Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Ilmenau and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Ilmenau: $2,071 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $23,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

100

Cost of Living Index in Ilmenau
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Ilmenau Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Ilmenau

🇩🇪 Germany

$2,071

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Ilmenau and in London

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,071 in Ilmenau versus $3,986 in London.

Ilmenau $2,071
London $3,986

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,525 in Ilmenau versus $5,791 in London.

Ilmenau $2,525
London $5,791

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $2,980 in Ilmenau versus $7,595 in London.

Ilmenau $2,980
London $7,595

Living in Ilmenau costs roughly 48% less than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Ilmenau 53% above, London 195% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$10.96 €9.75

$25.93 £19.45

-57.73%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$66.5 €59.2

$107 £79.9

-37.55%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$11.27 €10.02

$10.71 £8.03

5.23%

Cappuccino

$3.41 €3.04

$5.47 £4.11

-37.66%

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

$4.26 €3.79

$2.97 £2.23

43.43%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.97 €7.09

$2.20 £1.65

262.27%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.41 €3.92

$9.13 £6.85

-51.70%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.99 €4.44

$7.94 £5.96

-37.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.13 €1.01

$1.86 £1.40

-39.25%

White Bread (500g)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.07 £1.55

3.38%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.24 €2.88

$2.42 £1.81

33.88%

Eggs

$3.23 €2.87

$5.09 £3.82

-36.54%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$14.33 €12.75

$12.87 £9.66

11.34%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.24 €9.11

$10.43 £7.82

-1.82%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.76 €15.79

$16.87 £12.66

5.28%

Apples (1kg)

$2.87 €2.55

$3.11 £2.33

-7.72%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 €1.24

$1.40 £1.05

Oranges (1kg)

$3.50 €3.11

$3.08 £2.31

13.64%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.82 €3.40

$3.27 £2.45

16.82%

Potato (1kg)

$2.11 €1.88

$1.58 £1.19

33.54%

Onion (1kg)

$1.36 €1.21

$1.74 £1.31

-21.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.63 €1.45

$1.40 £1.05

16.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.88 €0.78

$1.80 £1.35

-51.11%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$9.22 €8.20

$23.28 £17.46

-60.40%

Wine (Bottle)

$6.22 €5.53

$13.03 £9.77

-52.26%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$1.11 €0.99

$3.17 £2.38

-64.98%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.48 €1.32

$4.42 £3.32

-66.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$65.3 €58.1

$247 £185

-73.55%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.23 €4.65

$5.58 £4.18

-6.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$4.21 €3.75

$3.36 £2.52

25.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$43.78 €38.94

$56.8 £42.58

-22.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.14 €1.90

$2.13 £1.60

0.47%

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

$32.3K €28.7K

$38.2K £28.6K

-15.53%

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

$37.8K €33.6K

$40.9K £30.7K

-7.66%

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

$675 €600

$372 £279

81.33%

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

$27.38 €24.36

$17.82 £13.37

53.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$34.08 €30.32

$40.37 £30.29

-15.58%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$48.13 €42.81

$60.0 £44.99

-19.74%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$13.20 €11.74

$17.74 £13.31

-25.59%

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

$454 €404

$2,864 £2,149

-84.14%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$93.0 €82.8

$114 £85.5

-18.40%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$31.50 €28.02

$54.3 £40.71

-41.96%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$121 €107

$124 £93.2

-2.82%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$113 €101

$163 £122

-30.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$471 €419

$2,869 £2,152

-83.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$455 €404

$2,233 £1,675

-79.64%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$828 €737

$5,266 £3,951

-84.27%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,254 €2,894

$5,037 £3,779

-35.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.95

4.74

-16.67%

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

Last update for Ilmenau: October 11, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Ilmenau

$736 35.6%

London

$430 10.8% 41.6% $306

Accommodation & Living

Ilmenau

$455 22%

London

$2.2K 56% 391% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Ilmenau

$309 14.9%

London

$349 8.8% 13.1% $41

Eating Out

Ilmenau

$243 11.8%

London

$388 9.7% 59.2% $144

Clothing & Footwear

Ilmenau

$161 7.8%

London

$205 5.1% 27.1% $44

Getting Around

Ilmenau

$92 * 4.4%

London

$285 7.2% 212% $194

Sport & Entertainment

Ilmenau

$75 3.6%

London

$95 2.4% 28.1% $21

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $471 in Ilmenau and $2,869 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 55% 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: $67.0 in Ilmenau vs $107 in London for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $309 vs $349 per month, with Ilmenau cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇩🇪 Ilmenau

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

09:51 9:51 AM

08:51 8:51 AM

1 h behind Ilmenau

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

39,000

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

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Between locations

Ilmenau London 780 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

Ilmenau
London

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

Ilmenau vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Ilmenau and London differ by about 93% in total monthly costs ($2,071 vs $3,986 including rent). Ilmenau is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 55% lower in London. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $471 in Ilmenau versus $2,869 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

All in, you'll spend $2,071 per month in Ilmenau versus $3,986 in London – a 93% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

A monthly transit pass in Ilmenau runs roughly 278% less than in London. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.

At $2,071 in Ilmenau versus $3,986 in London, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Ilmenau but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Ilmenau 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, Ilmenau and London 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 Ilmenau gentler on the wallet – expenses run 93% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.