Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Aarau and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Aarau: $2,794 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $14,300 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

135

Cost of Living Index in Aarau
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Aarau Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Aarau

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$2,794

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Aarau and in London

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Aarau and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,794 per month in Aarau vs $3,986 in London, rent included.

Aarau $2,794
London $3,986

A couple spends around $4,568 per month in Aarau vs $5,791 in London, rent included.

Aarau $4,568
London $5,791

A family of three spends $6,342 per month in Aarau vs $7,595 in London, rent included.

Aarau $6,342
London $7,595

Aarau is about 30% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Aarau and London sit above the global median – Aarau by 107%, London by 195%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.07 CHF 23.94

$25.93 £19.45

12.11%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$106 CHF 87.6

$107 £79.9

-0.12%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$17.63 CHF 14.52

$10.71 £8.03

64.61%

Cappuccino

$5.80 CHF 4.78

$5.47 £4.11

6.03%

Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.22 CHF 4.30

$2.97 £2.23

75.76%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.70 CHF 3.87

$2.20 £1.65

113.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.15 CHF 5.06

$9.13 £6.85

-32.64%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.60 CHF 5.44

$7.94 £5.96

-16.88%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.05 CHF 1.69

$1.86 £1.40

10.22%

White Bread (500g)

$3.62 CHF 2.98

$2.07 £1.55

74.88%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.59 CHF 2.13

$2.42 £1.81

7.02%

Eggs

$7.22 CHF 5.95

$5.09 £3.82

41.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$30.30 CHF 24.96

$12.87 £9.66

135.43%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$29.34 CHF 24.16

$10.43 £7.82

181.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$40.30 CHF 33.19

$16.87 £12.66

138.89%

Apples (1kg)

$2.89 CHF 2.38

$3.11 £2.33

-7.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.78 CHF 1.46

$1.40 £1.05

27.14%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.44 CHF 2.01

$3.08 £2.31

-20.78%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.50 CHF 4.53

$3.27 £2.45

68.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.66 CHF 1.37

$1.58 £1.19

5.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.96 CHF 1.61

$1.74 £1.31

12.64%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.28 CHF 1.87

$1.40 £1.05

62.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.19 CHF 0.98

$1.80 £1.35

-33.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$10.86 CHF 8.94

$23.28 £17.46

-53.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.21 CHF 8.41

$13.03 £9.77

-21.64%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.49 CHF 2.05

$3.17 £2.38

-21.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.86 CHF 2.36

$4.42 £3.32

-35.29%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$5.11 CHF 4.20

$4.07 £3.05

25.55%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$146 CHF 120

$247 £185

-40.76%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.84 CHF 5.64

$5.58 £4.18

22.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.32 CHF 2.74

$3.36 £2.52

-1.19%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$58.8 CHF 48.45

$56.8 £42.58

3.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 CHF 1.83

$2.13 £1.60

4.23%

Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)

$42.9K CHF 35.4K

$38.2K £28.6K

12.41%

Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)

$39.3K CHF 32.4K

$40.9K £30.7K

-3.96%

Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)

$120 CHF 98.9

$372 £279

-67.73%

SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)

$30.84 CHF 25.40

$17.82 £13.37

73.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$55.7 CHF 45.84

$40.37 £30.29

37.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$97.9 CHF 80.6

$60.0 £44.99

63.28%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$59.6 CHF 49.04

$21.29 £15.97

179.71%

Cinema Ticket

$21.42 CHF 17.64

$17.74 £13.31

20.74%

Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)

$3,152 CHF 2,596

$2,864 £2,149

10.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.4K CHF 26.7K

$35.3K £26.5K

-8.18%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$88.7 CHF 73.0

$114 £85.5

-22.22%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$70.6 CHF 58.2

$54.3 £40.71

30.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 CHF 90.1

$124 £93.2

-11.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$169 CHF 140

$163 £122

3.89%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,277 CHF 1,052

$2,869 £2,152

-55.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,033 CHF 851

$2,233 £1,675

-53.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,290 CHF 1,886

$5,266 £3,951

-56.52%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,114 CHF 1,742

$3,778 £2,835

-44.04%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$11.8K CHF 9,759

$8,024 £6,020

47.68%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$6,801 CHF 5,601

$5,037 £3,779

35.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

2.31

4.74

-51.27%

CityCost data is based on AI and user input – minor inaccuracies may occur.

Last update for Aarau: October 10, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.

Accommodation & Living

Aarau

$1K 37%

London

$2.2K 56% 116% $1.2K

Groceries & Markets

Aarau

$588 21%

London

$349 8.8% 40.5% $238

Eating Out

Aarau

$439 15.7%

London

$388 9.7% 11.7% $51

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Aarau

$207 7.4%

London

$430 10.8% 108% $224

Clothing & Footwear

Aarau

$197 7.1%

London

$205 5.1% 4% $7.9

Getting Around

Aarau

$190 6.8%

London

$285 7.2% 50.2% $95

Sport & Entertainment

Aarau

$141 5%

London

$95 2.4% 32.2% $45

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,277 in Aarau versus $2,869 in London. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 35% higher in Aarau, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $106 in Aarau versus $107 in London. Groceries tell a different story – $588 in Aarau vs $349 in London – so London wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇨🇭 Aarau

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

23:48 11:48 PM

22:48 10:48 PM

1 h behind Aarau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

21,191

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to CHF – Swiss Franc Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇨🇭 Swiss Franc (Fr)

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to CHF in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Aarau London 750 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Aarau
London

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated April 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Aarau vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London costs about 43% more than Aarau, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from groceries. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $4,191 per month in Aarau and $5,979 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Aarau, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Public transport costs about 69% less in Aarau. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

Kindergarten costs $3,152 per month in Aarau and $2,864 in London. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

$2,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,794 in Aarau and $3,986 in London. You'll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Aarau costs $2,794 versus $3,986 in London. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Aarau. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.