Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Dundee

For one person, living is cheaper in Dundee: $2,083 a month against $2,601 in Edinburgh, rent and utilities included – about $6,200 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

127

Cost of Living Index in Edinburgh
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Edinburgh Living Index
101

Cost of Living Index in Dundee
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Dundee Living Index

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Edinburgh

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,601

/mo nomad

Dundee

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,083

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Edinburgh and in Dundee

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 Dundee actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,601 in Edinburgh versus $2,083 in Dundee.

Edinburgh $2,601
Dundee $2,083

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,985 in Edinburgh versus $3,069 in Dundee.

Edinburgh $3,985
Dundee $3,069

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $5,369 in Edinburgh versus $4,055 in Dundee.

Edinburgh $5,369
Dundee $4,055

Living in Edinburgh is roughly 25% more expensive than in Dundee, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Edinburgh 92% above, Dundee 54% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$23.67 £17.76

$21.06 £15.80

12.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.4

$78.8 £59.1

37.71%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.04

$10.61 £7.96

0.94%

Cappuccino

$5.25 £3.94

$4.31 £3.23

21.81%

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

$2.48 £1.86

$2.52 £1.89

-1.59%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.17 £1.63

$1.36 £1.02

59.56%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.94 £5.96

$5.74 £4.30

38.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.00 £6.00

$6.02 £4.52

32.89%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.69 £1.27

$2.04 £1.53

-17.16%

White Bread (500g)

$2.35 £1.77

$1.76 £1.32

33.52%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.36 £1.77

$2.69 £2.02

-12.27%

Eggs

$4.96 £3.72

$5.58 £4.19

-11.11%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.20 £6.91

$7.44 £5.58

23.66%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.33 £7.00

$9.71 £7.29

-3.91%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.79 £11.85

$15.21 £11.41

3.81%

Apples (1kg)

$3.01 £2.26

$2.40 £1.80

25.42%

Banana (1kg)

$1.88 £1.41

$2.27 £1.70

-17.18%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.42 £2.57

$2.86 £2.15

19.58%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.67 £2.75

$2.87 £2.15

27.87%

Potato (1kg)

$2.01 £1.51

$3.03 £2.28

-33.66%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 £1.16

$2.04 £1.53

-24.02%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.32 £0.99

$1.86 £1.39

-29.03%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.93 £1.45

$2.35 £1.76

-17.87%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.23 £17.43

$23.83 £17.87

-2.52%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.20 £8.40

$11.94 £8.96

-6.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.12 £2.34

$3.19 £2.40

-2.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.27 £2.46

$3.18 £2.38

2.83%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.14 £2.35

$2.92 £2.19

7.53%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$97.0 £72.8

$57.2 £42.92

69.60%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.43 £4.08

$4.62 £3.46

17.53%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.82 £1.37

$3.83 £2.87

-52.48%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$28.32 £21.25

$26.70 £20.03

6.07%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 £1.56

$1.97 £1.48

5.58%

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

$38.6K £28.9K

$38.2K £28.7K

0.84%

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

$39.9K £29.9K

$39.7K £29.8K

0.36%

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

$328 £246

$242 £182

35.36%

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

$16.47 £12.36

$13.07 £9.81

26.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.32 £31.75

$42.70 £32.03

-0.89%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.41 £33.32

$49.78 £37.34

-10.79%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$23.05 £17.30

$7.13 £5.35

223.28%

Cinema Ticket

$14.39 £10.79

$13.56 £10.17

6.12%

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

$1,775 £1,331

$1,924 £1,444

-7.77%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$25.6K £19.2K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$81.2 £60.9

$98.7 £74.0

-17.71%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$49.04 £36.79

$57.0 £42.74

-13.92%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £81.2

$123 £92.5

-12.16%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$115 £85.9

$87.3 £65.5

31.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,600 £1,200

$1,024 £769

56.19%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,168 £876

$809 £607

44.41%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,803 £2,103

$1,632 £1,225

71.73%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,155 £1,617

$1,238 £929

74.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,714 £5,037

$4,077 £3,058

64.69%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,715 £3,538

$3,258 £2,444

44.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,558 £2,669

$3,266 £2,450

8.94%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.77

5.41

-11.83%

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 17, 2026

Last update for Dundee: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Edinburgh

$1.2K 44.9%

Dundee

$809 38.8% 30.8% $359

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Edinburgh

$387 14.9%

Dundee

$298 14.3% 22.9% $89

Eating Out

Edinburgh

$359 13.8%

Dundee

$308 14.8% 14.1% $50

Groceries & Markets

Edinburgh

$332 12.8%

Dundee

$334 16% 0.7% $2.2

Clothing & Footwear

Edinburgh

$159 6.1%

Dundee

$165 7.9% 3.7% $5.9

Getting Around

Edinburgh

$124 4.8%

Dundee

$93 4.5% 25.3% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Edinburgh

$73 2.8%

Dundee

$77 3.7% 5.1% $3.7

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,600 in Edinburgh and $1,024 in Dundee. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Edinburgh pays 9% 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: $108 in Edinburgh vs $79.0 in Dundee. Groceries flip the comparison at $332 vs $334, with Edinburgh cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Edinburgh

🇬🇧 Dundee

🕒 Local time

17:04 5:04 PM

Same time as Edinburgh

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

488,050

148,280

💱 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

Edinburgh Dundee 58 km

From you

Edinburgh
Dundee

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 Dundee: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Edinburgh and Dundee differ by about 25% in total monthly costs ($2,601 vs $2,083 including rent). Dundee is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 9% 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: $1,600 in Edinburgh versus $1,024 in Dundee. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

A monthly transit pass in Dundee runs roughly 70% less than in Edinburgh. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

Childcare runs $1,775 in Edinburgh versus $1,924 in Dundee. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

At $2,083 in Dundee versus $2,601 in Edinburgh, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dundee but tight or insufficient in Edinburgh. The gap between the two cities makes Dundee 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, Edinburgh and Dundee 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 Dundee gentler on the wallet – expenses run 25% less than in Edinburgh. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.