Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Krakow

For one person, living is cheaper in Krakow: $1,811 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $27,300 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
88

Cost of Living Index in Krakow
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Krakow Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Krakow

🇵🇱 Poland

$1,811

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Krakow

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $1,811 in Krakow.

London $4,086
Krakow $1,811

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $2,597 in Krakow.

London $5,816
Krakow $2,597

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $3,383 in Krakow.

London $7,546
Krakow $3,383

Living in London is roughly 126% more expensive than in Krakow, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Krakow 35% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.12

$11.89 zł 46.38

123.89%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$50.2 zł 196

114.28%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.86

$9.96 zł 38.86

4.32%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$4.12 zł 16.06

40.53%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$2.57 zł 10.04

17.12%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$2.44 zł 9.51

-11.89%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.07

$4.57 zł 17.85

104.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$4.56 zł 17.81

71.93%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.06 zł 4.12

68.87%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$1.47 zł 5.73

40.14%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$1.69 zł 6.61

36.69%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$3.95 zł 15.40

27.85%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$9.31 zł 36.31

35.02%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$7.75 zł 30.24

37.55%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.95

$13.20 zł 51.5

29.77%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$1.34 zł 5.22

126.12%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.69 zł 6.61

-16.57%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.76 zł 6.85

73.30%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$3.06 zł 11.93

10.46%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$0.92 zł 3.61

81.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$0.98 zł 3.82

76.53%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.23 zł 4.80

14.63%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.80 zł 3.13

123.75%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$6.22 zł 24.29

273.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$6.30 zł 24.57

106.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.41

$1.18 zł 4.62

169.49%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.34

$1.77 zł 6.89

149.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.50 zł 5.85

158.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$33.54 zł 131

645.53%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$2.28 zł 8.89

150.44%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$0.99 zł 3.88

236.36%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.77

$12.22 zł 47.70

373.90%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$1.69 zł 6.61

20.71%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$30.4K zł 118.8K

23.32%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$28.9K zł 112.7K

41.55%

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

$376 £284

$333 zł 1,299

12.96%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$8.71 zł 33.98

105.28%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.25

$17.32 zł 67.6

131.00%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.23

$45.70 zł 178

33.83%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$25.11 zł 98.0

-16.09%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$8.69 zł 33.90

106.56%

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

$2,865 £2,166

$463 zł 1,805

519.40%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$9,594 zł 37.4K

268.38%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$99.1 zł 387

17.09%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.88

$40.31 zł 157

34.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$90.3 zł 352

40.24%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$119 zł 464

34.10%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,157

$946 zł 3,692

201.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,740

$717 zł 2,800

220.78%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,932

$1,440 zł 5,620

261.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,814

$1,136 zł 4,432

227.81%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$5,602 zł 21.9K

239.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,957

$3,540 zł 13.8K

122.62%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,642

$1,855 zł 7,238

159.74%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

6.62

-29.76%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Krakow: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Krakow

$717 39.8% 68.8% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Krakow

$359 19.9% 17.3% $75

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Krakow

$226 12.6% 42.9% $170

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Krakow

$235 13% 32.9% $115

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Krakow

$47 2.6% 83.8% $241

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Krakow

$157 8.7% 23.6% $48

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Krakow

$63 3.5% 35% $34

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $946 in Krakow. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 160% 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 $50.0 in Krakow for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $235 per month, with Krakow cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇵🇱 Krakow

🕒 Local time

09:36 9:36 AM

10:36 10:36 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

806,201

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Polish Złoty PLN zł

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.32 USD

1 GBP = 1.18 EUR

1 PLN = 0.256 USD

1 PLN = 0.228 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

PLN, USD, EUR 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).

Polish Złoty exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 3.9 PLN (1 PLN = 0.256 USD). 1 EUR = 4.38 PLN (1 PLN = 0.228 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Krakow 1,420 km ≈ 2 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Krakow

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 Krakow: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Krakow wins on cost – living expenses run 126% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Krakow the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 160% 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 $946 in Krakow. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 49% higher in London. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Krakow – a meal for two runs $50.0 versus $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $1,811 in Krakow versus $4,086 in London, a $2,000 budget is realistic in Krakow but tight or insufficient in London. The gap between the two cities makes Krakow the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both work as nomad bases, but Krakow delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,811 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Krakow hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Krakow 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 Krakow gentler on the wallet – expenses run 126% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.