Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cardiff and Berlin

For one person, living costs are similar in Cardiff and in Berlin: $2,463 and $2,545 a month, rent and utilities included.

119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Berlin
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Berlin Living Index

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,463

/mo nomad

Berlin

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,545

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cardiff and in Berlin

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

A single person spends $2,463 per month in Cardiff vs $2,545 in Berlin, rent included.

Cardiff $2,463
Berlin $2,545

A couple spends around $3,467 per month in Cardiff vs $3,901 in Berlin, rent included.

Cardiff $3,467
Berlin $3,901

A family of three spends $4,470 per month in Cardiff vs $5,257 in Berlin, rent included.

Cardiff $4,470
Berlin $5,257

Cardiff is about 3% cheaper than Berlin, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both Cardiff and Berlin sit above the global median – Cardiff by 84%, Berlin by 90%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.59 £14.80

$16.81 €15.00

16.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$82.6 £62.4

$79.6 €71.0

3.82%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.73 £8.11

$13.38 €11.94

-19.81%

Cappuccino

$4.60 £3.47

$4.27 €3.81

7.73%

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

$2.98 £2.25

$3.40 €3.03

-12.35%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 £1.51

$3.12 €2.79

-35.90%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.79 £5.88

$5.48 €4.89

42.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.42 £4.85

$4.56 €4.07

40.79%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.30

$1.27 €1.13

35.43%

White Bread (500g)

$1.47 £1.11

$2.45 €2.19

-40.00%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.25 £1.70

$3.30 €2.94

-31.82%

Eggs

$3.72 £2.81

$4.45 €3.97

-16.40%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.18 £6.93

$17.10 €15.26

-46.32%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.75 £6.61

$12.19 €10.88

-28.22%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.29 £12.31

$18.30 €16.33

-10.98%

Apples (1kg)

$2.81 £2.12

$3.58 €3.19

-21.51%

Banana (1kg)

$1.54 £1.16

$1.98 €1.77

-22.22%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.98 £2.25

$3.27 €2.92

-8.87%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.65 £2.76

$3.81 €3.40

-4.20%

Potato (1kg)

$1.90 £1.43

$2.13 €1.90

-10.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.48 £1.12

$2.21 €1.97

-33.03%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.11 £0.84

$1.49 €1.33

-25.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.63 £1.23

$1.01 €0.90

61.39%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.34 £17.64

$10.49 €9.37

122.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.17 £8.44

$6.76 €6.03

65.24%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.35

$1.34 €1.20

132.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 £2.52

$2.10 €1.87

58.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.30 £2.50

$4.37 €3.90

-24.49%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$78.6 £59.4

$71.0 €63.3

10.78%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.56 £3.45

$5.29 €4.72

-13.80%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.74 £1.31

$3.05 €2.73

-42.95%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.83 £27.08

$36.30 €32.39

-1.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.62

$2.28 €2.03

-6.14%

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

$37.8K £28.6K

$33.2K €29.7K

13.85%

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

$41.3K £31.2K

$39.1K €34.9K

5.64%

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

$343 £259

$379 €339

-9.49%

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

$25.85 £19.54

$19.31 €17.23

33.87%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.60 £32.95

$48.41 €43.20

-9.94%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$38.02 £28.73

$40.31 €35.97

-5.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.52 £8.70

$35.51 €31.69

-67.56%

Cinema Ticket

$10.65 £8.05

$15.53 €13.86

-31.42%

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

$1,978 £1,495

$144 €128

1276.38%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.8K £24.8K

$15.8K €14.1K

108.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$100 £75.6

$94.6 €84.5

5.73%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$47.31 £35.75

$46.33 €41.34

2.12%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$120 £90.6

$103 €92.2

16.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.3 £75.0

$141 €126

-29.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,158 £875

$1,488 €1,328

-22.18%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,097 £829

$1,098 €980

-0.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,185 £1,651

$2,665 €2,378

-18.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,514 £1,144

$2,080 €1,856

-27.24%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,353 £4,045

$8,578 €7,655

-37.60%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,479 £2,629

$5,438 €4,853

-36.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,223 £2,435

$3,487 €3,112

-7.58%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

3.8

34.47%

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

Last update for Cardiff: October 3, 2026

Last update for Berlin: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.6%

Berlin

$1.1K 43.3% 0.1% $1

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cardiff

$413 16.8%

Berlin

$447 17.6% 8.3% $34

Eating Out

Cardiff

$316 12.8%

Berlin

$289 11.4% 8.6% $27

Groceries & Markets

Cardiff

$307 12.5%

Berlin

$351 13.8% 14.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cardiff

$165 6.7%

Berlin

$174 6.8% 5.2% $8.6

Getting Around

Cardiff

$105 4.3%

Berlin

$109 4.3% 3.7% $3.9

Sport & Entertainment

Cardiff

$59 2.4%

Berlin

$71 2.8% 20.3% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,158 in Cardiff versus $1,488 in Berlin. 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 8% higher in Berlin, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $83.0 in Cardiff versus $80.0 in Berlin. Groceries tell a different story – $307 in Cardiff vs $351 in Berlin – so Cardiff wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🇩🇪 Berlin

🕒 Local time

03:23 3:23 AM

04:23 4:23 AM

1 h ahead of Cardiff

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,100

3,769,962 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

Cardiff Berlin 1,140 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Cardiff
Berlin

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

Cardiff vs Berlin: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Yes – Berlin is pricier by about 3%, and outside of rent the gap shows up most in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,694 per month in Cardiff and $3,818 in Berlin. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,463 in Cardiff and $2,545 in Berlin. That's a gap of about 3%.

Public transport costs about 11% less in Cardiff. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in Cardiff, where all-in costs run around $2,463, than in Berlin at $2,545. In Cardiff it covers expenses comfortably, while in Berlin it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

Families tend to lean toward Cardiff – lower housing and cheaper childcare make a real difference, especially on a single income or when paying for private education.

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 Cardiff. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Berlin makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.