambrogio, San Bernardino alle Ossa, Parco Sempione and the Navigli.
The Galleria d'Arte Moderna, with Van Gogh and Cézanne in an 18th-century villa, charges nothing at all.
Several civic museums, including the Castello Sforzesco collections, waive entry at set times — worth checking before you buy.
The Last Supper above all, then the Duomo rooftop. Both cost more, or become impossible, when left to the day.
Duomo rooftop, The Last Supper, Brera and lake day trips — with free cancellation up to 24 hours before.
Food & drink
Italian bars work on a two-tier system that is not a tourist trap but does surprise visitors: standing at the counter (al banco) is cheap, sitting at a table (al tavolo) costs more, and both prices are displayed by law. Restaurants also add a coperto, a per-person cover charge of a couple of euros, which is not a tip.
The aperitivo is the best-value meal in the city: the price of one drink includes access to a buffet substantial enough to replace dinner. It is also how Milan socialises, so it is worth doing at least once around the Navigli or in Brera. Our where to eat page covers the neighbourhoods and the local dishes.
What a day actually costs
Excluding your hotel, a day in Milan tends to fall into one of three brackets:
A 24-hour transport ticket, breakfast at the bar, a panino at lunch, free churches and parks, and an aperitivo that doubles as dinner.
Transport, one paid museum or the Duomo rooftop, a sit-down lunch, and dinner in a trattoria with wine.
A guided tour or pre-booked Last Supper ticket, lunch and dinner in restaurants, taxis rather than the metro, and a drink with a view.
Accommodation is the number that moves most. Outside the fair and fashion weeks, Milan is affordable; during them, expect to pay a large premium and to book far ahead. If your dates are flexible, avoid February, September and the week of the Salone in April.