Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Copenhagen

For one person, living is cheaper in Copenhagen: $2,968 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $13,400 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
145

Cost of Living Index in Copenhagen
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Copenhagen Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Copenhagen

🇩🇰 Denmark

$2,968

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Copenhagen

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $2,968 in Copenhagen, rent included.

London $4,086
Copenhagen $2,968

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $4,518 in Copenhagen, rent included.

London $5,816
Copenhagen $4,518

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $6,068 in Copenhagen, rent included.

London $7,546
Copenhagen $6,068

London costs about 38% more than Copenhagen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both London and Copenhagen sit above the global median – London by 205%, Copenhagen by 122%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$21.41 DKK 143

24.33%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$119 DKK 796

-9.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$13.31 DKK 88.8

-21.94%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$7.07 DKK 47.20

-18.10%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$5.06 DKK 33.79

-40.51%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$3.73 DKK 24.88

-42.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$9.16 DKK 61.1

2.07%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$7.73 DKK 51.6

1.42%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$2.10 DKK 14.04

-14.76%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$4.73 DKK 31.56

-56.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$3.00 DKK 20.03

-23.00%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$5.77 DKK 38.49

-12.48%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$17.61 DKK 118

-28.62%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$13.72 DKK 91.5

-22.30%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$26.72 DKK 178

-35.89%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.42 DKK 22.80

-11.40%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$3.11 DKK 20.78

-54.66%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$4.30 DKK 28.69

-29.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$5.59 DKK 37.30

-39.53%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$2.32 DKK 15.45

-28.02%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$2.14 DKK 14.26

-19.16%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.23 DKK 14.86

-36.77%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.32 DKK 8.79

35.61%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$9.48 DKK 63.3

144.94%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$10.31 DKK 68.8

25.99%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.80 DKK 12.02

76.67%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.43 DKK 16.24

81.48%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$3.51 DKK 23.40

10.26%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$105 DKK 701

137.87%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$5.80 DKK 38.70

-1.55%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$1.61 DKK 10.72

106.83%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$90.0 DKK 601

-35.68%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.57 DKK 17.13

-20.62%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$49.5K DKK 330.6K

-24.20%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$54.0K DKK 360.1K

-24.23%

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

$376 £284

$185 DKK 1,236

102.98%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$11.56 DKK 77.2

54.67%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$36.78 DKK 245

8.78%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$64.1 DKK 428

-4.54%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$34.40 DKK 230

-38.75%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$19.89 DKK 133

-9.75%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$981 DKK 6,546

192.05%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$8,678 DKK 57.9K

307.29%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$111 DKK 740

4.58%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$54.8 DKK 365

-1.22%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$126 DKK 844

0.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$198 DKK 1,319

-19.40%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$1,960 DKK 13.1K

45.61%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$1,443 DKK 9,627

59.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$3,229 DKK 21.5K

61.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$2,366 DKK 15.8K

57.35%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$11.8K DKK 78.4K

61.72%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$8,605 DKK 57.4K

-8.42%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$4,421 DKK 29.5K

8.96%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

3.85

20.78%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Copenhagen: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Copenhagen

$1.4K 48.4% 37.3% $859

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Copenhagen

$234 7.8% 46.2% $200

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Copenhagen

$392 13.2% 1.1% $4.2

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Copenhagen

$456 15.3% 30.6% $107

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Copenhagen

$133 4.5% 53.8% $155

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Copenhagen

$220 7.4% 7.4% $15

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Copenhagen

$104 3.5% 7% $6.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $1,960 in Copenhagen. 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 9% 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 $108 in London versus $119 in Copenhagen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $456 – making London the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇩🇰 Copenhagen

🕒 Local time

08:43 8:43 AM

09:43 9:43 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

613,288 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Danish Krone DKK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 DKK = 0.15 USD

1 DKK = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

DKK, 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).

Danish Krone exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 6.67 DKK (1 DKK = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.48 DKK (1 DKK = 0.134 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Copenhagen 960 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Copenhagen

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 Copenhagen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London costs about 38% more than Copenhagen, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $4,453 in Copenhagen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London and $119 in Copenhagen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,086 in London and $2,968 in Copenhagen. That's a gap of about 38%.

$2,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $4,086 in London and $2,968 in Copenhagen. You'll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Copenhagen costs $2,968 versus $4,086 in London. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

Both have safer and rougher neighborhoods, but overall safety is comparable to other large cities. Neighborhood choice matters more than the city-level comparison – central, well-trafficked areas feel secure in both.

If budget matters most, go with Copenhagen. 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.