Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Riehen

For one person, living is cheaper in Riehen: $3,372 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $7,400 less a year. Higher rent and utilities in London outweigh lower spending on other living expenses.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
164

Cost of Living Index in Riehen
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Riehen Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Riehen

🇨🇭 Switzerland

$3,372

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Riehen

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

A single person spends $3,986 per month in London vs $3,372 in Riehen, rent included.

London $3,986
Riehen $3,372

A couple spends around $5,791 per month in London vs $5,084 in Riehen, rent included.

London $5,791
Riehen $5,084

A family of three spends $7,595 per month in London vs $6,797 in Riehen, rent included.

London $7,595
Riehen $6,797

London costs about 18% more than Riehen, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in groceries.

Both London and Riehen sit above the global median – London by 195%, Riehen by 150%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$29.55 CHF 24.34

-12.25%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$120 CHF 98.5

-10.92%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$15.72 CHF 12.94

-31.87%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$6.21 CHF 5.11

-11.92%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$4.98 CHF 4.10

-40.36%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$5.26 CHF 4.33

-58.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$7.15 CHF 5.89

27.69%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$6.57 CHF 5.41

20.85%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$2.13 CHF 1.75

-12.68%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$3.14 CHF 2.59

-34.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$3.51 CHF 2.89

-31.05%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$7.13 CHF 5.87

-28.61%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$24.83 CHF 20.45

-48.17%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$24.86 CHF 20.48

-58.05%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$37.07 CHF 30.53

-54.49%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$3.52 CHF 2.90

-11.65%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.61 CHF 1.33

-13.04%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$2.51 CHF 2.07

22.71%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$4.36 CHF 3.59

-25.00%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.78 CHF 1.46

-11.24%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$2.09 CHF 1.72

-16.75%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.19 CHF 1.80

-36.07%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.23 CHF 1.02

46.34%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$10.91 CHF 8.99

113.38%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$10.39 CHF 8.56

25.41%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$3.48 CHF 2.87

-8.91%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$2.32 CHF 1.91

90.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$4.45 CHF 3.67

-8.54%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$98.6 CHF 81.2

150.31%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$9.84 CHF 8.11

-43.29%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$4.02 CHF 3.31

-16.42%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.58

$73.6 CHF 60.6

-22.85%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$2.18 CHF 1.80

-2.29%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$41.5K CHF 34.1K

-7.90%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$39.3K CHF 32.3K

4.19%

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

$372 £279

$339 CHF 280

9.63%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$41.49 CHF 34.17

-57.05%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$56.6 CHF 46.59

-28.64%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$88.7 CHF 73.1

-32.42%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

$45.01 CHF 37.07

-52.70%

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$21.40 CHF 17.63

-17.10%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$1,786 CHF 1,471

60.41%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$36.6K CHF 30.2K

-3.56%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$102 CHF 84.0

11.80%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$57.0 CHF 46.94

-4.79%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$165 CHF 136

-24.81%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$183 CHF 151

-10.98%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$1,680 CHF 1,384

70.77%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$1,440 CHF 1,186

55.10%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,951

$3,422 CHF 2,819

53.86%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

$2,418 CHF 1,992

56.26%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$15.7K CHF 12.9K

17.01%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

$12.0K CHF 9,867

-33.02%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,779

$8,642 CHF 7,118

-41.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

2.31

105.19%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Riehen: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Riehen

$1.4K 42.7% 35.5% $793

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Riehen

$438 13% 1.7% $7.2

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Riehen

$448 13.3% 15.6% $60

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Riehen

$540 16% 54.6% $191

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Riehen

$146 4.3% 48.7% $139

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Riehen

$228 6.8% 11.4% $23

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Riehen

$132 3.9% 37.8% $36

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,869 in London versus $1,680 in Riehen. 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 72% higher in Riehen, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in London versus $120 in Riehen. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $540 – making London the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇨🇭 Riehen

🕒 Local time

15:57 3:57 PM

16:57 4:57 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

20,970

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Swiss Franc CHF Fr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 CHF = 1.21 USD

1 CHF = 1.08 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

CHF, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Swiss Franc exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.824 CHF (1 CHF = 1.21 USD). 1 EUR = 0.926 CHF (1 CHF = 1.08 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

London Riehen 710 km ≈ 1 h 30 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Riehen

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 Riehen: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,986 in London, $3,372 in Riehen – roughly 18% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in groceries.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,979 per month in London and $5,057 in Riehen. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Interestingly, groceries are about 55% 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 $107 in London and $120 in Riehen. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$3,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,986 in London and $3,372 in Riehen. You'll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $3,372 in Riehen to $3,986 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 Riehen. 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.