Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between London and Zahlah

For one person, living is cheaper in Zahlah: $989 a month against $4,048 in London, rent and utilities included – about $36,700 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
47

Cost of Living Index in Zahlah
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Zahlah Living Index

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London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$4,048

/mo nomad

Zahlah

🇱🇧 Lebanon

$989

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in London and in Zahlah

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

A single person spends $4,048 per month in London vs $989 in Zahlah, rent included.

London $4,048
Zahlah $989

A couple spends around $5,903 per month in London vs $1,596 in Zahlah, rent included.

London $5,903
Zahlah $1,596

A family of three spends $7,758 per month in London vs $2,203 in Zahlah, rent included.

London $7,758
Zahlah $2,203

London costs about 309% more than Zahlah, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

London sits 199% above the global median, while Zahlah is 27% below – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$26.36 £19.68

$12.18 LBP 1.1M

116.42%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$109 £81.1

$70.1 LBP 6.3M

54.81%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.71 £8.00

$10.01 LBP 896.2K

6.99%

Cappuccino

$5.59 £4.17

$4.66 LBP 417.0K

19.96%

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

$3.00 £2.24

$2.27 LBP 203.6K

32.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.22 £1.66

$0.91 LBP 81.0K

143.96%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$9.65 £7.20

$5.12 LBP 458.4K

88.48%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$8.26 £6.16

$4.87 LBP 436.2K

69.61%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.97 £1.47

$1.91 LBP 171.3K

3.14%

White Bread (500g)

$2.09 £1.56

$0.84 LBP 75.3K

148.81%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.59 £1.94

$2.16 LBP 193.1K

19.91%

Eggs

$5.37 £4.01

$3.46 LBP 310.0K

55.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.12 £9.79

$11.03 LBP 987.5K

18.95%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.03 £8.23

$10.77 LBP 964.0K

2.41%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$17.73 £13.23

$14.66 LBP 1.3M

20.94%

Apples (1kg)

$3.17 £2.37

$3.14 LBP 280.6K

0.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.38 £1.03

$1.70 LBP 152.4K

-18.82%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.82 £2.11

$1.62 LBP 144.9K

74.07%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.36 £2.51

$1.53 LBP 137.1K

119.61%

Potato (1kg)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.22 LBP 108.8K

39.34%

Onion (1kg)

$1.78 £1.33

$1.55 LBP 138.5K

14.84%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.49 £1.11

$1.18 LBP 105.6K

26.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.82 £1.36

$0.72 LBP 64.8K

152.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.85 £17.80

$3.08 LBP 275.9K

674.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$13.44 £10.03

$10.83 LBP 969.1K

24.10%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.11 £2.32

$1.32 LBP 118.0K

135.61%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.49 £3.35

$2.46 LBP 220.0K

82.52%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.13 £3.08

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$266 £199

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.98 £4.46

$5.05 LBP 452.1K

18.42%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$3.39 £2.53

$2.30 LBP 205.5K

47.39%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$56.6 £42.21

$22.81 LBP 2.0M

147.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.21 £1.65

$1.05 LBP 94.1K

110.48%

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

$38.3K £28.6K

$53.9K LBP 4.8B

-28.99%

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

$41.0K £30.6K

$33.1K LBP 3.0B

23.90%

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

$372 £278

$216 LBP 19.4M

72.07%

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

$18.66 £13.93

$23.20 LBP 2.1M

-19.57%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.53 £30.26

$38.27 LBP 3.4M

5.91%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$56.0 £41.82

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.10 £12.76

Cinema Ticket

$17.95 £13.40

$10.08 LBP 901.8K

78.08%

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

$2,946 £2,199

$670 LBP 59.9M

339.80%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$47.6K £35.5K

$10.7K LBP 960.7M

343.66%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$116 £86.8

$67.5 LBP 6.0M

72.31%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$56.9 £42.47

$48.76 LBP 4.4M

16.69%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$128 £95.5

$138 LBP 12.3M

-7.07%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$154 £115

$120 LBP 10.7M

28.29%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,935 £2,191

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,258 £1,686

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$5,250 £3,919

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$3,859 £2,881

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$17.2K £12.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$8,278 £6,179

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$5,621 £4,196

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.78

-56.55%

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

Last update for London: November 1, 2026

Last update for Zahlah: November 1, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

London

$2.3K 55.8%

Zahlah

- * 0% 100%

Monthly Utilities & Internet

London

$432 10.7%

Zahlah

$278 28.1% 35.6% $154

Eating Out

London

$396 9.8%

Zahlah

$231 23.4% 41.5% $164

Groceries & Markets

London

$360 8.9%

Zahlah

$274 27.8% 23.9% $86

Getting Around

London

$305 7.6%

Zahlah

$17 * 1.7% 94.6% $289

Clothing & Footwear

London

$205 5.1%

Zahlah

$168 17% 17.8% $37

Sport & Entertainment

London

$92 2.3%

Zahlah

$20 * 2% 78.1% $72

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

Cost Breakdown

A mid-range dinner for two costs $109 in London versus $70 in Zahlah. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $360 vs $274 – making Zahlah the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know

🇬🇧 London

🇱🇧 Zahlah

🕒 Local time

12:12 12:12 PM

14:12 2:12 PM

2 h ahead of London

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

8,908,083 Capital

78,145

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Lebanese Pound LBP ل.ل

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1,000,000 LBP = 11.17 USD

1,000,000 LBP = 9.95 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

LBP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.838 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Lebanese Pound exchange rates as of November 6, 2026: 1 USD = 89,500 LBP (100,000 LBP = 1.12 USD). 1 EUR = 100,517 LBP (1,000,000 LBP = 9.95 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

London Zahlah 3,490 km ≈ 4 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

London
Zahlah

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 Zahlah: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $4,048 in London, $989 in Zahlah – Zahlah comes out roughly 76% cheaper. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $6,072 per month in London and $1,483 in Zahlah. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Monthly expenses with rent come to $4,048 in London and $989 in Zahlah. That makes Zahlah about 76% cheaper.

Kindergarten costs $2,946 per month in London and $670 in Zahlah. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

A $1,200 monthly budget goes further in Zahlah, where all-in costs run around $989, than in London at $4,048. In Zahlah 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 $989 in Zahlah to $4,048 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.