Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Butare

For one person, living is cheaper in Butare: $368 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $44,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
18

Cost of Living Index in Butare
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Butare Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Butare

🇷🇼 Rwanda

$368

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Butare

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $368 in Butare.

London $4,086
Butare $368

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $581 in Butare.

London $5,816
Butare $581

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $795 in Butare.

London $7,546
Butare $795

Living in London is roughly 1011% more expensive than in Butare, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: London is 205% above, Butare is 73% below.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$2.73 RWF 4,020

875.09%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$30.92 RWF 45.5K

247.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$6.65 RWF 9,779

56.24%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$2.45 RWF 3,594

136.33%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$0.76 RWF 1,112

296.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$0.58 RWF 850

270.69%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$1.04 RWF 1,532

799.04%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$2.38 RWF 3,505

229.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.33 RWF 485

442.42%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$0.82 RWF 1,208

151.22%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$0.92 RWF 1,357

151.09%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$1.66 RWF 2,438

204.22%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$1.65 RWF 2,420

661.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$2.35 RWF 3,455

353.62%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$3.01 RWF 4,421

469.10%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.08 RWF 3,059

45.67%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$0.81 RWF 1,196

74.07%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.17 RWF 1,726

160.68%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$0.79 RWF 1,155

327.85%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$0.43 RWF 630

288.37%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$0.26 RWF 378

565.38%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$0.12 RWF 179

1075.00%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.82 RWF 1,201

118.29%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$1.99 RWF 2,923

1066.83%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$10.21 RWF 15.0K

27.23%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.03 RWF 1,515

208.74%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$1.57 RWF 2,314

180.89%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$2.69 RWF 3,958

112.27%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$2.00 RWF 2,936

66.50%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$3.34 RWF 4,911

1633.83%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.81 RWF 2,663

12.71%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$26.6K RWF 39.0M

41.40%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$29.2K RWF 43.0M

39.82%

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

$376 £284

$82.4 RWF 121.1K

356.42%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$7.20 RWF 10.6K

148.33%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$20.81 RWF 30.6K

92.26%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$3.43 RWF 5,036

423.32%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$113 RWF 166.0K

2436.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$9,518 RWF 14.0M

271.31%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$17.04 RWF 25.1K

580.75%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$15.65 RWF 23.0K

245.56%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$22.66 RWF 33.3K

458.78%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$34.40 RWF 50.6K

363.11%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

16.2

-71.30%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Butare: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Butare

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Butare

$110 29.9% 74.6% $324

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Butare

$86 23.4% 78.2% $310

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Butare

$112 30.4% 67.9% $237

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Butare

$13 * 3.4% 95.6% $275

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Butare

$40 10.9% 80.3% $165

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Butare

$6.9 * 1.9% 92.9% $90

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

Cost Breakdown

Dining out: $108 in London vs $31.00 in Butare for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $112 per month, with Butare cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇷🇼 Butare

🕒 Local time

13:10 1:10 PM

14:10 2:10 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

62,823

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Rwandan Franc RWF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD

10,000 RWF = 6.07 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RWF, 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 = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Rwandan Franc exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1,470 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.8 USD). 1 EUR = 1,647 RWF (10,000 RWF = 6.07 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Butare 6,650 km ≈ 9 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Butare

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 Butare: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Butare wins on cost – living expenses run 1011% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Butare the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

You'd need roughly $6,129 in London and $552 in Butare to live well. The gap comes down to housing and overall price levels. Both cities are liveable on less, but these numbers represent actual comfort.

Supermarket bills run roughly 211% higher in London. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $4,086 per month in London versus $368 in Butare – a 1011% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $368 in Butare versus $4,086 in London, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Butare but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Butare the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Butare delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $368 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Butare hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Butare 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 Butare gentler on the wallet – expenses run 1011% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.