Olbia vs Castrocaro (Terra del Sole)

Olbia is a solid mid-tier pick for expats who want Sardinia's coast without Sardinia's resort prices, and the numbers back it up: a city-center one-bedroom at $896/mo and a $17/mo transit pass keep daily life cheap, while the 80/100 safety index and 35 air quality index beat most Italian cities of its size. The catch is earning power. A local net salary of $1,946/mo barely clears the $1,820/mo comfortable tier, and the Italy Digital Nomad Visa's $2,615/mo income floor is well above what most locals take home, so remote workers and retirees with outside income will fare far better than anyone job-hunting on the ground. English is common mainly in tourist areas, which means daily errands in Pittulongu or Citta Nuova are manageable but bureaucratic life will demand some Italian. Come for the climate and the 3 km hop to OLB, not for the career prospects.

Retirees with steady income fare better here than remote workers chasing savings. Rent outside the center runs $660.88/mo, cheap by European standards, but income tax climbing to 43% erodes any freelance upside fast. The Elective Residence Visa requires $2,895/mo in passive income, and citizenship stays complex even after years of residency.