Cost of living for students in Ireland
Realistic weekly budgets by city: house-share rent (≈¼ of RTB whole-property rent) plus food, transport, utilities and leisure from the Household Budget Survey. Most students share a house rather than rent alone.
House share assumes one room in a typical 4-bed home — about ¼ of RTB whole-property rent. Not a digs listing price.
Updated 7/21/2026
Waterford
Affordable
- House share (1 of 4)€152
- Food & groceries€48
- Transport (Leap)€26
- Utilities & phone€22
- Leisure & extras€24
- Weekly total€272
Rest of Ireland
Mid-range
- House share (1 of 4)€165
- Food & groceries€48
- Transport (Leap)€26
- Utilities & phone€22
- Leisure & extras€24
- Weekly total€285
Limerick
Mid-range
- House share (1 of 4)€178
- Food & groceries€50
- Transport (Leap)€28
- Utilities & phone€23
- Leisure & extras€25
- Weekly total€303
Galway
Mid-range
- House share (1 of 4)€190
- Food & groceries€54
- Transport (Leap)€30
- Utilities & phone€24
- Leisure & extras€27
- Weekly total€325
Cork
Mid-range
- House share (1 of 4)€203
- Food & groceries€56
- Transport (Leap)€31
- Utilities & phone€25
- Leisure & extras€28
- Weekly total€343
Dublin
Expensive
- House share (1 of 4)€279
- Food & groceries€64
- Transport (Leap)€35
- Utilities & phone€29
- Leisure & extras€32
- Weekly total€439
Weekly totals do not include visa/immigration fees, private medical insurance, flights, rental deposits, or course tuition.
Rent: RTB Standardised Average Rent (CSO PxStat RIQ02, student share ≈55%). Other costs: CSO Household Budget Survey + Leap card baseline. https://data.cso.ie/table/RIQ02