Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Kollam

For one person, living is cheaper in Kollam: $284 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $44,400 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
14

Cost of Living Index in Kollam
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Kollam Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Kollam

🇮🇳 India

$284

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Kollam

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

A single person spends $3,986 per month in London vs $284 in Kollam, rent included.

London $3,986
Kollam $284

A couple spends around $5,791 per month in London vs $448 in Kollam, rent included.

London $5,791
Kollam $448

A family of three spends $7,595 per month in London vs $613 in Kollam, rent included.

London $7,595
Kollam $613

London costs about 1306% more than Kollam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

London sits 195% above the global median, while Kollam is 79% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$1.04 ₹98.3

2393.27%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$6.43 ₹610

1556.30%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$3.21 ₹305

233.64%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$1.40 ₹133

290.71%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$0.36 ₹34.41

725.00%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$0.11 ₹10.75

1900.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$1.33 ₹126

586.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$1.87 ₹178

324.60%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$0.60 ₹57.1

210.00%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$0.49 ₹46.48

322.45%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$0.50 ₹47.86

384.00%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$0.84 ₹79.3

505.95%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$3.67 ₹349

250.68%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$2.03 ₹193

413.79%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$1.59 ₹151

95.60%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$0.56 ₹53.1

150.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$0.73 ₹69.6

321.92%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$0.39 ₹37.32

738.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$0.35 ₹32.80

351.43%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$0.38 ₹36.16

357.89%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$0.63 ₹60.1

122.22%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$0.25 ₹23.57

620.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$4.96 ₹471

369.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$2.55 ₹242

410.98%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$2.00 ₹190

58.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$2.77 ₹263

59.57%

Buffalo Round (or Equivalent Back Leg Red Meat) (1kg)

$3.32 ₹315

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$0.16 ₹15.03

2443.75%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$7.00 ₹665

3425.14%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$0.83 ₹78.4

572.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$0.30 ₹28.44

1020.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.57

$2.10 ₹199

2602.38%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$1.11 ₹105

91.89%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$9,113 ₹865.3K

319.05%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$16.5K ₹1.6M

148.14%

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

$372 £279

$32.54 ₹3,089

1043.70%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$3.04 ₹289

486.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$5.20 ₹494

676.35%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$13.66 ₹1,297

339.02%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

$10.25 ₹973

107.71%

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$1.54 ₹146

1051.95%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$20.80 ₹1,975

13671.06%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$2,666 ₹253.2K

1225.04%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$16.55 ₹1,571

588.94%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$23.17 ₹2,200

134.23%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$25.79 ₹2,449

381.74%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$24.53 ₹2,329

564.74%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$83.1 ₹7,893

3351.17%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$46.94 ₹4,457

4657.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,950

$183 ₹17.4K

2775.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,834

$117 ₹11.1K

3137.63%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$830 ₹78.8K

2108.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,019

$441 ₹41.9K

1718.36%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,778

$513 ₹48.7K

882.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

9.13

-48.08%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Kollam: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Kollam

$47 16.6% 97.9% $2.2K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Kollam

$41 14.4% 90.5% $390

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Kollam

$47 16.6% 87.9% $341

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Kollam

$82 28.8% 76.6% $268

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Kollam

$10 3.5% 96.5% $275

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Kollam

$41 14.3% 80.2% $165

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Kollam

$17 5.9% 82.5% $79

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,869 in London versus $83.1 in Kollam. 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 883% 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 $107 in London versus $6.00 in Kollam. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $82.0 – making Kollam the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇮🇳 Kollam

🕒 Local time

17:39 5:39 PM

22:09 10:09 PM

4 h 30 min ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

367,107

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Indian Rupee INR ₹

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000 INR = 10.53 USD

1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

INR, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Indian Rupee exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 94.95 INR (100 INR = 1.05 USD). 1 EUR = 107 INR (1,000 INR = 9.37 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Kollam 8,320 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Kollam

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 Kollam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

London costs about 1306% more than Kollam, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,979 per month in London and $425 in Kollam. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 328% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in London and $6.00 in Kollam. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Kollam, where all-in costs run around $284, than in London at $3,986. In Kollam it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Kollam costs $284 versus $3,986 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 Kollam. 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.