Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Zaandam

For one person, living is cheaper in Zaandam: $1,349 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $31,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

194

Cost of Living Index in London
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London Living Index
66

Cost of Living Index in Zaandam
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Zaandam Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Zaandam

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$1,349

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Zaandam

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

A single person spends $3,986 per month in London vs $1,349 in Zaandam, rent included.

London $3,986
Zaandam $1,349

A couple spends around $5,791 per month in London vs $3,435 in Zaandam, rent included.

London $5,791
Zaandam $3,435

A family of three spends $7,595 per month in London vs $5,520 in Zaandam, rent included.

London $7,595
Zaandam $5,520

London costs about 196% more than Zaandam, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both London and Zaandam sit above the global median – London by 195%, Zaandam by 0%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$25.93 £19.45

$22.15 €19.70

17.07%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$107 £79.9

$81.3 €72.3

30.96%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.03

$13.34 €11.87

-19.72%

Cappuccino

$5.47 £4.11

$4.15 €3.69

31.81%

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

$2.97 £2.23

$3.71 €3.30

-19.95%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.20 £1.65

$3.28 €2.92

-32.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.13 £6.85

$5.74 €5.10

59.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$7.94 £5.96

$5.22 €4.64

52.11%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.86 £1.40

$1.29 €1.15

44.19%

White Bread (500g)

$2.07 £1.55

$2.79 €2.48

-25.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.42 £1.81

$2.73 €2.43

-11.36%

Eggs

$5.09 £3.82

$4.72 €4.20

7.84%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$12.87 £9.66

$13.49 €12.00

-4.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$10.43 £7.82

$12.55 €11.17

-16.89%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$16.87 £12.66

$16.72 €14.87

0.90%

Apples (1kg)

$3.11 £2.33

$2.69 €2.39

15.61%

Banana (1kg)

$1.40 £1.05

$2.35 €2.09

-40.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.08 £2.31

$1.81 €1.61

70.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.27 £2.45

$4.22 €3.76

-22.51%

Potato (1kg)

$1.58 £1.19

$1.88 €1.67

-15.96%

Onion (1kg)

$1.74 £1.31

$2.27 €2.02

-23.35%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.40 £1.05

$1.23 €1.09

13.82%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.80 £1.35

$1.04 €0.93

73.08%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.28 £17.46

$13.75 €12.23

69.31%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.03 £9.77

$6.97 €6.20

86.94%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.17 £2.38

$1.50 €1.34

111.33%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.42 £3.32

$2.45 €2.18

80.41%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.07 £3.05

$3.53 €3.14

15.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$247 £185

$85.1 €75.7

190.07%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.58 £4.18

$6.48 €5.76

-13.89%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.36 £2.52

$2.29 €2.04

46.72%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.8 £42.58

$25.63 €22.80

121.42%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.13 £1.60

$2.42 €2.15

-11.98%

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

$38.2K £28.6K

$40.6K €36.1K

-6.02%

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

$40.9K £30.7K

$37.9K €33.7K

8.02%

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

$372 £279

$260 €231

43.12%

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

$17.82 £13.37

$24.17 €21.50

-26.27%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.37 £30.29

$55.6 €49.42

-27.34%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$60.0 £44.99

$45.37 €40.36

32.18%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

$27.91 €24.83

-23.72%

Cinema Ticket

$17.74 £13.31

$15.92 €14.16

11.43%

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

$2,864 £2,149

$2,490 €2,215

15.03%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$35.3K £26.5K

$6,701 €5,960

427.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$114 £85.5

$84.8 €75.4

34.54%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$54.3 £40.71

$40.40 €35.94

34.33%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$124 £93.2

$98.5 €87.6

26.18%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$163 £122

$103 €91.2

58.96%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,869 £2,152

$1,356 €1,206

111.57%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,233 £1,675

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,266 £3,951

$1,659 €1,475

217.50%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,778 £2,835

$2,536 €2,256

48.97%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$18.3K £13.8K

$5,319 €4,731

244.66%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,024 £6,020

$4,264 €3,793

88.19%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,037 £3,779

$4,657 €4,143

8.14%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.74

3.8

24.74%

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

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Last update for Zaandam: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.2K 56%

Zaandam

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$430 10.8%

Zaandam

$340 25.2% 21% $91

Eating Out

London

$388 9.7%

Zaandam

$334 24.8% 13.8% $53

Groceries & Markets

London

$349 8.8%

Zaandam

$334 24.8% 4.5% $16

Getting Around

London

$285 7.2%

Zaandam

$117 8.7% 59% $168

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Zaandam

$147 10.9% 28.4% $58

Sport & Entertainment

London

$95 2.4%

Zaandam

$77 5.7% 19.1% $18

Categories marked with * are only partly priced – their share counts the items that do have prices.

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $2,869 in London versus $1,356 in Zaandam. 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 8% 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 $81.0 in Zaandam. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $349 vs $334 – making Zaandam the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇳🇱 Zaandam

🕒 Local time

13:21 1:21 PM

14:21 2:21 PM

1 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

76,804

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 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 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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London Zaandam 360 km

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London
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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 Zaandam: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $3,986 in London, $1,349 in Zaandam – roughly 196% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $5,979 per month in London and $2,023 in Zaandam. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Groceries cost about 5% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $107 in London and $81.0 in Zaandam. 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 Zaandam, where all-in costs run around $1,349, than in London at $3,986. In Zaandam 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 $1,349 in Zaandam 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 Zaandam. 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.