Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Marseille

For one person, living is cheaper in Marseille: $2,000 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $25,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

196

Cost of Living Index in London
Learn more

London Living Index
96

Cost of Living Index in Marseille
Learn more

Marseille Living Index

Jump to prices

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,086

/mo nomad

Marseille

🇫🇷 France

$2,000

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Marseille

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

A single person spends $4,086 per month in London vs $2,000 in Marseille, rent included.

London $4,086
Marseille $2,000

A couple spends around $5,816 per month in London vs $3,188 in Marseille, rent included.

London $5,816
Marseille $3,188

A family of three spends $7,546 per month in London vs $4,376 in Marseille, rent included.

London $7,546
Marseille $4,376

London costs about 104% more than Marseille, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both London and Marseille sit above the global median – London by 205%, Marseille by 49%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.62 £20.11

$19.34 €17.26

37.64%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$108 £81.3

$74.3 €66.3

44.79%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.39 £7.85

$13.21 €11.79

-21.35%

Cappuccino

$5.79 £4.38

$3.54 €3.16

63.56%

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

$3.01 £2.27

$3.39 €3.03

-11.21%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.15 £1.63

$2.07 €1.85

3.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.35 £7.06

$6.85 €6.11

36.50%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.84 £5.93

$6.75 €6.02

16.15%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.28 €1.15

39.84%

White Bread (500g)

$2.06 £1.56

$2.52 €2.25

-18.25%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.31 £1.74

$3.06 €2.73

-24.51%

Eggs

$5.05 £3.82

$4.82 €4.30

4.77%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.57 £9.50

$27.38 €24.43

-54.09%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.66 £8.05

$14.87 €13.27

-28.31%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.13 £12.94

$27.06 €24.15

-36.70%

Apples (1kg)

$3.03 £2.29

$3.89 €3.47

-22.11%

Banana (1kg)

$1.41 £1.07

$2.85 €2.54

-50.53%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.05 £2.31

$4.33 €3.87

-29.56%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.38 £2.56

$4.11 €3.67

-17.76%

Potato (1kg)

$1.67 £1.26

$2.96 €2.64

-43.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.73 £1.31

$2.60 €2.32

-33.46%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.41 £1.07

$1.91 €1.71

-26.18%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.79 £1.35

$1.41 €1.26

26.95%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.22 £17.55

$13.63 €12.17

70.36%

Wine (Bottle)

$12.99 £9.82

$10.05 €8.97

29.25%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.18 £2.40

$4.03 €3.59

-21.09%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.41 £3.33

$3.83 €3.42

15.14%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.87 £2.93

$1.91 €1.71

102.62%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$250 £189

$45.30 €40.42

451.99%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.71 £4.31

$5.50 €4.91

3.82%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.33 £2.51

$3.32 €2.96

0.30%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$57.9 £43.76

$28.11 €25.09

106.01%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.54

$2.25 €2.01

-9.33%

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

$37.5K £28.4K

$34.7K €31.0K

8.23%

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

$40.9K £30.9K

$34.7K €30.9K

17.99%

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

$376 £284

$187 €167

101.30%

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

$17.88 £13.51

$17.42 €15.54

2.64%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.01 £30.24

$37.23 €33.22

7.47%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$61.2 £46.22

$39.55 €35.29

54.64%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.07 £15.93

$21.45 €19.14

-1.77%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.57

$13.85 €12.36

29.60%

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

$2,865 £2,165

$881 €786

225.15%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.7K

$10.1K €9,040

248.88%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £87.7

$82.0 €73.2

41.48%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.1 £40.87

$49.70 €44.35

8.81%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$127 £95.7

$112 €99.6

13.51%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$159 £120

$132 €118

20.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,853 £2,156

$891 €795

220.12%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,301 £1,739

$652 €582

252.71%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,201 £3,931

$1,539 €1,374

237.92%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,723 £2,813

$1,349 €1,204

176.01%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$19.0K £14.4K

$4,992 €4,455

280.76%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$7,881 £5,955

$3,544 €3,163

122.34%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,818 £3,641

$2,408 €2,149

100.07%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.65

3.89

19.54%

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

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Last update for Marseille: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 56.5%

Marseille

$652 32.9% 71.6% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$434 10.7%

Marseille

$241 12.2% 44.4% $193

Eating Out

London

$397 9.7%

Marseille

$306 15.5% 22.8% $90

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.6%

Marseille

$468 23.7% 34% $119

Getting Around

London

$288 7.1%

Marseille

$75 3.8% 73.9% $213

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5%

Marseille

$169 8.5% 17.6% $36

Sport & Entertainment

London

$97 2.4%

Marseille

$67 3.4% 30.7% $30

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,853 in London versus $891 in Marseille. 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 100% 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 $108 in London versus $74.0 in Marseille. Groceries tell a different story – $349 in London vs $468 in Marseille – so London wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇫🇷 Marseille

🕒 Local time

08:33 8:33 AM

09:33 9:33 AM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

873,076

💱 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

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Marseille 1,000 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Marseille

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 Marseille: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,086 in London, $2,000 in Marseille – roughly 104% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,129 per month in London and $3,001 in Marseille. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Interestingly, groceries are about 34% cheaper in London – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $108 in London and $74.0 in Marseille. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Marseille, where all-in costs run around $2,000, than in London at $4,086. In Marseille it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $2,000 in Marseille to $4,086 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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 Marseille. 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.