Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Crawley and Manchester

For one person, living is cheaper in Manchester: $2,499 a month against $2,891 in Crawley, rent and utilities included – about $4,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

139

Cost of Living Index in Crawley
Learn more

Crawley Living Index
121

Cost of Living Index in Manchester
Learn more

Manchester Living Index

Jump to prices

Crawley

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,891

/mo nomad

Manchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,499

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,891 in Crawley versus $2,499 in Manchester.

Crawley $2,891
Manchester $2,499

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,276 in Crawley versus $3,623 in Manchester.

Crawley $4,276
Manchester $3,623

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,662 in Crawley versus $4,747 in Manchester.

Crawley $5,662
Manchester $4,747

Living in Crawley is roughly 16% more expensive than in Manchester, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Crawley 112% above, Manchester 84% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.93 £20.10

$20.22 £15.10

33.18%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$88.5 £66.1

$86.0 £64.2

2.84%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.45 £7.80

$10.74 £8.02

-2.70%

Cappuccino

$4.89 £3.65

$4.68 £3.49

4.49%

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

$2.87 £2.15

$2.44 £1.82

17.62%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.99 £1.48

$1.62 £1.21

22.84%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.14 £4.59

$7.78 £5.81

-21.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.08 £4.54

$6.70 £5.00

-9.25%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.48 £1.11

$1.51 £1.12

-1.99%

White Bread (500g)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.88 £1.41

-25.53%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.71 £2.03

$1.94 £1.45

39.69%

Eggs

$4.04 £3.02

$4.08 £3.04

-0.98%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$11.19 £8.36

$9.61 £7.17

16.44%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.52 £6.36

$8.98 £6.71

-5.12%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$13.29 £9.93

$15.41 £11.51

-13.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.96 £2.21

$3.09 £2.31

-4.21%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 £1.13

$1.58 £1.18

-3.80%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.00 £2.24

$2.95 £2.20

1.69%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.10 £1.57

$3.35 £2.50

-37.31%

Potato (1kg)

$1.56 £1.17

$1.51 £1.13

3.31%

Onion (1kg)

$1.35 £1.01

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.31 £0.98

$1.26 £0.94

3.97%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.51 £1.13

$1.23 £0.92

22.76%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.77 £17.75

$24.05 £17.95

-1.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.46 £10.05

$10.88 £8.13

23.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.23 £1.67

$2.43 £1.81

-8.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.72 £2.03

$3.17 £2.36

-14.20%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.95 £2.95

$2.73 £2.04

44.69%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$151 £113

$108 £80.6

39.80%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.52 £4.87

$4.52 £3.37

44.25%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.63 £3.45

$2.22 £1.66

108.56%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$13.57 £10.13

$30.82 £23.01

-55.97%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.88 £1.40

$2.14 £1.60

-12.15%

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

$38.2K £28.5K

$38.5K £28.7K

-0.81%

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

$40.1K £30.0K

$40.0K £29.9K

0.23%

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

$306 £229

$252 £189

21.39%

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

$20.81 £15.54

$16.23 £12.12

28.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$47.59 £35.53

$39.58 £29.56

20.24%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$58.7 £43.80

$42.67 £31.86

37.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.05 £13.48

Cinema Ticket

$13.47 £10.06

$13.44 £10.04

0.22%

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

$1,859 £1,388

$1,494 £1,116

24.43%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$8,006 £5,978

$19.7K £14.7K

-59.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$76.2 £56.9

$83.5 £62.4

-8.83%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$53.9 £40.26

$42.97 £32.09

25.48%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$115 £86.0

$95.0 £70.9

21.17%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$133 £99.2

$106 £79.1

25.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,708 £1,276

$1,785 £1,333

-4.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,403 £1,048

$1,222 £913

14.81%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,762 £2,062

$2,930 £2,188

-5.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,449 £1,829

$1,899 £1,418

28.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,421 £4,794

$4,668 £3,486

37.54%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$5,949 £4,442

$4,397 £3,283

35.29%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,220 £2,404

$3,395 £2,535

-5.16%

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 Crawley: October 26, 2026

Last update for Manchester: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Crawley

$1.4K 48.6%

Manchester

$1.2K 48.9% 12.9% $181

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Crawley

$375 13%

Manchester

$308 12.3% 17.8% $67

Eating Out

Crawley

$368 12.7%

Manchester

$319 12.8% 13.3% $49

Groceries & Markets

Crawley

$293 10.1%

Manchester

$299 12% 2.1% $6.1

Getting Around

Crawley

$196 6.8%

Manchester

$134 5.4% 31.5% $62

Clothing & Footwear

Crawley

$170 5.9%

Manchester

$147 5.9% 13.4% $23

Sport & Entertainment

Crawley

$86 3%

Manchester

$70 2.8% 18.7% $16

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,708 in Crawley and $1,785 in Manchester. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Manchester pays 5% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $88 in Crawley vs $86 in Manchester. Groceries flip the comparison at $293 vs $299, with Crawley cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Crawley

🇬🇧 Manchester

🕒 Local time

10:40 10:40 AM

Same time as Crawley

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

112,448

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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Crawley Manchester 300 km

From you

Crawley
Manchester

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

Crawley vs Manchester: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manchester wins on cost – living expenses run 14% lower than in Crawley. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Manchester the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 5% lower in Crawley. 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: $1,708 in Crawley versus $1,785 in Manchester. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you’ll spend $2,891 per month in Crawley versus $2,499 in Manchester – Manchester is about 14% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

A monthly transit pass in Manchester runs roughly 28% less than in Crawley. The price difference matters if you commute daily and watch your 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.