Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Chelmsford and Manchester

For one person, living is cheaper in Manchester: $2,499 a month against $2,567 in Chelmsford, rent and utilities included – about $820 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in Chelmsford outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

123

Cost of Living Index in Chelmsford
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Chelmsford Living Index
121

Cost of Living Index in Manchester
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Manchester Living Index

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Chelmsford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,567

/mo nomad

Manchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,499

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Chelmsford and in Manchester

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,567 in Chelmsford versus $2,499 in Manchester.

Chelmsford $2,567
Manchester $2,499

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,761 in Chelmsford versus $3,623 in Manchester.

Chelmsford $3,761
Manchester $3,623

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,954 in Chelmsford versus $4,747 in Manchester.

Chelmsford $4,954
Manchester $4,747

Living in Chelmsford is roughly 3% more expensive than in Manchester, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in leisure.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Chelmsford 89% above, Manchester 84% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$19.63 £14.66

$20.22 £15.10

-2.92%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$73.0 £54.5

$86.0 £64.2

-15.17%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$9.17 £6.85

$10.74 £8.02

-14.62%

Cappuccino

$5.09 £3.80

$4.68 £3.49

8.76%

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

$2.82 £2.10

$2.44 £1.82

15.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.42 £1.06

$1.62 £1.21

-12.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.40 £5.53

$7.78 £5.81

-4.88%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.33 £5.47

$6.70 £5.00

9.40%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.59 £1.19

$1.51 £1.12

5.30%

White Bread (500g)

$1.45 £1.08

$1.88 £1.41

-22.87%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.64 £1.97

$1.94 £1.45

36.08%

Eggs

$3.46 £2.58

$4.08 £3.04

-15.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$10.16 £7.59

$9.61 £7.17

5.72%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.46 £6.31

$8.98 £6.71

-5.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.51 £10.09

$15.41 £11.51

-12.33%

Apples (1kg)

$2.33 £1.74

$3.09 £2.31

-24.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.24 £0.93

$1.58 £1.18

-21.52%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.97 £2.22

$2.95 £2.20

0.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.12 £1.58

$3.35 £2.50

-36.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.77 £1.32

$1.51 £1.13

17.22%

Onion (1kg)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.35 £1.01

11.85%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.14 £0.85

$1.26 £0.94

-9.52%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.44 £1.07

$1.23 £0.92

17.07%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.69 £17.69

$24.05 £17.95

-1.50%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.92 £8.90

$10.88 £8.13

9.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.27 £1.70

$2.43 £1.81

-6.58%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.71 £2.02

$3.17 £2.36

-14.51%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.04 £3.02

$2.73 £2.04

47.99%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$104 £77.7

$108 £80.6

-3.61%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.88 £3.64

$4.52 £3.37

7.96%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.76 £1.32

$2.22 £1.66

-20.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.23 £19.58

$30.82 £23.01

-14.89%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.00 £1.50

$2.14 £1.60

-6.54%

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

$38.7K £28.9K

$38.5K £28.7K

0.65%

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

$40.7K £30.4K

$40.0K £29.9K

1.64%

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

$265 £198

$252 £189

4.79%

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

$14.70 £10.98

$16.23 £12.12

-9.43%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.12 £29.96

$39.58 £29.56

1.36%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$51.4 £38.34

$42.67 £31.86

20.34%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.05 £13.48

Cinema Ticket

$12.11 £9.04

$13.44 £10.04

-9.90%

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

$2,034 £1,518

$1,494 £1,116

36.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$13.2K £9,870

$19.7K £14.7K

-32.92%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$99.9 £74.6

$83.5 £62.4

19.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.75 £32.67

$42.97 £32.09

1.82%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.8 £71.6

$95.0 £70.9

0.86%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$86.7 £64.7

$106 £79.1

-18.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,583 £1,182

$1,785 £1,333

-11.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,297 £968

$1,222 £913

6.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,521 £1,882

$2,930 £2,188

-13.98%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,227 £1,662

$1,899 £1,418

17.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,442 £5,557

$4,668 £3,486

59.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,096 £3,805

$4,397 £3,283

15.89%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,919 £2,180

$3,395 £2,535

-14.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.06

4.82

4.98%

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

Last update for Chelmsford: October 27, 2026

Last update for Manchester: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Chelmsford

$1.3K 50.5%

Manchester

$1.2K 48.9% 5.7% $74

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Chelmsford

$319 12.4%

Manchester

$308 12.3% 3.5% $11

Eating Out

Chelmsford

$314 12.2%

Manchester

$319 12.8% 1.4% $4.5

Groceries & Markets

Chelmsford

$280 10.9%

Manchester

$299 12% 6.5% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Chelmsford

$147 5.7%

Manchester

$147 5.9% 0.4% $0.6

Getting Around

Chelmsford

$134 5.2%

Manchester

$134 5.4% 0.4% $0.5

Sport & Entertainment

Chelmsford

$76 2.9%

Manchester

$70 2.8% 8% $6

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,583 in Chelmsford and $1,785 in Manchester. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Manchester pays 16% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $73 in Chelmsford vs $86 in Manchester for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $280 vs $299 per month, with Chelmsford cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Chelmsford

🇬🇧 Manchester

🕒 Local time

22:16 10:16 PM

Same time as Chelmsford

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

176,194

503,100

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Chelmsford Manchester 270 km

From you

Chelmsford
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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

Chelmsford vs Manchester: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,567 in Chelmsford and $2,499 in Manchester, so Manchester is about 3% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 14% lower in Chelmsford. 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: $1,583 in Chelmsford versus $1,785 in Manchester. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,034 in Chelmsford versus $1,494 in Manchester. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Chelmsford pay roughly 6% less for everyday groceries. It’s an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

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.