Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Kirkwall Cost of Living Comparison Between Edinburgh and Kirkwall

😐 Solo nomad: Edinburgh is 7% more expensive than Kirkwall without rent, and 17.9% more expensive with rent.
😐 Family of 3: Edinburgh is 10.9% more expensive than Kirkwall without rent, and 19.1% more expensive with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$20.24 £14.89
$25.3 £18.62
-20.00%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$100 £73.7
$82.3 £60.6
21.57%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.86 £7.25
$9.88 £7.27
-0.20%
Cappuccino
$5.41 £3.98
$3.95 £2.9
36.96%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.62 £1.93
$2.3 £1.69
13.91%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.94 £1.43
$1.59 £1.17
22.01%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$7.3 £5.37
$5.61 £4.13
30.12%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.92 £5.09
$6.71 £4.94
3.13%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.69 £1.24
$1.57 £1.16
7.64%
White Bread (500g)
$1.74 £1.28
$1.58 £1.16
10.13%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.17 £1.6
$2.26 £1.66
-3.98%
Eggs
$4.2 £3.09
$3.88 £2.85
8.25%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$11.93 £8.78
$9.92 £7.3
20.26%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.34 £7.61
$9.05 £6.66
14.25%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$18.84 £13.86
$13.84 £10.18
36.13%
Apples (1kg)
$3.26 £2.4
$3.04 £2.24
7.24%
Banana (1kg)
$1.53 £1.13
$1.59 £1.17
-3.77%
Oranges (1kg)
$4.09 £3.01
$2.9 £2.13
41.03%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.65 £3.42
$3.6 £2.65
29.17%
Potato (1kg)
$1.76 £1.3
$1.71 £1.26
2.92%
Onion (1kg)
$1.42 £1.04
$1.54 £1.13
-7.79%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.22 £0.9
$1.1 £0.81
10.91%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.36 £1
$1.47 £1.08
-7.48%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$20.18 £14.85
$18.87 £13.89
6.94%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.69 £7.86
$10.52 £7.74
1.62%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.58 £1.9
$2.77 £2.04
-6.86%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.4 £2.5
$3.21 £2.36
5.92%
🚌 Getting Around
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.65 £1.95
$3.28 £2.41
-19.21%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$90.3 £66.5
$88.7 £65.3
1.86%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.53 £4.07
$5.45 £4.01
1.47%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.09 £2.27
$1.59 £1.17
94.34%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$43.29 £31.85
$23.12 £17.01
87.24%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.95 £1.44
$1.91 £1.4
2.09%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.5K £28.3K
$38.9K £28.6K
-1.12%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$39.3K £28.9K
$41.1K £30.2K
-4.41%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$371 £273
$298 £219
24.71%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$17.29 £12.73
$17.34 £12.76
-0.29%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$44.45 £32.71
$43.56 £32.06
2.04%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$54.2 £39.9
$26.01 £19.14
108.46%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$24.52 £18.05
-
-
Cinema Ticket
$14.71 £10.82
$13.55 £9.97
8.56%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,940 £1,427
$1,604 £1,181
20.92%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$24K £17.7K
$18.3K £13.5K
31.06%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$118 £86.7
$82.3 £60.6
43.21%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$55.8 £41.03
$44.14 £32.48
26.30%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$117 £86.2
$92.1 £67.8
27.14%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$124 £91
$96.8 £71.2
27.72%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,643 £1,209
$1,240 £912
32.55%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,210 £890
$1,016 £747
19.13%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$3,043 £2,239
$2,072 £1,525
46.84%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,150 £1,582
$1,709 £1,258
25.83%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,826 £5,023
-
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$4,713 £3,469
-
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Edinburgh
Kirkwall
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,668 £2,699
$1,950 £1,435
88.13%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.63
5.63
-

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

Last update for Edinburgh: October 28, 2025

Last update for Kirkwall: October 27, 2025

Similar cities

Join the CityCost newsletter – low traffic, no spam, and easy to unsubscribe. Your email stays private.