Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Leiden

For one person, living is cheaper in Leiden: $2,824 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $15,100 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
137

Cost of Living Index in Leiden
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Leiden Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Leiden

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,824

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Leiden

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $4,086 in London versus $2,824 in Leiden.

London $4,086
Leiden $2,824

Estimated couple costs with rent: $5,816 in London versus $3,929 in Leiden.

London $5,816
Leiden $3,929

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $7,546 in London versus $5,034 in Leiden.

London $7,546
Leiden $5,034

Living in London is roughly 45% more expensive than in Leiden, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: London 205% above, Leiden 111% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$19.79 €17.66

34.51%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$90.5 €80.8

18.87%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$13.71 €12.23

-24.22%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$3.92 €3.50

47.70%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$3.57 €3.18

-15.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$2.99 €2.67

-28.09%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$7.88 €7.04

18.65%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$5.01 €4.47

56.49%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.25 €1.11

43.20%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$2.25 €2.01

-8.44%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$2.46 €2.20

-6.10%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$4.67 €4.17

8.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$14.92 €13.32

-15.75%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$14.67 €13.09

-27.33%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$15.86 €14.15

8.01%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$2.86 €2.55

5.94%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.33 €2.08

-39.48%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$1.98 €1.77

54.04%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$4.98 €4.45

-32.13%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$1.75 €1.57

-4.57%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$1.92 €1.71

-9.90%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.35 €1.20

4.44%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$0.75 €0.67

138.67%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$13.50 €12.05

72.00%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$7.20 €6.42

80.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$1.51 €1.35

110.60%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$2.71 €2.42

62.73%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$2.89 €2.58

33.91%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$128 €114

95.37%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$3.40 €3.03

67.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$3.28 €2.93

1.52%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$22.71 €20.26

155.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.47 €2.20

-17.41%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$41.7K €37.2K

-9.86%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$39.0K €34.8K

4.76%

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

$376 £284

$276 €246

36.28%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$15.21 €13.57

17.55%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$50.1 €44.75

-20.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$45.75 €40.83

33.68%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$11.86 €10.59

77.66%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$14.64 €13.07

22.61%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$1,749 €1,561

63.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$13.2K €11.8K

167.16%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$118 €105

-1.29%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$47.74 €42.60

13.28%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$117 €104

8.36%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$139 €124

14.23%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$1,696 €1,513

68.24%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$1,409 €1,257

63.39%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$2,511 €2,240

107.18%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$1,974 €1,762

88.57%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$7,402 €6,605

156.81%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$5,788 €5,165

36.16%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$4,100 €3,659

17.50%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

2.8

66.07%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Leiden: October 3, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Leiden

$1.4K 49.7% 38.8% $893

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Leiden

$341 12% 21.4% $93

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Leiden

$322 11.4% 18.8% $75

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Leiden

$341 12% 2.4% $8.2

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Leiden

$159 5.6% 44.6% $129

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Leiden

$190 6.7% 7.5% $15

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Leiden

$75 2.6% 22.7% $22

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $2,853 in London and $1,696 in Leiden. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

London pays 17% 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 $91.0 in Leiden for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $349 vs $341 per month, with Leiden cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇱 Leiden

🕒 Local time

12:52 12:52 PM

13:52 1:52 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

127,089

💱 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 = 0.847 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Leiden 330 km

From you

London
Leiden

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 Leiden: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Leiden wins on cost – living expenses run 45% lower than in London. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Leiden the obvious pick if budget is a priority.

Average pay runs 17% 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 $1,696 in Leiden. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Supermarket bills run roughly 2% higher in London. For households that cook at home regularly, that difference adds up over a month.

Dining out is cheaper in Leiden – a meal for two runs $91.0 versus $108 in London. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

Both cities are expensive relative to $2,000. Leiden is the more realistic option, but even there you'll need to be disciplined with housing, food, and fun money.

Both work as nomad bases, but Leiden delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $2,824 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Leiden hard to pass up.

Safety-wise, London and Leiden 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 Leiden gentler on the wallet – expenses run 45% less than in London. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.