Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Glasgow and Brighton

For one person, living is cheaper in Glasgow: $2,425 a month against $2,950 in Brighton, rent and utilities included – about $6,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

117

Cost of Living Index in Glasgow
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Glasgow Living Index
143

Cost of Living Index in Brighton
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Brighton Living Index

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Glasgow

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,425

/mo nomad

Brighton

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,950

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Glasgow and in Brighton

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,950 in Brighton.

Glasgow $2,425
Brighton $2,950

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,644 in Glasgow versus $4,214 in Brighton.

Glasgow $3,644
Brighton $4,214

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,864 in Glasgow versus $5,479 in Brighton.

Glasgow $4,864
Brighton $5,479

Living in Glasgow costs roughly 18% less than in Brighton, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Glasgow 79% above, Brighton 118% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.03 £15.78

$25.54 £19.16

-17.66%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.7 £50.1

$92.8 £69.6

-28.10%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.56 £7.92

$9.77 £7.33

8.09%

Cappuccino

$4.78 £3.59

$5.33 £4.00

-10.32%

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

$2.27 £1.70

$3.93 £2.95

-42.24%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 £1.42

$3.33 £2.50

-42.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 £4.08

$8.96 £6.72

-39.40%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.76 £5.07

$9.49 £7.12

-28.77%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 £1.24

$1.95 £1.47

-15.38%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 £1.27

$2.06 £1.54

-17.96%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 £1.49

$2.12 £1.59

-6.60%

Eggs

$3.93 £2.95

$4.53 £3.40

-13.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.24 £6.93

$12.10 £9.08

-23.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.29 £6.97

$9.40 £7.05

-1.17%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.82 £12.62

$15.08 £11.31

11.54%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 £2.24

$2.95 £2.22

1.36%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 £1.12

$1.91 £1.43

-21.99%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.89 £2.17

$2.90 £2.17

-0.34%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 £2.42

$3.76 £2.82

-14.36%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 £1.47

$2.24 £1.68

-12.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 £1.19

$1.80 £1.35

-11.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 £0.89

$1.20 £0.90

-0.83%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.65 £1.24

-0.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.68 £17.76

$23.98 £17.99

-1.25%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.13 £8.35

$11.11 £8.33

0.18%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.54

$3.08 £2.31

10.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 £2.58

$3.24 £2.43

6.17%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$3.94 £2.96

3.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.5

$128 £96.4

-19.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.03 £4.52

$5.07 £3.81

18.93%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.16 £0.87

$2.62 £1.96

-55.73%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$62.0 £46.48

$39.62 £29.72

56.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 £1.62

$2.09 £1.57

2.87%

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

$39.3K £29.5K

$38.4K £28.8K

2.23%

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

$39.7K £29.8K

$41.1K £30.9K

-3.58%

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

$315 £236

$291 £218

8.09%

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

$20.19 £15.15

$16.90 £12.68

19.47%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.28 £32.47

$44.87 £33.66

-3.54%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.26 £34.71

$51.2 £38.38

-9.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.34 £15.26

$26.89 £20.17

-24.36%

Cinema Ticket

$16.23 £12.17

$17.32 £12.99

-6.29%

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

$905 £679

$2,062 £1,547

-56.10%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.6K £16.2K

$30.8K £23.1K

-29.74%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$135 £102

$89.9 £67.5

50.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.32 £34.75

$45.51 £34.14

1.78%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £80.9

$102 £76.8

5.32%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.1 £69.9

$90.7 £68.1

2.65%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 £1,013

$1,887 £1,416

-28.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £778

$1,480 £1,110

-29.95%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,680 £2,011

$2,833 £2,125

-5.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 £1,456

$2,233 £1,675

-13.06%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,064 £3,049

$8,467 £6,352

-52.00%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,073 £2,306

$6,148 £4,612

-50.01%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,420 £2,566

$3,380 £2,536

1.16%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

5.12

-6.45%

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

Last update for Glasgow: October 19, 2026

Last update for Brighton: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Glasgow

$1K 42.8%

Brighton

$1.5K 50.2% 42.8% $443

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Glasgow

$378 15.6%

Brighton

$353 12% 6.7% $25

Eating Out

Glasgow

$315 13%

Brighton

$390 13.2% 24.1% $76

Groceries & Markets

Glasgow

$313 12.9%

Brighton

$331 11.2% 5.8% $18

Clothing & Footwear

Glasgow

$172 7.1%

Brighton

$148 5% 14.1% $24

Getting Around

Glasgow

$131 5.4%

Brighton

$162 5.5% 23.6% $31

Sport & Entertainment

Glasgow

$79 3.3%

Brighton

$86 2.9% 9% $7.1

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,350 in Glasgow and $1,887 in Brighton. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Glasgow pays 1% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $67.0 in Glasgow vs $93.0 in Brighton for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $313 vs $331 per month, with Glasgow cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Glasgow

🇬🇧 Brighton

🕒 Local time

13:29 1:29 PM

Same time as Glasgow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

606,340

256,000

💱 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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Highest

Between locations

Glasgow Brighton 620 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Glasgow
Brighton

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

Glasgow vs Brighton: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Glasgow and Brighton differ by about 22% in total monthly costs ($2,425 vs $2,950 including rent). Glasgow is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 1% higher in Glasgow, 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: $1,350 in Glasgow versus $1,887 in Brighton. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $905 in Glasgow versus $2,062 in Brighton. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Supermarket bills run roughly 6% higher in Brighton. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

At $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,950 in Brighton, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Glasgow but tight or insufficient in Brighton. The gap between the two cities makes Glasgow 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, Glasgow and Brighton 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 Glasgow gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in Brighton. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.