Cost of living in Ireland?

Someone asked a similar question on Y!A the other week and posted a link to this website http://www.expatarrivals.com/ireland/cost-of-livin... asking if the prices were correct? They are correct, it is more expensive to live in Ireland compared to the UK.

Things like motor tax is very high, I pay €613 (£540) to tax my 2L Suzuki Grand Vitara for the year. I can only ever afford 3 months at a time, my partner was made redundant 16 months ago and I'm self employed. We are really struggling surviving basically on his dole money and child benefit, I don't draw a wage from my business.

Car insurance is also high and so are utilities. I moved over in 2004 with my partner and 2 children, they are in their late teens now. We lived in Worcestershire, England and really noticed a difference immediately. Simple things like a pack of Paracetamol tablets are 16p in the UK, we would pay around €1.60 (£1.41) for the same pack of tablets. I get my mother to bring a few packets over when she visits.

It's a complete rip off, I'm leaving for Oz in May because I'm so fed up with the price of living here. Fuel alone will cost you a fortune. Petrol costs 1 euro 50 a litre and it's rising everyday. I moved home from Edinburgh 2 years ago and the comparison with Scotland is shocking. You should stay where you are pal

its extremely expensive, i live on the border with northern ireland and a bag of potatoes that cost 99p in tescos northern ireland cost 4.99 euro in tescos ireland....and £1 = 0.87 euro....

And if you drink or smoke, best giving up before you arrive both are upto 35% more expencive than the european average...

Unless your on an irish wage you have little chance of being able to afford to be there for any length of time. Even people who are on basic job finder benifit get 200 euro a WEEK on the dole!! the country has gone maaaaaaaaaaaaaaadddddddddddd!!

very expensive indeed.