Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Groningen

For one person, living is cheaper in Groningen: $2,285 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $21,600 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
111

Cost of Living Index in Groningen
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Groningen Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Groningen

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,285

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Groningen

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $2,285 in Groningen.

London $4,086
Groningen $2,285

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $3,459 in Groningen.

London $5,816
Groningen $3,459

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $4,632 in Groningen.

London $7,546
Groningen $4,632

Living in London is roughly 79% more expensive than in Groningen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Groningen 71% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$20.40 €18.20

30.49%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$102 €90.9

5.65%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$16.01 €14.29

-35.10%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$4.57 €4.08

26.70%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$3.77 €3.37

-20.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$3.14 €2.80

-31.53%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$5.67 €5.06

64.90%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$5.65 €5.04

38.76%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.42 €1.27

26.06%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$2.57 €2.29

-19.84%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$2.54 €2.27

-9.06%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$4.64 €4.14

8.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$12.50 €11.16

0.56%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$13.48 €12.03

-20.92%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$18.02 €16.08

-4.94%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.02 €2.70

0.33%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.39 €2.13

-41.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$2.53 €2.26

20.55%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$4.72 €4.21

-28.39%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$2.04 €1.82

-18.14%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.64 €1.47

5.49%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.26 €1.13

11.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.28 €1.14

39.84%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$14.70 €13.12

57.96%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$6.59 €5.88

97.12%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.45 €1.30

119.31%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.46 €2.20

79.27%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$4.19 €3.74

-7.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$68.2 €60.9

266.59%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$6.81 €6.08

-16.15%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$2.76 €2.47

20.65%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$29.10 €25.97

99.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.62 €2.33

-22.14%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$41.4K €37.0K

-9.33%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$38.8K €34.6K

5.53%

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

$376 £284

$234 €209

60.94%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$20.80 €18.56

-14.04%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$50.0 €44.63

-20.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$39.57 €35.31

54.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$14.76 €13.18

42.75%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$16.89 €15.07

6.28%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$1,799 €1,606

59.26%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$7,677 €6,851

360.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$105 €93.8

10.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$44.38 €39.60

21.86%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$103 €92.3

22.49%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$197 €176

-19.32%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$1,310 €1,169

117.72%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$925 €825

148.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$1,972 €1,760

163.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$1,458 €1,302

155.25%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$5,263 €4,697

261.17%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$3,970 €3,543

98.51%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$3,025 €2,700

59.24%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

3.43

35.57%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Groningen: October 6, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Groningen

$925 40.4% 59.8% $1.4K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Groningen

$304 13.3% 29.8% $130

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Groningen

$333 14.6% 16% $63

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Groningen

$346 15.1% 1% $3.5

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Groningen

$106 4.6% 63.3% $182

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Groningen

$203 8.9% 1.2% $2.5

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Groningen

$73 3.2% 24.4% $24

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $1,310 in Groningen. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 59% 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: $108 in London vs $102 in Groningen for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $346 per month, with Groningen cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇱 Groningen

🕒 Local time

09:31 9:31 AM

10:31 10:31 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

201,242

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 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 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.848 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.892 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Groningen 490 km

From you

London
Groningen

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 Groningen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Groningen wins on cost – living expenses run 79% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Groningen the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 59% 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: $2,853 in London versus $1,310 in Groningen. 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.

Dining out is cheaper in Groningen – a meal for two runs $102 versus $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,285 in Groningen versus $4,086 in London, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Groningen but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Groningen the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Groningen delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,285 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Groningen hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Groningen 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 Groningen gentler on the wallet – expenses run 79% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.