Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Cologne and Derby

For one person, living costs are similar in Cologne and in Derby: $2,233 and $2,255 a month, rent and utilities included.

107

Cost of Living Index in Cologne
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Cologne Living Index
108

Cost of Living Index in Derby
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Derby Living Index

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Cologne

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,233

/mo nomad

Derby

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,255

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Cologne and in Derby

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,233 in Cologne versus $2,255 in Derby.

Cologne $2,233
Derby $2,255

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,388 in Cologne versus $3,377 in Derby.

Cologne $3,388
Derby $3,377

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,543 in Cologne versus $4,499 in Derby.

Cologne $4,543
Derby $4,499

Living in Cologne costs roughly 1% less than in Derby, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Cologne 64% above, Derby 66% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$17.02 €15.29

$26.57 £19.99

-35.94%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$83.7 €75.2

$95.0 £71.5

-11.93%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.82 €10.61

$10.72 £8.07

10.26%

Cappuccino

$4.02 €3.61

$4.97 £3.74

-19.11%

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

$3.74 €3.36

$2.52 £1.90

48.41%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.12 €2.80

$1.96 £1.47

59.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.45 €4.90

$6.82 £5.13

-20.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$5.46 €4.90

$7.10 £5.35

-23.10%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.27 €1.14

$1.57 £1.18

-19.11%

White Bread (500g)

$2.56 €2.30

$1.43 £1.08

79.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.09 €2.78

$2.34 £1.76

32.05%

Eggs

$3.71 €3.33

$3.96 £2.98

-6.31%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.64 €11.35

$8.42 £6.34

50.12%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.08 €10.85

$8.58 £6.46

40.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$22.79 €20.48

$23.38 £17.60

-2.52%

Apples (1kg)

$3.04 €2.73

$5.42 £4.08

-43.91%

Banana (1kg)

$2.03 €1.82

$2.80 £2.11

-27.50%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.59 €2.32

$2.96 £2.22

-12.50%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.77 €3.39

$3.74 £2.81

0.80%

Potato (1kg)

$1.42 €1.27

$1.55 £1.16

-8.39%

Onion (1kg)

$1.15 €1.03

$1.54 £1.16

-25.32%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.51 €1.36

$1.05 £0.79

43.81%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.10 €0.99

$1.37 £1.03

-19.71%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.84 €8.84

$23.73 £17.86

-58.53%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.54 €5.88

$10.62 £8.00

-38.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.26 €1.13

$3.28 £2.47

-61.59%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.69 €1.52

$3.61 £2.72

-53.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.90 €3.50

$4.01 £3.02

-2.74%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$71.5 €64.2

$115 £86.8

-37.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.36 €4.81

$4.34 £3.27

23.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.74 €2.46

$1.62 £1.22

69.14%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$33.45 €30.05

$31.95 £24.05

4.69%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.22 €2.00

$1.98 £1.49

12.12%

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

$33.1K €29.8K

$38.2K £28.8K

-13.37%

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

$38.0K €34.1K

$39.9K £30.0K

-4.68%

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

$301 €270

$366 £275

-17.68%

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

$12.17 €10.93

$19.97 £15.03

-39.06%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$36.02 €32.35

$39.71 £29.89

-9.29%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.99 €37.72

$36.95 £27.81

13.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$35.28 €31.69

$25.60 £19.27

37.81%

Cinema Ticket

$15.90 €14.29

$15.22 £11.46

4.47%

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

$1,103 €991

$1,912 £1,439

-42.31%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.0K €19.7K

$20.3K £15.3K

8.14%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$87.4 €78.5

$114 £86.1

-23.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$41.11 €36.93

$58.0 £43.63

-29.08%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 €91.1

$87.2 £65.6

16.35%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$134 €120

$98.1 £73.8

36.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,223 €1,099

$947 £713

29.15%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$917 €824

$746 £562

22.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,340 €2,102

$1,532 £1,153

52.74%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,628 €1,463

$1,206 £908

35.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$7,324 €6,579

$4,201 £3,162

74.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,056 €4,542

$3,055 £2,300

65.47%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,562 €3,200

$3,541 £2,665

0.60%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.83

4.88

-21.52%

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

Last update for Cologne: October 26, 2026

Last update for Derby: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Cologne

$917 41.1%

Derby

$746 33.1% 18.6% $171

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Cologne

$349 15.6%

Derby

$425 18.9% 21.8% $76

Groceries & Markets

Cologne

$337 15.1%

Derby

$341 15.1% 1.1% $3.7

Eating Out

Cologne

$285 12.8%

Derby

$371 16.4% 29.8% $85

Clothing & Footwear

Cologne

$164 7.3%

Derby

$161 7.1% 1.7% $2.8

Getting Around

Cologne

$106 4.8%

Derby

$144 6.4% 35.4% $38

Sport & Entertainment

Cologne

$74 3.3%

Derby

$67 3% 8.7% $6.4

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,223 in Cologne and $947 in Derby. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Dining out: $84 in Cologne vs $95 in Derby for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $337 vs $341 per month, with Cologne cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Cologne

🇬🇧 Derby

🕒 Local time

15:01 3:01 PM

14:01 2:01 PM

1 h behind Cologne

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,095,520

233,700

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.11 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Cologne Derby 620 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Cologne
Derby

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

Cologne vs Derby: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Cologne and Derby differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($2,233 vs $2,255 including rent). Cologne is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

You’d need roughly $3,349 in Cologne and $3,383 in Derby to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,223 in Cologne versus $947 in Derby. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,103 in Cologne versus $1,912 in Derby. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Cologne – a meal for two runs $84 versus $95 in Derby. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Cologne gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.