Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Harstad

For one person, living is cheaper in Harstad: $2,553 a month against $4,049 in London, rent and utilities included – about $18,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

195

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
124

Cost of Living Index in Harstad
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Harstad Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,049

/mo nomad

Harstad

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,553

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Harstad

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,049 in London versus $2,553 in Harstad.

London $4,049
Harstad $2,553

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,827 in London versus $3,807 in Harstad.

London $5,827
Harstad $3,807

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,605 in London versus $5,061 in Harstad.

London $7,605
Harstad $5,061

Living in London is roughly 59% more expensive than in Harstad, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 199% above, Harstad 88% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$27.09 £20.33

$14.18 NOK 133

91.04%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$104 £78.3

$103 NOK 969

1.34%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.86 £8.15

$15.83 NOK 149

-31.40%

Cappuccino

$5.60 £4.20

$6.29 NOK 59.2

-10.97%

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

$3.05 £2.29

$3.63 NOK 34.15

-15.98%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.28 £1.71

$3.14 NOK 29.58

-27.39%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.23 £6.92

$12.57 NOK 118

-26.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.95 £5.96

$13.53 NOK 127

-41.24%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.83 £1.37

$2.46 NOK 23.20

-25.61%

White Bread (500g)

$2.05 £1.54

$3.25 NOK 30.60

-36.92%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.47 £1.86

$3.22 NOK 30.27

-23.29%

Eggs

$5.12 £3.84

$4.31 NOK 40.61

18.79%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.89 £9.67

$10.71 NOK 101

20.35%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.84 £8.14

$14.37 NOK 135

-24.57%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.03 £12.78

$41.47 NOK 390

-58.93%

Apples (1kg)

$3.07 £2.30

$4.15 NOK 39.10

-26.02%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 £1.03

$2.85 NOK 26.81

-51.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.99 £2.24

$3.69 NOK 34.75

-18.97%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 £2.54

$4.65 NOK 43.74

-27.10%

Potato (1kg)

$1.60 £1.20

$2.06 NOK 19.36

-22.33%

Onion (1kg)

$1.80 £1.35

$2.04 NOK 19.21

-11.76%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.06

$2.98 NOK 28.02

-52.68%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.81 £1.36

$2.34 NOK 22.00

-22.65%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.92 £17.94

$16.03 NOK 151

49.22%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.54 £10.16

$15.88 NOK 149

-14.74%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.23 £2.42

$3.82 NOK 35.99

-15.45%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.39 £3.29

$4.89 NOK 46.04

-10.22%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.92 £2.94

$6.09 NOK 57.3

-35.63%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$243 £182

$81.8 NOK 770

196.63%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$15.86 NOK 149

-64.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.27 £2.46

$1.86 NOK 17.47

75.81%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$58.4 £43.81

$55.0 NOK 517

6.26%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.08 £1.56

$2.29 NOK 21.60

-9.17%

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

$38.8K £29.1K

$36.4K NOK 343.0K

6.59%

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

$40.6K £30.5K

$30.9K NOK 291.0K

31.36%

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

$380 £285

$167 NOK 1,568

128.14%

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

$18.62 £13.97

$33.30 NOK 313

-44.08%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.45 £30.35

$77.4 NOK 729

-47.76%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.3 £45.95

$48.78 NOK 459

25.56%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.41 £16.07

$37.22 NOK 350

-42.48%

Cinema Ticket

$18.09 £13.57

$17.10 NOK 161

5.79%

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

$2,905 £2,180

$237 NOK 2,231

1125.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.5K £26.6K

$5,116 NOK 48.2K

594.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.3

$67.4 NOK 635

72.63%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.5 £40.89

$34.87 NOK 328

56.32%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £95.8

$118 NOK 1,111

8.14%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$167 £125

$161 NOK 1,513

3.78%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,852 £2,140

$1,335 NOK 12.6K

113.59%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,269 £1,702

$1,035 NOK 9,740

119.29%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,250 £3,939

$2,281 NOK 21.5K

130.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,752 £2,815

$1,526 NOK 14.4K

145.90%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.5K £13.9K

$6,018 NOK 56.6K

207.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,100 £6,077

$3,991 NOK 37.6K

102.94%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,109 £3,833

$3,383 NOK 31.8K

51.02%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

-5.20%

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

Last update for London: October 19, 2026

Last update for Harstad: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56%

Harstad

$1K 40.5% 54.4% $1.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$439 10.9%

Harstad

$277 10.9% 36.8% $162

Eating Out

London

$400 9.9%

Harstad

$353 13.8% 11.6% $47

Groceries & Markets

London

$353 8.7%

Harstad

$502 19.7% 42.1% $149

Getting Around

London

$280 6.9%

Harstad

$131 5.1% 53.2% $149

Clothing & Footwear

London

$209 5.2%

Harstad

$171 6.7% 18.1% $38

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Harstad

$83 3.3% 14.8% $14

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,852 in London and $1,335 in Harstad. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 51% 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: $104 in London vs $103 in Harstad. Groceries flip the comparison at $353 vs $502, with London cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇴 Harstad

🕒 Local time

00:26 12:26 AM

01:26 1:26 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

25,119

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Harstad 2,120 km ≈ 3 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Harstad

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 Harstad: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Harstad is cheaper overall, especially in eating out, transport, and clothing. The 59% gap adds up to real monthly savings that compound significantly over time.

Average pay runs 51% 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: $2,852 in London versus $1,335 in Harstad. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Shoppers in London pay roughly 42% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.

Dining out is cheaper in Harstad – a meal for two runs $103 versus $104 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,500. Harstad is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

For families, Harstad is more practical. Housing and childcare are both notably cheaper than in London, and the savings on those two alone free up budget for education, activities, and family trips.

Safety-wise, London and Harstad 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 Harstad gentler on the wallet – expenses run 59% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.