Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Alkmaar and Cambridge

For one person, living is cheaper in Alkmaar: $2,394 a month against $3,191 in Cambridge, rent and utilities included – about $9,600 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Cambridge outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

115

Cost of Living Index in Alkmaar
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Alkmaar Living Index
155

Cost of Living Index in Cambridge
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Cambridge Living Index

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Alkmaar

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,394

/mo nomad

Cambridge

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,191

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Alkmaar and in Cambridge

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,394 in Alkmaar versus $3,191 in Cambridge.

Alkmaar $2,394
Cambridge $3,191

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,536 in Alkmaar versus $4,509 in Cambridge.

Alkmaar $3,536
Cambridge $4,509

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,677 in Alkmaar versus $5,827 in Cambridge.

Alkmaar $4,677
Cambridge $5,827

Living in Alkmaar costs roughly 25% less than in Cambridge, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Alkmaar 77% above, Cambridge 136% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$29.74 €26.45

$21.56 £16.17

37.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.1 €78.3

$88.5 £66.4

-0.46%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$14.67 €13.05

$10.83 £8.12

35.46%

Cappuccino

$3.96 €3.52

$4.49 £3.37

-11.80%

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

$3.19 €2.83

$2.79 £2.09

14.34%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.88 £1.41

31.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.75 €5.12

$7.90 £5.93

-27.22%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.57 €4.06

$6.54 £4.91

-30.12%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.43 €1.27

$1.64 £1.23

-12.80%

White Bread (500g)

$2.37 €2.10

$1.79 £1.34

32.40%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.45 €3.07

$2.49 £1.87

38.55%

Eggs

$4.90 €4.36

$4.53 £3.40

8.17%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.23 €12.66

$9.93 £7.45

43.30%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.08 €13.41

$9.43 £7.07

59.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.85 €14.99

$15.44 £11.59

9.13%

Apples (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$2.95 £2.22

-13.90%

Banana (1kg)

$2.47 €2.20

$1.73 £1.30

42.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$1.84 €1.64

$3.70 £2.77

-50.27%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.25 €3.78

$3.39 £2.54

25.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.94 €1.73

$1.84 £1.38

5.43%

Onion (1kg)

$2.15 €1.91

$1.89 £1.42

13.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.28 €1.13

$1.24 £0.93

3.23%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.80 €0.71

$1.95 £1.47

-58.97%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$12.78 €11.37

$22.36 £16.77

-42.84%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.89 €6.13

$10.97 £8.23

-37.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.34 €1.19

$3.27 £2.45

-59.02%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 €1.95

$4.15 £3.11

-47.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.20 €1.96

$4.07 £3.05

-45.95%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$57.9 €51.5

$95.1 £71.3

-39.11%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$2.75 €2.44

$7.76 £5.82

-64.56%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.63 €1.45

$2.70 £2.02

-39.63%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$24.82 €22.07

$50.9 £38.18

-51.23%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.24 €1.99

$2.07 £1.55

8.21%

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

$41.3K €36.7K

$37.9K £28.4K

9.02%

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

$38.6K €34.4K

$41.1K £30.8K

-5.95%

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

$242 €216

$345 £258

-29.67%

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

$20.63 €18.35

$18.37 £13.78

12.30%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$46.41 €41.28

$42.78 £32.10

8.49%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.05 €40.96

$65.4 £49.09

-29.62%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$6.11 €5.44

$20.63 £15.48

-70.38%

Cinema Ticket

$15.00 €13.34

$17.15 £12.86

-12.54%

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

$726 €645

$2,590 £1,943

-71.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$2,393 €2,128

$35.8K £26.9K

-93.32%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 €103

$90.4 £67.8

28.42%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.67 €41.51

$47.74 £35.82

-2.24%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$109 €97.3

$91.4 £68.6

19.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$118 €105

$127 £95.5

-7.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$778 €692

$2,115 £1,587

-63.22%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,020 €907

$1,736 £1,302

-41.25%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,855 €2,539

$3,193 £2,396

-10.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,576 €1,401

$2,694 £2,021

-41.52%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,974 €4,424

$9,107 £6,832

-45.39%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,169 €3,709

$5,803 £4,353

-28.15%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,317 €2,950

$4,405 £3,305

-24.70%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.04

-20.63%

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

Last update for Alkmaar: October 20, 2026

Last update for Cambridge: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Alkmaar

$1K 42.6%

Cambridge

$1.7K 54.4% 70.2% $716

Eating Out

Alkmaar

$390 16.3%

Cambridge

$330 10.3% 15.3% $60

Groceries & Markets

Alkmaar

$346 14.5%

Cambridge

$327 10.2% 5.5% $19

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Alkmaar

$309 12.9%

Cambridge

$406 12.7% 31.1% $96

Clothing & Footwear

Alkmaar

$176 7.3%

Cambridge

$161 5% 8.6% $15

Getting Around

Alkmaar

$78 3.2%

Cambridge

$133 4.2% 70.8% $55

Sport & Entertainment

Alkmaar

$76 3.2%

Cambridge

$100 3.1% 31.2% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $778 in Alkmaar and $2,115 in Cambridge. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Cambridge pays 33% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $88.0 in Alkmaar vs $88.0 in Cambridge. Groceries flip the comparison at $346 vs $327, with Cambridge cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇳🇱 Alkmaar

🇬🇧 Cambridge

🕒 Local time

12:58 12:58 PM

11:58 11:58 AM

1 h behind Alkmaar

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

111,834

145,818

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

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Alkmaar Cambridge 320 km

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Alkmaar
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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

Alkmaar vs Cambridge: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Alkmaar wins on cost – living expenses run 33% lower than in Cambridge. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Alkmaar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 33% lower in Cambridge. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $778 in Alkmaar versus $2,115 in Cambridge. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Alkmaar runs roughly 64% less than in Cambridge. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $726 in Alkmaar versus $2,590 in Cambridge. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $2,394 in Alkmaar versus $3,191 in Cambridge, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Alkmaar but tight or insufficient in Cambridge. The gap between the two cities makes Alkmaar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Alkmaar delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,394 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Alkmaar hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, Alkmaar and Cambridge are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.

Expats usually find Alkmaar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 33% less than in Cambridge. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.