Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Oulu

For one person, living is cheaper in Oulu: $1,909 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $25,700 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
91

Cost of Living Index in Oulu
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Oulu Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Oulu

🇫🇮 Finland

$1,909

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Oulu

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

A single person spends $4,048 per month in London vs $1,909 in Oulu, rent included.

London $4,048
Oulu $1,909

A couple spends around $5,903 per month in London vs $2,924 in Oulu, rent included.

London $5,903
Oulu $2,924

A family of three spends $7,758 per month in London vs $3,939 in Oulu, rent included.

London $7,758
Oulu $3,939

London costs about 112% more than Oulu, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both London and Oulu sit above the global median – London by 199%, Oulu by 41%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.36 £19.59

$17.37 €15.47

51.76%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$109 £80.7

$90.7 €80.7

19.76%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £7.96

$15.04 €13.39

-28.79%

Cappuccino

$5.59 £4.15

$5.05 €4.50

10.69%

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

$3.00 £2.23

$2.80 €2.49

7.14%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 £1.65

$2.27 €2.02

-2.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.65 £7.17

$7.90 €7.03

22.15%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.26 £6.14

$7.89 €7.02

4.69%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.46

$1.19 €1.06

65.55%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 £1.55

$2.16 €1.93

-3.24%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.59 £1.93

$2.63 €2.35

-1.52%

Eggs

$5.37 £3.99

$3.28 €2.92

63.72%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.12 £9.75

$7.54 €6.71

74.01%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.03 £8.20

$13.49 €12.01

-18.24%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.73 £13.17

$22.46 €20.00

-21.06%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 £2.36

$2.23 €1.99

42.15%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 £1.03

$1.95 €1.74

-29.23%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 £2.10

$2.10 €1.87

34.29%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.36 £2.50

$4.38 €3.90

-23.29%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 £1.26

$1.03 €0.92

65.05%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 £1.32

$1.65 €1.47

7.88%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 £1.11

$2.69 €2.40

-44.61%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 £1.35

$1.63 €1.45

11.66%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.85 £17.72

$13.50 €12.02

76.67%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.44 £9.98

$12.29 €10.94

9.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.31

$3.59 €3.20

-13.37%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.34

$3.18 €2.84

41.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.13 £3.07

$2.95 €2.63

40.00%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$266 £198

$61.7 €55.0

331.02%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.98 £4.44

$9.41 €8.38

-36.45%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.39 £2.52

$1.66 €1.48

104.22%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.6 £42.03

$55.0 €48.98

2.80%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.21 £1.64

$2.33 €2.07

-5.15%

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

$38.3K £28.4K

$36.5K €32.5K

4.80%

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

$41.0K £30.5K

$37.9K €33.8K

8.17%

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

$372 £277

$119 €106

211.70%

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

$18.66 £13.87

$25.22 €22.45

-26.01%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.53 £30.12

$21.06 €18.75

92.45%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 £41.63

$36.22 €32.25

54.67%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.10 £12.71

$18.94 €16.86

-9.71%

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.34

$17.48 €15.56

2.69%

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

$2,946 £2,189

$571 €508

415.96%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$47.6K £35.4K

$16.2K €14.4K

194.06%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £86.4

$99.2 €88.4

17.13%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 £42.28

$45.12 €40.17

26.11%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £95.1

$109 €97.0

17.48%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 £114

$211 €188

-27.06%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,935 £2,182

$846 €753

246.94%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 £1,678

$698 €622

223.51%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,250 £3,901

$1,342 €1,195

291.15%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,859 £2,868

$1,038 €925

271.68%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.2K £12.8K

$3,735 €3,325

360.13%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,278 £6,152

$1,936 €1,724

327.58%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,621 £4,177

$2,510 €2,235

123.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.78

4.1

16.59%

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

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Last update for Oulu: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 55.8%

Oulu

$698 36.6% 69.1% $1.6K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$432 10.7%

Oulu

$166 8.7% 61.6% $266

Eating Out

London

$396 9.8%

Oulu

$320 16.8% 19.1% $75

Groceries & Markets

London

$360 8.9%

Oulu

$354 18.5% 1.9% $6.7

Getting Around

London

$305 7.6%

Oulu

$91 4.8% 70.1% $214

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Oulu

$209 10.9% 2% $4.2

Sport & Entertainment

London

$92 2.3%

Oulu

$71 3.7% 22.6% $21

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,935 in London versus $846 in Oulu. Rent is usually the largest line item in a monthly budget, so the gap here sets the tone for the overall comparison.

Salaries in London are about 2.2 times higher. Purchasing power depends on which expenses matter most to you.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $109 in London versus $91 in Oulu. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $360 vs $354 – making Oulu the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇫🇮 Oulu

🕒 Local time

03:06 3:06 AM

05:06 5:06 AM

2 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

214,651

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 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 November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.743 GBP (1 GBP = 1.35 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.89 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Oulu 2,090 km ≈ 3 h nonstop flight

From you

London
Oulu

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 Oulu: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,048 in London, $1,909 in Oulu – Oulu comes out roughly 53% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,072 per month in London and $2,863 in Oulu. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Oulu, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $846 there versus $2,935 in London.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,048 in London and $1,909 in Oulu. That makes Oulu about 53% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $2,946 per month in London and $571 in Oulu. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,909 in Oulu to $4,048 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

If budget matters most, go with Oulu. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.