Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Arendal

For one person, living is cheaper in Arendal: $2,679 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $15,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
131

Cost of Living Index in Arendal
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Arendal Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Arendal

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,679

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Arendal

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,986 in London versus $2,679 in Arendal.

London $3,986
Arendal $2,679

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,791 in London versus $3,805 in Arendal.

London $5,791
Arendal $3,805

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,595 in London versus $4,931 in Arendal.

London $7,595
Arendal $4,931

Living in London is roughly 49% more expensive than in Arendal, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 195% above, Arendal 98% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$19.51 NOK 184

32.91%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$65.8 NOK 619

61.85%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$15.52 NOK 146

-30.99%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$5.33 NOK 50.2

2.63%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$3.49 NOK 32.84

-14.90%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$3.25 NOK 30.62

-32.31%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$11.55 NOK 109

-20.95%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$12.08 NOK 114

-34.27%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$2.31 NOK 21.78

-19.48%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$3.47 NOK 32.63

-40.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$3.78 NOK 35.56

-35.98%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$4.93 NOK 46.38

3.25%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$14.81 NOK 139

-13.10%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$14.35 NOK 135

-27.32%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$33.30 NOK 314

-49.34%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$3.49 NOK 32.83

-10.89%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.63 NOK 24.75

-46.77%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$3.48 NOK 32.74

-11.49%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$4.74 NOK 44.63

-31.01%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$2.55 NOK 23.97

-38.04%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$3.10 NOK 29.18

-43.87%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.82 NOK 26.55

-50.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$2.24 NOK 21.13

-19.64%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$17.67 NOK 166

31.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$14.46 NOK 136

-9.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$3.74 NOK 35.19

-15.24%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$4.38 NOK 41.27

0.91%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$3.69 NOK 34.72

10.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$90.2 NOK 849

173.72%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$6.11 NOK 57.5

-8.67%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$1.70 NOK 16.03

97.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.57

$105 NOK 986

-45.82%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$2.26 NOK 21.31

-5.75%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$48.3K NOK 454.3K

-20.88%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$41.0K NOK 385.9K

-0.23%

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

$372 £279

$252 NOK 2,372

47.69%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$34.68 NOK 326

-48.62%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$79.7 NOK 751

-49.37%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$36.61 NOK 345

63.81%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$15.38 NOK 145

15.34%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$314 NOK 2,952

813.56%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$13.8K NOK 129.9K

156.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$125 NOK 1,176

-8.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$43.59 NOK 410

24.50%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$124 NOK 1,165

0.37%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$204 NOK 1,922

-20.14%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$1,109 NOK 10.4K

158.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$1,039 NOK 9,783

114.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,950

$1,556 NOK 14.6K

238.38%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,834

$1,453 NOK 13.7K

160.12%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$4,112 NOK 38.7K

345.80%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,019

$3,134 NOK 29.5K

155.99%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,778

$4,151 NOK 39.1K

21.35%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

4.68

1.28%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Arendal: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Arendal

$1K 38.8% 53.5% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Arendal

$366 13.7% 14.9% $64

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Arendal

$375 14% 3.1% $12

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Arendal

$488 18.2% 39.6% $139

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Arendal

$120 4.5% 58.1% $166

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Arendal

$223 8.3% 9% $18

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Arendal

$67 2.5% 29.4% $28

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,869 in London and $1,109 in Arendal. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 21% 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: $107 in London vs $66.0 in Arendal. Groceries flip the comparison at $349 vs $488, with London cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇴 Arendal

🕒 Local time

21:50 9:50 PM

22:50 10:50 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

46,406

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Arendal 960 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Arendal

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

London vs Arendal: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London and Arendal differ by about 49% in total monthly costs ($3,986 vs $2,679 including rent). Arendal is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 21% higher in London, 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: $2,869 in London versus $1,109 in Arendal. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $2,864 in London versus $314 in Arendal. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Shoppers in London pay roughly 40% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

At $2,679 in Arendal versus $3,986 in London, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Arendal but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Arendal 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, London and Arendal 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 Arendal gentler on the wallet – expenses run 49% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.