Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Glasgow and Cardiff

For one person, living costs are similar in Glasgow and in Cardiff: $2,425 and $2,454 a month, rent and utilities included.

117

Cost of Living Index in Glasgow
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Glasgow Living Index
119

Cost of Living Index in Cardiff
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Cardiff Living Index

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Glasgow

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,425

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Cardiff

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,454

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Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Glasgow and in Cardiff

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,454 in Cardiff.

Glasgow $2,425
Cardiff $2,454

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,641 in Glasgow versus $3,414 in Cardiff.

Glasgow $3,641
Cardiff $3,414

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,856 in Glasgow versus $4,373 in Cardiff.

Glasgow $4,856
Cardiff $4,373

Living in Glasgow costs roughly 1% less than in Cardiff, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Glasgow 80% above, Cardiff 82% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.32 £15.99

$20.04 £15.04

6.39%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$71.5 £53.6

$83.4 £62.6

-14.35%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.42 £7.82

$10.74 £8.06

-2.98%

Cappuccino

$4.81 £3.61

$4.45 £3.34

8.09%

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

$2.15 £1.61

$2.92 £2.19

-26.37%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$2.00 £1.50

-10.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.32 £3.99

$7.80 £5.85

-31.79%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.52 £4.89

$6.32 £4.74

3.16%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.62 £1.22

$1.72 £1.29

-5.81%

White Bread (500g)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.43 £1.07

12.59%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.96 £1.47

$2.15 £1.61

-8.84%

Eggs

$3.80 £2.85

$3.62 £2.72

4.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.22 £6.92

$9.47 £7.11

-2.64%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.03 £6.78

$8.85 £6.64

2.03%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.68 £12.52

$16.18 £12.14

3.09%

Apples (1kg)

$3.10 £2.33

$2.80 £2.10

10.71%

Banana (1kg)

$1.56 £1.17

$1.55 £1.16

0.65%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.94 £2.21

$3.03 £2.28

-2.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.19 £2.40

$3.51 £2.63

-9.12%

Potato (1kg)

$1.98 £1.48

$1.99 £1.50

-0.50%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 £1.21

$1.54 £1.15

4.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.15 £0.86

$1.09 £0.82

5.50%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.64 £1.23

-3.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.19 £17.40

$23.08 £17.31

0.48%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.88 £8.17

$11.07 £8.31

-1.72%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.22 £2.42

$3.05 £2.29

5.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.38 £2.54

$3.31 £2.48

2.11%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.31 £3.23

$3.21 £2.41

34.27%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.4

$79.1 £59.3

30.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.66 £4.25

$4.58 £3.44

23.58%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.13 £0.85

$1.66 £1.25

-31.93%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$60.4 £45.34

$35.87 £26.91

68.47%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 £1.60

$2.06 £1.55

3.88%

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

$38.6K £28.9K

$37.9K £28.4K

1.86%

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

$40.5K £30.4K

$40.9K £30.7K

-0.99%

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

$313 £235

$335 £252

-6.73%

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

$20.21 £15.16

$25.35 £19.02

-20.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.75 £31.32

$43.54 £32.67

-4.11%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.71 £34.29

$37.26 £27.95

22.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.00 £15.00

$11.37 £8.53

75.90%

Cinema Ticket

$15.76 £11.82

$10.36 £7.77

52.12%

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

$903 £677

$1,990 £1,493

-54.62%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.7K £16.3K

$32.5K £24.4K

-33.37%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$133 £99.7

$97.8 £73.4

35.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.40 £34.81

$48.54 £36.41

-4.41%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$107 £80.0

$116 £86.9

-7.92%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$89.3 £67.0

$99.4 £74.6

-10.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,317 £988

$1,168 £876

12.75%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,050 £787

$1,102 £826

-4.72%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,746 £2,060

$2,136 £1,602

28.56%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,931 £1,448

$1,482 £1,112

30.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,110 £3,083

$5,255 £3,942

-21.79%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,011 £2,259

$3,432 £2,575

-12.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,323 £2,493

$3,179 £2,385

4.53%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

5.11

-6.26%

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

Last update for Glasgow: October 13, 2026

Last update for Cardiff: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Glasgow

$1K 43.3%

Cardiff

$1.1K 44.9% 5% $52

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Glasgow

$375 15.5%

Cardiff

$404 16.5% 7.9% $30

Eating Out

Glasgow

$315 13%

Cardiff

$317 12.9% 0.7% $2.3

Groceries & Markets

Glasgow

$308 12.7%

Cardiff

$306 12.5% 0.8% $2.5

Clothing & Footwear

Glasgow

$169 7%

Cardiff

$163 6.6% 3.7% $6.2

Getting Around

Glasgow

$132 5.4%

Cardiff

$105 4.3% 20.4% $27

Sport & Entertainment

Glasgow

$77 3.2%

Cardiff

$58 2.4% 24.9% $19

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,317 in Glasgow and $1,168 in Cardiff. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Glasgow 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: $71.0 in Glasgow vs $83.0 in Cardiff. Groceries flip the comparison at $308 vs $306, with Cardiff cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Glasgow

🇬🇧 Cardiff

🕒 Local time

22:13 10:13 PM

Same time as Glasgow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

606,340

346,100

💱 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

Glasgow Cardiff 490 km

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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 Cardiff: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Glasgow and Cardiff differ by about 1% in total monthly costs ($2,425 vs $2,454 including rent). Glasgow is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 5% 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: $1,317 in Glasgow versus $1,168 in Cardiff. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Glasgow – a meal for two runs $71.0 versus $83.0 in Cardiff. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $2,425 per month in Glasgow versus $2,454 in Cardiff – a 1% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,454 in Cardiff, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Glasgow but tight or insufficient in Cardiff. 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 Cardiff 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 1% less than in Cardiff. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.