Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Glasgow and Chelmsford

For one person, living costs are similar in Glasgow and in Chelmsford: $2,425 and $2,540 a month, rent and utilities included.

117

Cost of Living Index in Glasgow
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Glasgow Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Chelmsford
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Chelmsford Living Index

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Glasgow

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,425

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Chelmsford

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,540

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Glasgow and in Chelmsford

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,540 in Chelmsford.

Glasgow $2,425
Chelmsford $2,540

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,644 in Glasgow versus $3,906 in Chelmsford.

Glasgow $3,644
Chelmsford $3,906

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,864 in Glasgow versus $5,273 in Chelmsford.

Glasgow $4,864
Chelmsford $5,273

Living in Glasgow costs roughly 5% less than in Chelmsford, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Glasgow 79% above, Chelmsford 87% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.03 £15.78

$26.34 £19.76

-20.16%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.7 £50.1

$57.9 £43.43

15.25%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.56 £7.92

$9.37 £7.03

12.70%

Cappuccino

$4.78 £3.59

$4.79 £3.59

-0.21%

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

$2.27 £1.70

$3.05 £2.29

-25.57%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.90 £1.42

$1.69 £1.27

12.43%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$5.43 £4.08

$7.53 £5.65

-27.89%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.76 £5.07

$7.28 £5.46

-7.14%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.65 £1.24

$1.70 £1.27

-2.94%

White Bread (500g)

$1.69 £1.27

$2.39 £1.79

-29.29%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.98 £1.49

$2.81 £2.11

-29.54%

Eggs

$3.93 £2.95

$3.48 £2.61

12.93%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.24 £6.93

$8.32 £6.24

11.06%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.29 £6.97

$8.85 £6.64

4.97%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.82 £12.62

$13.96 £10.47

20.49%

Apples (1kg)

$2.99 £2.24

$2.26 £1.70

32.30%

Banana (1kg)

$1.49 £1.12

$1.50 £1.13

-0.67%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.89 £2.17

$3.73 £2.80

-22.52%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.22 £2.42

$3.29 £2.47

-2.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.79 £1.34

10.06%

Onion (1kg)

$1.59 £1.19

$1.58 £1.18

0.63%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.19 £0.89

$1.11 £0.83

7.21%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.79 £1.34

-8.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.68 £17.76

$23.20 £17.40

2.07%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.13 £8.35

$11.90 £8.92

-6.47%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.54

$2.96 £2.22

14.53%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.44 £2.58

$3.52 £2.64

-2.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$4.11 £3.08

-0.97%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.5

$68.6 £51.4

50.69%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.03 £4.52

$4.65 £3.49

29.68%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.16 £0.87

$1.69 £1.27

-31.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$62.0 £46.48

$26.33 £19.75

135.32%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.15 £1.62

$2.06 £1.54

4.37%

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

$39.3K £29.5K

$38.8K £29.1K

1.23%

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

$39.7K £29.8K

$40.1K £30.0K

-0.96%

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

$315 £236

$264 £198

19.00%

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

$20.19 £15.15

$14.85 £11.14

35.96%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.28 £32.47

$35.55 £26.67

21.74%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$46.26 £34.71

$49.59 £37.21

-6.72%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$20.34 £15.26

Cinema Ticket

$16.23 £12.17

$17.46 £13.10

-7.04%

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

$905 £679

$1,871 £1,403

-51.61%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.6K £16.2K

$13.5K £10.1K

60.54%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$135 £102

$101 £76.0

33.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$46.32 £34.75

$44.88 £33.67

3.21%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$108 £80.9

$94.5 £70.9

14.15%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$93.1 £69.9

$87.1 £65.3

6.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,350 £1,013

$1,555 £1,167

-13.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,036 £778

$1,219 £914

-14.97%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,680 £2,011

$2,658 £1,994

0.85%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,941 £1,456

$2,498 £1,874

-22.29%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,064 £3,049

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,073 £2,306

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,420 £2,566

$2,898 £2,174

18.01%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

5.21

-8.06%

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

Last update for Glasgow: October 19, 2026

Last update for Chelmsford: October 19, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Glasgow

$1K 42.8%

Chelmsford

$1.2K 48% 17.6% $182

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Glasgow

$378 15.6%

Chelmsford

$315 12.4% 16.7% $63

Eating Out

Glasgow

$315 13%

Chelmsford

$367 14.5% 16.8% $53

Groceries & Markets

Glasgow

$313 12.9%

Chelmsford

$309 12.2% 1.3% $4.1

Clothing & Footwear

Glasgow

$172 7.1%

Chelmsford

$147 5.8% 14.4% $25

Getting Around

Glasgow

$131 5.4%

Chelmsford

$98 3.9% 25.3% $33

Sport & Entertainment

Glasgow

$79 3.3%

Chelmsford

$85 3.3% 7.4% $5.8

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,350 in Glasgow and $1,555 in Chelmsford. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Glasgow pays 18% 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 $58.0 in Chelmsford for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $313 vs $309 per month, with Chelmsford cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Glasgow

🇬🇧 Chelmsford

🕒 Local time

04:18 4:18 AM

Same time as Glasgow

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

606,340

176,194

💱 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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Glasgow Chelmsford 550 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Glasgow
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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 Chelmsford: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Glasgow and Chelmsford differ by about 5% in total monthly costs ($2,425 vs $2,540 including rent). Glasgow is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 18% 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 $1,555 in Chelmsford. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $905 in Glasgow versus $1,871 in Chelmsford. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in Chelmsford pay roughly 1% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,425 in Glasgow versus $2,540 in Chelmsford, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Glasgow but tight or insufficient in Chelmsford. 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 Chelmsford 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 5% less than in Chelmsford. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.