Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Bloemfontein

For one person, living is cheaper in Bloemfontein: $1,069 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $35,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
52

Cost of Living Index in Bloemfontein
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Bloemfontein Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Bloemfontein

🇿🇦 South Africa

$1,069

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Bloemfontein

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

A single person spends $3,986 per month in London vs $1,069 in Bloemfontein, rent included.

London $3,986
Bloemfontein $1,069

A couple spends around $5,791 per month in London vs $1,687 in Bloemfontein, rent included.

London $5,791
Bloemfontein $1,687

A family of three spends $7,595 per month in London vs $2,305 in Bloemfontein, rent included.

London $7,595
Bloemfontein $2,305

London costs about 273% more than Bloemfontein, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

London sits 195% above the global median, while Bloemfontein is 21% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$11.91 R 196

117.72%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$41.16 R 678

158.75%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$7.41 R 122

44.53%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$2.08 R 34.20

162.98%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$1.40 R 23.11

112.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$1.09 R 17.93

101.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$2.54 R 41.78

259.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$2.73 R 45.06

190.84%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.05 R 17.27

77.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$1.07 R 17.59

93.46%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$2.13 R 35.12

13.62%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$2.16 R 35.63

135.65%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$7.53 R 124

70.92%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$5.07 R 83.5

105.72%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$7.91 R 130

113.27%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$1.89 R 31.11

64.55%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.57 R 25.84

-10.83%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$1.79 R 29.45

72.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$1.56 R 25.63

109.62%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.60 R 26.39

-1.25%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.85 R 30.51

-5.95%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.12 R 18.45

25.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$0.97 R 15.91

85.57%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$2.54 R 41.89

816.54%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$4.91 R 80.9

165.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$1.81 R 29.81

75.14%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$1.39 R 22.90

217.99%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$0.93 R 15.35

337.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$76.1 R 1,253

224.39%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$1.07 R 17.56

421.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.58

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$1.40 R 23.12

52.14%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$36.4K R 599.9K

4.87%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$28.5K R 469.8K

43.42%

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

$372 £279

$77.8 R 1,281

378.54%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$32.29 R 532

-44.81%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$31.69 R 522

27.39%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$32.34 R 533

85.44%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$4.72 R 77.8

275.85%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$200 R 3,296

1331.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$60.9 R 1,003

87.32%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$43.06 R 709

26.03%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$135 R 2,220

-7.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$111 R 1,826

47.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$312 R 5,139

819.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$286 R 4,717

679.88%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,951

$513 R 8,459

925.62%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

$543 R 8,954

595.23%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$487 R 8,031

3660.82%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

$620 R 10.2K

1193.59%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,779

$1,287 R 21.2K

291.29%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

12.13

-60.92%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Bloemfontein: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Bloemfontein

$286 26.8% 87.2% $1.9K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Bloemfontein

$142 13.3% 67.1% $289

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Bloemfontein

$171 16% 56% $217

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Bloemfontein

$190 17.8% 45.6% $159

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Bloemfontein

$81 * 7.6% 71.7% $205

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Bloemfontein

$157 14.7% 23.3% $48

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Bloemfontein

$42 3.9% 56.2% $54

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,869 in London versus $312 in Bloemfontein. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries run about 291% higher in London, which partly offsets the higher cost of living there. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in London versus $41.00 in Bloemfontein. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $190 – making Bloemfontein the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇿🇦 Bloemfontein

🕒 Local time

14:59 2:59 PM

15:59 3:59 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

370,000 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

South African Rand ZAR R

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 ZAR = 6.07 USD

100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ZAR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

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).

South African Rand exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 16.48 ZAR (100 ZAR = 6.07 USD). 1 EUR = 18.52 ZAR (100 ZAR = 5.4 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

London Bloemfontein 9,330 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Bloemfontein

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 Bloemfontein: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London costs about 273% more than Bloemfontein, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,979 per month in London and $1,603 in Bloemfontein. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Bloemfontein, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Groceries cost about 84% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in London and $41.00 in Bloemfontein. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Bloemfontein, where all-in costs run around $1,069, than in London at $3,986. In Bloemfontein it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Bloemfontein costs $1,069 versus $3,986 in London. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Bloemfontein. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.