Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Sandnes

For one person, living is cheaper in Sandnes: $2,639 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $16,200 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
129

Cost of Living Index in Sandnes
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Sandnes Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Sandnes

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,639

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Sandnes

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

A single person spends $3,986 per month in London vs $2,639 in Sandnes, rent included.

London $3,986
Sandnes $2,639

A couple spends around $5,791 per month in London vs $4,091 in Sandnes, rent included.

London $5,791
Sandnes $4,091

A family of three spends $7,595 per month in London vs $5,543 in Sandnes, rent included.

London $7,595
Sandnes $5,543

London costs about 51% more than Sandnes, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both London and Sandnes sit above the global median – London by 195%, Sandnes by 95%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$25.33 NOK 238

2.37%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$94.9 NOK 893

12.24%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$15.41 NOK 145

-30.50%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$5.58 NOK 52.6

-1.97%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$3.37 NOK 31.70

-11.87%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$2.95 NOK 27.75

-25.42%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$13.54 NOK 128

-32.57%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$11.92 NOK 112

-33.39%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$2.33 NOK 21.91

-20.17%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$3.34 NOK 31.43

-38.02%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$2.47 NOK 23.23

-2.02%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$4.92 NOK 46.31

3.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$13.26 NOK 125

-2.94%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$15.84 NOK 149

-34.15%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$31.72 NOK 299

-46.82%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$3.45 NOK 32.44

-9.86%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.82 NOK 26.52

-50.35%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$3.09 NOK 29.12

-0.32%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$4.72 NOK 44.41

-30.72%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$2.54 NOK 23.89

-37.80%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$2.36 NOK 22.17

-26.27%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.82 NOK 26.54

-50.35%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$2.25 NOK 21.17

-20.00%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$16.35 NOK 154

42.39%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$16.37 NOK 154

-20.40%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$3.23 NOK 30.37

-1.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$4.13 NOK 38.89

7.02%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$4.65 NOK 43.81

-12.47%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$82.1 NOK 773

200.52%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$6.00 NOK 56.5

-7.00%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$1.68 NOK 15.82

100.00%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.57

$47.92 NOK 451

18.43%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$2.21 NOK 20.81

-3.62%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$43.3K NOK 407.2K

-11.72%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$38.6K NOK 363.0K

6.06%

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

$372 £279

$245 NOK 2,309

51.70%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$34.40 NOK 324

-48.20%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$83.6 NOK 787

-51.71%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$45.45 NOK 428

31.95%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

$52.2 NOK 491

-59.18%

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$18.81 NOK 177

-5.69%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$284 NOK 2,675

908.16%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$9,372 NOK 88.2K

276.95%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$123 NOK 1,159

-7.41%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$59.5 NOK 560

-8.77%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$119 NOK 1,121

4.31%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$186 NOK 1,751

-12.35%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$1,304 NOK 12.3K

120.09%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

$947 NOK 8,916

135.77%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,950

$1,964 NOK 18.5K

168.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,834

$1,754 NOK 16.5K

115.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$6,896 NOK 64.9K

165.85%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,019

$4,065 NOK 38.3K

97.41%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,778

$3,612 NOK 34.0K

39.44%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

5.22

-9.20%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Sandnes: October 11, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Sandnes

$947 35.9% 57.6% $1.3K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Sandnes

$363 13.8% 15.6% $67

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Sandnes

$433 16.4% 11.7% $45

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Sandnes

$478 18.1% 36.8% $129

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Sandnes

$115 4.4% 59.7% $170

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Sandnes

$220 8.3% 7.1% $14

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Sandnes

$83 3.2% 13% $12

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,869 in London versus $1,304 in Sandnes. 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 39% 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 $107 in London versus $95.0 in Sandnes. Groceries tell a different story – $349 in London vs $478 in Sandnes – so London wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇴 Sandnes

🕒 Local time

20:24 8:24 PM

21:24 9:24 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

83,958

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

NOK, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Sandnes 930 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Sandnes

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 Sandnes: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,986 in London, $2,639 in Sandnes – roughly 51% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,979 per month in London and $3,958 in Sandnes. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Interestingly, groceries are about 37% 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 $95.0 in Sandnes. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

$2,500 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $3,986 in London and $2,639 in Sandnes. 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 $2,639 in Sandnes 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 Sandnes. 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.