Cost of Living Comparison Between Kirkwall and Edinburgh Cost of Living Comparison Between Kirkwall and Edinburgh

🙂 Solo nomad: Kirkwall is 6.5% cheaper than Edinburgh without rent, and 15.2% cheaper with rent.
🙂 Family of 3: Kirkwall is 9.8% cheaper than Edinburgh without rent, and 16% cheaper with rent.
Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$25.3 £18.62
$20.24 £14.89
25.00%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$82.3 £60.6
$100 £73.7
-17.74%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$9.88 £7.27
$9.86 £7.25
0.20%
Cappuccino
$3.95 £2.9
$5.41 £3.98
-26.99%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.3 £1.69
$2.62 £1.93
-12.21%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.59 £1.17
$1.94 £1.43
-18.04%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.61 £4.13
$7.3 £5.37
-23.15%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$6.71 £4.94
$6.92 £5.09
-3.03%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.57 £1.16
$1.69 £1.24
-7.10%
White Bread (500g)
$1.58 £1.16
$1.74 £1.28
-9.20%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.26 £1.66
$2.17 £1.6
4.15%
Eggs
$3.88 £2.85
$4.2 £3.09
-7.62%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$9.92 £7.3
$11.93 £8.78
-16.85%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$9.05 £6.66
$10.34 £7.61
-12.48%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$13.84 £10.18
$18.84 £13.86
-26.54%
Apples (1kg)
$3.04 £2.24
$3.26 £2.4
-6.75%
Banana (1kg)
$1.59 £1.17
$1.53 £1.13
3.92%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.9 £2.13
$4.09 £3.01
-29.10%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.6 £2.65
$4.65 £3.42
-22.58%
Potato (1kg)
$1.71 £1.26
$1.76 £1.3
-2.84%
Onion (1kg)
$1.54 £1.13
$1.42 £1.04
8.45%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.1 £0.81
$1.22 £0.9
-9.84%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.47 £1.08
$1.36 £1
8.09%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$18.87 £13.89
$20.18 £14.85
-6.49%
Wine (Bottle)
$10.52 £7.74
$10.69 £7.86
-1.59%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$2.77 £2.04
$2.58 £1.9
7.36%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.21 £2.36
$3.4 £2.5
-5.59%
🚌 Getting Around
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$3.28 £2.41
$2.65 £1.95
23.77%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$88.7 £65.3
$90.3 £66.5
-1.83%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.45 £4.01
$5.53 £4.07
-1.45%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.59 £1.17
$3.09 £2.27
-48.54%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$23.12 £17.01
$43.29 £31.85
-46.59%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.91 £1.4
$1.95 £1.44
-2.05%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.9K £28.6K
$38.5K £28.3K
1.13%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$41.1K £30.2K
$39.3K £28.9K
4.62%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$298 £219
$371 £273
-19.82%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$17.34 £12.76
$17.29 £12.73
0.29%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$43.56 £32.06
$44.45 £32.71
-2.00%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$26.01 £19.14
$54.2 £39.9
-52.03%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$24.52 £18.05
-
Cinema Ticket
$13.55 £9.97
$14.71 £10.82
-7.89%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,604 £1,181
$1,940 £1,427
-17.30%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$18.3K £13.5K
$24K £17.7K
-23.70%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$82.3 £60.6
$118 £86.7
-30.17%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$44.14 £32.48
$55.8 £41.03
-20.83%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$92.1 £67.8
$117 £86.2
-21.34%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$96.8 £71.2
$124 £91
-21.70%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,240 £912
$1,643 £1,209
-24.56%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,016 £747
$1,210 £890
-16.06%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,072 £1,525
$3,043 £2,239
-31.90%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,709 £1,258
$2,150 £1,582
-20.53%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
-
$6,826 £5,023
-
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
-
$4,713 £3,469
-
💵 Salaries & Financials
Kirkwall
Edinburgh
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,950 £1,435
$3,668 £2,699
-46.84%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
5.63
5.63
-

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

Last update for Kirkwall: October 27, 2025

Last update for Edinburgh: October 28, 2025

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