Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Bern

For one person, living is cheaper in Bern: $3,361 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $8,700 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
163

Cost of Living Index in Bern
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Bern Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Bern

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,361

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Bern

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $3,361 in Bern.

London $4,086
Bern $3,361

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $5,127 in Bern.

London $5,816
Bern $5,127

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $6,894 in Bern.

London $7,546
Bern $6,894

Living in London is roughly 22% more expensive than in Bern, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Bern 151% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$28.65 CHF 23.78

-7.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$120 CHF 99.9

-10.63%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$15.95 CHF 13.23

-34.86%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$6.61 CHF 5.49

-12.41%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$6.16 CHF 5.11

-51.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$6.97 CHF 5.79

-69.15%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$9.14 CHF 7.59

2.30%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$7.95 CHF 6.60

-1.38%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$2.19 CHF 1.82

-18.26%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$2.91 CHF 2.42

-29.21%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$3.25 CHF 2.70

-28.92%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$7.57 CHF 6.29

-33.29%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$24.53 CHF 20.36

-48.76%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$28.76 CHF 23.87

-62.93%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$38.92 CHF 32.30

-55.99%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.94 CHF 3.27

-23.10%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.95 CHF 1.62

-27.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.64 CHF 2.19

15.53%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$4.71 CHF 3.91

-28.24%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.61 CHF 1.34

3.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.97 CHF 1.63

-12.18%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.29 CHF 1.90

-38.43%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.35 CHF 1.12

32.59%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$11.08 CHF 9.20

109.57%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$12.00 CHF 9.96

8.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$2.23 CHF 1.85

42.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.91 CHF 2.42

51.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$6.31 CHF 5.24

-38.67%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$100 CHF 83.2

149.40%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$8.04 CHF 6.68

-28.98%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$4.52 CHF 3.76

-26.33%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$107 CHF 88.8

-45.86%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.31 CHF 1.92

-11.69%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$43.0K CHF 35.7K

-12.72%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$39.2K CHF 32.5K

4.28%

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

$376 £284

$267 CHF 222

40.81%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$27.95 CHF 23.20

-36.03%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$54.8 CHF 45.51

-27.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$86.9 CHF 72.2

-29.65%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$46.30 CHF 38.43

-54.49%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$23.85 CHF 19.79

-24.74%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$3,148 CHF 2,612

-8.97%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$30.7K CHF 25.5K

15.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$142 CHF 118

-18.49%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$61.4 CHF 51.0

-11.95%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$157 CHF 130

-19.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$195 CHF 162

-18.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$1,900 CHF 1,577

50.13%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$1,386 CHF 1,151

66.02%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$3,555 CHF 2,951

46.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$2,455 CHF 2,037

51.66%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$18.4K CHF 15.3K

3.06%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$14.6K CHF 12.1K

-46.08%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$6,782 CHF 5,629

-28.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

2.46

89.02%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Bern: October 5, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Bern

$1.4K 41.8% 39.8% $915

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Bern

$350 10.6% 19.4% $84

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Bern

$470 14.2% 18.6% $74

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Bern

$569 17.2% 62.9% $220

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Bern

$156 4.7% 45.7% $132

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Bern

$250 7.5% 21.8% $45

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Bern

$135 4.1% 38.7% $38

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $1,900 in Bern. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Bern pays 41% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $108 in London vs $120 in Bern for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $569 per month, with London cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇨🇭 Bern

🕒 Local time

04:52 4:52 AM

05:52 5:52 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

128,848 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 CHF = 1.2 USD

1 CHF = 1.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.83 CHF (1 CHF = 1.2 USD). 1 EUR = 0.931 CHF (1 CHF = 1.07 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Bern 750 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Bern

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 Bern: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Bern wins on cost – living expenses run 22% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Bern the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

On paper, salaries run 41% lower in Bern. 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: $2,853 in London versus $1,900 in Bern. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Dining out is cheaper in Bern – a meal for two runs $120 versus $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

All in, you'll spend $4,086 per month in London versus $3,361 in Bern – a 22% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Bern is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Bern delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $3,361 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Bern hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Bern 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 Bern gentler on the wallet – expenses run 22% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.