Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Canterbury

For one person, living is cheaper in Edinburgh: $2,645 a month against $2,998 in Canterbury, rent and utilities included – about $4,200 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

128

Cost of Living Index in Edinburgh
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Edinburgh Living Index
143

Cost of Living Index in Canterbury
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Canterbury Living Index

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Edinburgh

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,645

/mo nomad

Canterbury

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,998

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Edinburgh and in Canterbury

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,645 in Edinburgh versus $2,998 in Canterbury.

Edinburgh $2,645
Canterbury $2,998

Estimated couple costs with rent: $4,021 in Edinburgh versus $4,289 in Canterbury.

Edinburgh $4,021
Canterbury $4,289

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,397 in Edinburgh versus $5,580 in Canterbury.

Edinburgh $5,397
Canterbury $5,580

Living in Edinburgh costs roughly 12% less than in Canterbury, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Edinburgh 94% above, Canterbury 120% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$24.35 £18.19

$22.46 £16.78

8.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$105 £78.7

$79.4 £59.3

32.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.47 £7.82

$10.61 £7.92

-1.32%

Cappuccino

$5.02 £3.75

$5.26 £3.93

-4.56%

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

$2.41 £1.80

$3.02 £2.26

-20.20%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.19 £1.64

$2.52 £1.89

-13.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.04 £6.00

$7.87 £5.88

2.16%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.91 £5.91

$6.72 £5.02

17.71%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.75 £1.31

$1.63 £1.22

7.36%

White Bread (500g)

$2.33 £1.74

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.35 £1.75

$2.51 £1.88

-6.37%

Eggs

$5.13 £3.83

$5.73 £4.28

-10.47%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.05 £6.76

$11.75 £8.78

-22.98%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.26 £6.92

$9.29 £6.94

-0.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.17 £12.08

$24.31 £18.16

-33.48%

Apples (1kg)

$3.05 £2.28

$3.73 £2.78

-18.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.87 £1.40

$2.50 £1.87

-25.20%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.35 £2.50

$3.65 £2.73

-8.22%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.75 £2.80

$4.80 £3.59

-21.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.05 £1.53

$3.60 £2.69

-43.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.53 £1.14

$2.72 £2.03

-43.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.33 £1.00

$2.56 £1.91

-48.05%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.89 £1.41

$3.08 £2.30

-38.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.87 £17.83

$24.15 £18.04

-1.16%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.96 £8.19

$15.74 £11.76

-30.37%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.16 £2.36

$3.94 £2.94

-19.80%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.22 £2.40

$4.08 £3.05

-21.08%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.13 £2.34

$4.11 £3.07

-23.84%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$99.8 £74.6

$187 £139

-46.50%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.45 £4.07

$6.55 £4.89

-16.79%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.90 £1.42

$2.69 £2.01

-29.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.50 £21.29

$39.61 £29.59

-28.05%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.06 £1.54

$2.00 £1.50

3.00%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$39.3K £29.4K

-2.80%

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

$39.7K £29.7K

$41.1K £30.7K

-3.46%

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

$329 £246

$420 £314

-21.58%

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

$16.81 £12.56

$38.40 £28.69

-56.22%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.13 £32.22

$52.9 £39.49

-18.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$41.84 £31.26

$47.92 £35.80

-12.69%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.33 £17.43

$37.93 £28.33

-38.49%

Cinema Ticket

$14.67 £10.96

$19.91 £14.87

-26.32%

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

$1,901 £1,420

$1,853 £1,384

2.58%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.8K £19.3K

$26.2K £19.5K

-1.46%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$82.2 £61.4

$79.1 £59.1

3.93%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$50.0 £37.36

$50.9 £38.05

-1.85%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$106 £79.0

$122 £91.2

-13.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 £86.1

$135 £101

-14.49%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,691 £1,263

$1,420 £1,061

19.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,205 £900

$1,230 £919

-2.01%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,959 £2,211

$2,225 £1,662

32.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,184 £1,632

$1,906 £1,424

14.59%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,388 £4,772

$5,440 £4,064

17.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,514 £3,372

$4,366 £3,262

3.37%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,632 £2,713

$2,891 £2,159

25.65%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.51

-13.43%

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 26, 2026

Last update for Canterbury: October 24, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edinburgh

$1.2K 45.6%

Canterbury

$1.2K 41% 2.1% $25

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edinburgh

$389 14.7%

Canterbury

$511 17.1% 31.3% $122

Eating Out

Edinburgh

$361 13.6%

Canterbury

$350 11.7% 3.1% $11

Groceries & Markets

Edinburgh

$333 12.6%

Canterbury

$422 14.1% 26.9% $90

Clothing & Footwear

Edinburgh

$159 6%

Canterbury

$174 5.8% 9.6% $15

Getting Around

Edinburgh

$127 4.8%

Canterbury

$223 7.4% 75.1% $96

Sport & Entertainment

Edinburgh

$71 2.7%

Canterbury

$88 2.9% 23.3% $17

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,691 in Edinburgh and $1,420 in Canterbury. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Edinburgh pays 26% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $105 in Edinburgh vs $79 in Canterbury. Groceries flip the comparison at $333 vs $422, with Edinburgh cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Edinburgh

🇬🇧 Canterbury

🕒 Local time

04:04 4:04 AM

Same time as Edinburgh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

488,050

43,400

💱 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

Edinburgh Canterbury 590 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Edinburgh
Canterbury

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

Edinburgh vs Canterbury: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Edinburgh wins on cost – living expenses run 12% lower than in Canterbury. Housing and daily spending are where you’ll feel the difference most, making Edinburgh the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 26% higher in Edinburgh, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,691 in Edinburgh versus $1,420 in Canterbury. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,901 in Edinburgh versus $1,853 in Canterbury. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 27% higher in Canterbury. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Edinburgh is the more realistic option, but even there you’ll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

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, Edinburgh and Canterbury are both considered safe, so it’s unlikely to be the deciding factor between them.