Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Karaj and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Karaj: $816 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $38,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

40

Cost of Living Index in Karaj
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Karaj Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index

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Karaj

🇮🇷 Iran

$816

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Karaj 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 Karaj and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $816 in Karaj versus $3,986 in London.

Karaj $816
London $3,986

Estimated couple costs with rent: $1,054 in Karaj versus $5,791 in London.

Karaj $1,054
London $5,791

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $1,292 in Karaj versus $7,595 in London.

Karaj $1,292
London $7,595

Living in Karaj costs roughly 80% less than in London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: Karaj is 40% below, London is 195% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$3.79 $3.79

$25.93 £19.45

-85.38%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$17.25 $17.25

$107 £79.9

-83.80%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$3.92 $3.92

$10.71 £8.03

-63.40%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$0.48 $0.48

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.12 $1.12

Cappuccino

$1.11 $1.11

$5.47 £4.11

-79.71%

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

$0.46 $0.46

$2.97 £2.23

-84.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.66 $1.66

$2.20 £1.65

-24.55%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

Milk (1 liter)

$0.70 $0.70

$1.86 £1.40

-62.37%

White Bread (500g)

$0.51 $0.51

$2.07 £1.55

-75.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.07 $2.07

$2.42 £1.81

-14.46%

Eggs

$1.08 $1.08

$5.09 £3.82

-78.78%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$4.31 $4.31

$12.87 £9.66

-66.51%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$3.30 $3.30

$10.43 £7.82

-68.36%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$10.38 $10.38

$16.87 £12.66

-38.47%

Apples (1kg)

$0.86 $0.86

$3.11 £2.33

-72.35%

Banana (1kg)

$1.68 $1.68

$1.40 £1.05

20.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$0.75 $0.75

$3.08 £2.31

-75.65%

Tomato (1kg)

$0.49 $0.49

$3.27 £2.45

-85.02%

Potato (1kg)

$0.46 $0.46

$1.58 £1.19

-70.89%

Onion (1kg)

$0.47 $0.47

$1.74 £1.31

-72.99%

Lettuce (1 head)

$0.57 $0.57

$1.40 £1.05

-59.29%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$0.19 $0.19

$1.80 £1.35

-89.44%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$0.76 $0.76

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$0.52 $0.52

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.34 $1.34

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$2.52 $2.52

$23.28 £17.46

-89.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$0.19 $0.19

$4.07 £3.05

-95.33%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$13.23 $13.23

$247 £185

-94.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$0.31 $0.31

$5.58 £4.18

-94.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$0.29 $0.29

$3.36 £2.52

-91.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$2.66 $2.66

$56.8 £42.58

-95.31%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$0.08 $0.08

$2.13 £1.60

-96.24%

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

$49.4K $49.4K

$38.2K £28.6K

29.37%

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

$44.9K $44.9K

$40.9K £30.7K

9.85%

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

$12.86 $12.86

$372 £279

-96.54%

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

$1.58 $1.58

$17.82 £13.37

-91.13%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$3.69 $3.69

$40.37 £30.29

-90.86%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$23.06 $23.06

$60.0 £44.99

-61.55%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$10.06 $10.06

$21.29 £15.97

-52.75%

Cinema Ticket

$1.12 $1.12

$17.74 £13.31

-93.69%

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

$108 $108

$2,864 £2,149

-96.21%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$817 $817

$35.3K £26.5K

-97.69%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$25.45 $25.45

$114 £85.5

-77.68%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$28.36 $28.36

$54.3 £40.71

-47.74%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.8 $95.8

$124 £93.2

-22.91%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$74.5 $74.5

$163 £122

-54.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$291 $291

$2,869 £2,152

-89.85%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$480 $480

$2,233 £1,675

-78.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$829 $829

$5,266 £3,951

-84.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$467 $467

$3,778 £2,835

-87.64%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$1,249 $1,249

$18.3K £13.8K

-93.19%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$528 $528

$8,024 £6,020

-93.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$245 $245

$5,037 £3,779

-95.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

385.23%

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

Last update for Karaj: October 11, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Karaj

$480 58.8%

London

$2.2K 56% 365% $1.8K

Groceries & Markets

Karaj

$112 13.7%

London

$349 8.8% 212% $237

Clothing & Footwear

Karaj

$101 12.4%

London

$205 5.1% 103% $104

Eating Out

Karaj

$64 7.8%

London

$388 9.7% 506% $324

Sport & Entertainment

Karaj

$25 3.1%

London

$95 2.4% 277% $70

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Karaj

$18 2.2%

London

$430 10.8% 2274% $412

Getting Around

Karaj

$16 1.9%

London

$285 7.2% 1716% $270

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $291 in Karaj and $2,869 in London. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 1960% 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: $17.00 in Karaj vs $107 in London for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $112 vs $349 per month, with Karaj cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇮🇷 Karaj

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

04:19 4:19 AM

01:49 1:49 AM

2 h 30 min behind Karaj

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

1,712,000

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

USD USD

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 USD = 0.89 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, EUR to USD – USD Converter

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

USD exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 EUR = 1.12 USD (1 USD = 0.89 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

GBP to USD in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

Karaj London 4,360 km ≈ 6 h nonstop flight

From you

Karaj
London

Distances are measured in a straight line. Your location is detected approximately.

City Median Internet Speeds Comparison (Updated March 2026)

The chart highlights the Precision Threshold for mobile and fixed broadband internet speeds, updated quarterly.

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Karaj vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Karaj and London differ by about 389% in total monthly costs ($816 vs $3,986 including rent). Karaj is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 1960% 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: $291 in Karaj versus $2,869 in London. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 212% higher in London. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Karaj – a meal for two runs $17.00 versus $107 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $816 in Karaj versus $3,986 in London, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Karaj but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Karaj 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, Karaj 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 Karaj gentler on the wallet – expenses run 389% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.