Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Diest

For one person, living is cheaper in Diest: $2,039 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $23,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
Learn more

London Living Index
99

Cost of Living Index in Diest
Learn more

Diest Living Index

Jump to prices

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Diest

🇧🇪 Belgium

$2,039

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Diest

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,986 in London versus $2,039 in Diest.

London $3,986
Diest $2,039

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,791 in London versus $3,023 in Diest.

London $5,791
Diest $3,023

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,595 in London versus $4,006 in Diest.

London $7,595
Diest $4,006

Living in London is roughly 95% more expensive than in Diest, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 195% above, Diest 51% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$22.41 €19.93

15.71%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$91.0 €81.0

17.01%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$11.89 €10.58

-9.92%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$3.58 €3.19

52.79%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$2.99 €2.66

-0.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$2.60 €2.32

-15.38%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$5.41 €4.81

68.76%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$4.48 €3.99

77.23%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.21 €1.08

53.72%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$2.69 €2.40

-23.05%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$2.25 €2.01

7.56%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$3.71 €3.30

37.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$17.64 €15.69

-27.04%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$12.11 €10.77

-13.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$19.17 €17.05

-12.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$2.80 €2.49

11.07%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.29 €2.04

-38.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$2.62 €2.33

17.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$2.92 €2.60

11.99%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$2.28 €2.03

-30.70%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$1.94 €1.73

-10.31%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.45 €1.29

-3.45%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.00 €0.89

80.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$11.26 €10.01

106.75%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$7.75 €6.89

68.13%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$2.04 €1.81

55.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$1.79 €1.59

146.93%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$3.06 €2.73

33.01%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$6.07 €5.40

-8.07%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$2.22 €1.98

51.35%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.58

$26.08 €23.20

117.60%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$1.95 €1.73

9.23%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$35.8K €31.9K

6.65%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$34.0K €30.2K

20.40%

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

$372 £279

$203 €180

83.73%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$21.37 €19.01

-16.61%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$52.3 €46.56

-22.87%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$36.70 €32.65

63.41%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

$19.59 €17.42

8.68%

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$14.51 €12.91

22.26%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$847 €754

237.99%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$19.2K €17.1K

84.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$102 €90.7

11.82%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$47.75 €42.47

13.65%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$102 €91.0

21.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$146 €130

11.79%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$907 €806

216.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$828 €737

169.69%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,951

$1,388 €1,235

279.26%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

$1,185 €1,054

218.77%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$4,230 €3,762

333.42%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

$2,905 €2,584

176.22%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,779

$2,063 €1,835

144.15%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

3.46

36.99%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Diest: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Diest

$828 40.6% 62.9% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Diest

$276 13.6% 35.8% $154

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Diest

$316 15.5% 18.4% $71

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Diest

$345 16.9% 1.4% $5

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Diest

$29 * 1.4% 89.7% $256

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Diest

$179 8.8% 12.7% $26

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Diest

$66 3.2% 31.1% $30

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,869 in London and $907 in Diest. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 144% 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 $91.0 in Diest for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $345 per month, with Diest cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇧🇪 Diest

🕒 Local time

04:23 4:23 AM

05:23 5:23 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

22,516

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD 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).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Diest 370 km

From you

London
Diest

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 Diest: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Diest wins on cost – living expenses run 95% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Diest the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 144% 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 $907 in Diest. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 1% higher in London. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

All in, you'll spend $3,986 per month in London versus $2,039 in Diest – a 95% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.

At $2,039 in Diest versus $3,986 in London, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Diest but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Diest the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Diest delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,039 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Diest hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Diest 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 Diest gentler on the wallet – expenses run 95% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.