Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cardiff and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Cardiff: $2,454 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $18,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,454

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cardiff 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 Cardiff and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,454 in Cardiff versus $3,986 in London.

Cardiff $2,454
London $3,986

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,414 in Cardiff versus $5,791 in London.

Cardiff $3,414
London $5,791

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,373 in Cardiff versus $7,595 in London.

Cardiff $4,373
London $7,595

Living in Cardiff costs roughly 38% less than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cardiff 82% above, London 195% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.04 £15.04

$25.93 £19.45

-22.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.4 £62.6

$107 £79.9

-21.67%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.74 £8.06

$10.71 £8.03

0.28%

Cappuccino

$4.45 £3.34

$5.47 £4.11

-18.65%

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

$2.92 £2.19

$2.97 £2.23

-1.68%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.00 £1.50

$2.20 £1.65

-9.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.80 £5.85

$9.13 £6.85

-14.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.32 £4.74

$7.94 £5.96

-20.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.72 £1.29

$1.86 £1.40

-7.53%

White Bread (500g)

$1.43 £1.07

$2.07 £1.55

-30.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.15 £1.61

$2.42 £1.81

-11.16%

Eggs

$3.62 £2.72

$5.09 £3.82

-28.88%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.47 £7.11

$12.87 £9.66

-26.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.85 £6.64

$10.43 £7.82

-15.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.18 £12.14

$16.87 £12.66

-4.09%

Apples (1kg)

$2.80 £2.10

$3.11 £2.33

-9.97%

Banana (1kg)

$1.55 £1.16

$1.40 £1.05

10.71%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.03 £2.28

$3.08 £2.31

-1.62%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.51 £2.63

$3.27 £2.45

7.34%

Potato (1kg)

$1.99 £1.50

$1.58 £1.19

25.95%

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$1.74 £1.31

-11.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.09 £0.82

$1.40 £1.05

-22.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.80 £1.35

-8.89%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.08 £17.31

$23.28 £17.46

-0.86%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.07 £8.31

$13.03 £9.77

-15.04%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.05 £2.29

$3.17 £2.38

-3.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.31 £2.48

$4.42 £3.32

-25.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.21 £2.41

$4.07 £3.05

-21.13%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$79.1 £59.3

$247 £185

-67.96%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.58 £3.44

$5.58 £4.18

-17.92%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.66 £1.25

$3.36 £2.52

-50.60%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$35.87 £26.91

$56.8 £42.58

-36.79%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 £1.55

$2.13 £1.60

-3.29%

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

$37.9K £28.4K

$38.2K £28.6K

-0.88%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

-0.08%

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

$335 £252

$372 £279

-9.87%

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

$25.35 £19.02

$17.82 £13.37

42.26%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.54 £32.67

$40.37 £30.29

7.85%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$37.26 £27.95

$60.0 £44.99

-37.87%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$11.37 £8.53

$21.29 £15.97

-46.59%

Cinema Ticket

$10.36 £7.77

$17.74 £13.31

-41.60%

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

$1,990 £1,493

$2,864 £2,149

-30.54%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$32.5K £24.4K

$35.3K £26.5K

-7.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$97.8 £73.4

$114 £85.5

-14.24%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.54 £36.41

$54.3 £40.71

-10.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$116 £86.9

$124 £93.2

-6.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.4 £74.6

$163 £122

-39.02%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 £876

$2,869 £2,152

-59.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,102 £826

$2,233 £1,675

-50.67%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,136 £1,602

$5,266 £3,951

-59.44%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,482 £1,112

$3,778 £2,835

-60.78%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,255 £3,942

$18.3K £13.8K

-71.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,432 £2,575

$8,024 £6,020

-57.23%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,179 £2,385

$5,037 £3,779

-36.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.11

4.74

7.81%

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

Last update for Cardiff: October 12, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.9%

London

$2.2K 56% 103% $1.1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cardiff

$404 16.5%

London

$430 10.8% 6.4% $26

Eating Out

Cardiff

$317 12.9%

London

$388 9.7% 22.1% $70

Groceries & Markets

Cardiff

$306 12.5%

London

$349 8.8% 14.3% $44

Clothing & Footwear

Cardiff

$163 6.6%

London

$205 5.1% 26% $42

Getting Around

Cardiff

$105 4.3%

London

$285 7.2% 172% $181

Sport & Entertainment

Cardiff

$58 2.4%

London

$95 2.4% 64.6% $37

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,168 in Cardiff and $2,869 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 58% 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: $83.0 in Cardiff vs $107 in London for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $306 vs $349 per month, with Cardiff cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

17:12 5:12 PM

Same time as Cardiff

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

346,100

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cardiff London 210 km

From you

Cardiff
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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 London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cardiff and London differ by about 62% in total monthly costs ($2,454 vs $3,986 including rent). Cardiff is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 58% lower in London. 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: $1,168 in Cardiff versus $2,869 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Cardiff – a meal for two runs $83.0 versus $107 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,454 per month in Cardiff versus $3,986 in London – a 62% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,454 in Cardiff versus $3,986 in London, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Cardiff but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Cardiff the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Safety-wise, Cardiff and London 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 Cardiff gentler on the wallet – expenses run 62% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.