Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Gostivar

For one person, living is cheaper in Gostivar: $835 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $37,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

London
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$3,986
/mo nomad
Gostivar
🇲🇰 North Macedonia
$835
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Gostivar

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $3,986 in London versus $835 in Gostivar.

  • London $3,986
  • Gostivar $835

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,791 in London versus $1,262 in Gostivar.

  • London $5,791
  • Gostivar $1,262

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,595 in London versus $1,689 in Gostivar.

  • London $7,595
  • Gostivar $1,689

Living in London is roughly 377% more expensive than in Gostivar, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

The two cities straddle the global median: London is 195% above, Gostivar is 38% below.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
London
Gostivar
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$25.93 £19.45
$6.25 MKD 341
314.88%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$107 £79.9
$26.92 MKD 1,468
295.62%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$10.71 £8.03
$5.81 MKD 317
84.34%
Cappuccino
$5.47 £4.11
$1.39 MKD 75.9
293.53%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.97 £2.23
$1.32 MKD 72.2
125.00%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.20 £1.65
$1.07 MKD 58.1
105.61%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$9.13 £6.85
$1.31 MKD 71.5
596.95%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$7.94 £5.96
$1.77 MKD 96.3
348.59%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
London
Gostivar
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.86 £1.40
$1.29 MKD 70.2
44.19%
White Bread (500g)
$2.07 £1.55
$0.75 MKD 40.84
176.00%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.42 £1.81
$1.42 MKD 77.3
70.42%
Eggs
$5.09 £3.82
$2.46 MKD 134
106.91%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$12.87 £9.66
$6.49 MKD 354
98.31%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$10.43 £7.82
$5.59 MKD 305
86.58%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$16.87 £12.66
$14.35 MKD 783
17.56%
Apples (1kg)
$3.11 £2.33
$1.43 MKD 78.1
117.48%
Banana (1kg)
$1.40 £1.05
$1.39 MKD 75.8
0.72%
Oranges (1kg)
$3.08 £2.31
$1.35 MKD 73.8
128.15%
Tomato (1kg)
$3.27 £2.45
$1.78 MKD 97.1
83.71%
Potato (1kg)
$1.58 £1.19
$0.83 MKD 45.18
90.36%
Onion (1kg)
$1.74 £1.31
$0.70 MKD 38.06
148.57%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.40 £1.05
$0.64 MKD 34.74
118.75%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$1.80 £1.35
$0.57 MKD 30.92
215.79%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$23.28 £17.46
$2.76 MKD 150
743.48%
Wine (Bottle)
$13.03 £9.77
$4.63 MKD 253
181.43%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$3.17 £2.38
$0.88 MKD 47.86
260.23%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.42 £3.32
$1.41 MKD 77.1
213.48%
🚌 Getting Around
London
Gostivar
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$4.07 £3.05
$0.74 MKD 40.29
450.00%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$247 £185
$21.14 MKD 1,153
1067.27%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.58 £4.18
$0.75 MKD 40.97
644.00%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$3.36 £2.52
$0.34 MKD 18.33
888.24%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$56.8 £42.58
$7.75 MKD 423
632.26%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.13 £1.60
$1.44 MKD 78.4
47.92%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$38.2K £28.6K
$31.9K MKD 1.7M
19.88%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$40.9K £30.7K
$27.1K MKD 1.5M
50.96%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
London
Gostivar
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$372 £279
$129 MKD 7,046
188.14%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$17.82 £13.37
$10.75 MKD 586
65.77%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$40.37 £30.29
$18.87 MKD 1,029
113.94%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
London
Gostivar
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.0 £44.99
$21.76 MKD 1,187
175.60%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$21.29 £15.97
$18.73 MKD 1,022
13.67%
Cinema Ticket
$17.74 £13.31
$7.10 MKD 387
149.86%
🧸 Childcare & Education
London
Gostivar
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$2,864 £2,149
$362 MKD 19.7K
692.21%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$35.3K £26.5K
$5,736 MKD 312.9K
515.90%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
London
Gostivar
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$114 £85.5
$36.91 MKD 2,014
208.91%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$54.3 £40.71
$36.52 MKD 1,992
48.60%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$124 £93.2
$102 MKD 5,589
21.26%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$163 £122
$115 MKD 6,252
42.26%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
London
Gostivar
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,869 £2,152
$275 MKD 15.0K
944.44%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$2,233 £1,675
$194 MKD 10.6K
1052.65%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$5,266 £3,951
$504 MKD 27.5K
945.66%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$3,778 £2,835
$298 MKD 16.3K
1166.41%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$18.3K £13.8K
$1,525 MKD 83.2K
1102.21%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$8,024 £6,020
$1,133 MKD 61.8K
608.11%
💵 Salaries & Financials
London
Gostivar
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$5,037 £3,779
$863 MKD 47.1K
483.55%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.74
4.23
12.06%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Gostivar: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
London
$2.2K
Gostivar
$194 91.3% $2K
Monthly Utilities & Internet
London
$430
Gostivar
$159 63.1% $272
Eating Out
London
$388
Gostivar
$104 73.2% $284
Groceries & Markets
London
$349
Gostivar
$186 46.8% $164
Getting Around
London
$285
Gostivar
$27 90.7% $259
Clothing & Footwear
London
$205
Gostivar
$131 36.2% $74
Sport & Entertainment
London
$95
Gostivar
$36 62.3% $60

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,869 in London and $275 in Gostivar. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 484% 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 $27.00 in Gostivar for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $186 per month, with Gostivar cheaper across the board.

Good to know
🇬🇧 London
🇲🇰 Gostivar
🕒 Local time
07:07 7:07 AM
08:07 8:07 AM
1 h ahead of London
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
8,908,083 Capital
36,000
💱 Currency
Exchange rates and currency converter

MKD, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

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).

North Macedonian Denar exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 54.55 MKD (100 MKD = 1.83 USD). 1 EUR = 61.33 MKD (100 MKD = 1.63 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • London Gostivar 1,920 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight
From you
  • London
  • Gostivar

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 Gostivar: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, London or Gostivar?
Gostivar wins on cost – living expenses run 377% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Gostivar the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in London or in Gostivar?
Average pay runs 484% higher in London, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in London compared to Gostivar?
Rent for a central apartment: $2,869 in London versus $275 in Gostivar. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How much does it cost to live in London compared to Gostivar?
All in, you'll spend $3,986 per month in London versus $835 in Gostivar – a 377% gap that adds up to real savings over time for anyone picking the cheaper option.
How expensive is transport in London compared to Gostivar?
A monthly transit pass in Gostivar runs roughly 1067% less than in London. Both cities have functional networks, but the price difference matters if you're watching your budget.
Can you live on $1,000/month in London or in Gostivar?
At $835 in Gostivar versus $3,986 in London, a $1,000 budget is realistic in Gostivar but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Gostivar the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city is better for digital nomads, London or Gostivar?
Both work as nomad bases, but Gostivar delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $835 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Gostivar hard to pass up.
Which city is more affordable for expats?
Expats usually find Gostivar gentler on the wallet – expenses run 377% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

London vs other spots: cost of living compared

Similar cities

Show times on the 12-hour clock, temperatures in °F and distances in miles?