Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Lyon and Roskilde

For one person, living is cheaper in Lyon: $2,025 a month against $2,530 in Roskilde, rent and utilities included – about $6,100 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

98

Cost of Living Index in Lyon
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Lyon Living Index
122

Cost of Living Index in Roskilde
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Roskilde Living Index

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Lyon

🇫🇷 France

$2,025

/mo nomad

Roskilde

🇩🇰 Denmark

$2,530

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Lyon and in Roskilde

Real prices from locals and on-the-ground checks – rent, groceries, transit and the daily extras. Here's what a month in Lyon and in Roskilde actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,025 per month in Lyon vs $2,530 in Roskilde, rent included.

Lyon $2,025
Roskilde $2,530

A couple spends around $3,130 per month in Lyon vs $3,882 in Roskilde, rent included.

Lyon $3,130
Roskilde $3,882

A family of three spends $4,236 per month in Lyon vs $5,233 in Roskilde, rent included.

Lyon $4,236
Roskilde $5,233

Lyon is about 20% cheaper than Roskilde, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both Lyon and Roskilde sit above the global median – Lyon by 50%, Roskilde by 87%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$16.87 €15.00

$18.05 DKK 120

-6.54%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$67.0 €59.6

$112 DKK 742

-39.97%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$13.32 €11.85

$15.03 DKK 100.0

-11.38%

Cappuccino

$4.11 €3.66

$6.93 DKK 46.06

-40.69%

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

$2.87 €2.55

$4.07 DKK 27.04

-29.48%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.73 €1.54

$3.33 DKK 22.15

-48.05%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.00 €7.12

$8.17 DKK 54.3

-2.08%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.31 €5.61

$8.38 DKK 55.7

-24.70%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 €1.34

$2.04 DKK 13.55

-25.98%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 €1.53

$3.76 DKK 25.03

-54.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.49 €2.21

$2.40 DKK 15.95

3.75%

Eggs

$4.63 €4.12

$4.89 DKK 32.53

-5.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$22.54 €20.05

$14.12 DKK 93.9

59.63%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$12.38 €11.01

$11.50 DKK 76.5

7.65%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$23.55 €20.95

$17.93 DKK 119

31.34%

Apples (1kg)

$2.40 €2.13

$2.65 DKK 17.62

-9.43%

Banana (1kg)

$2.41 €2.14

$2.78 DKK 18.46

-13.31%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.54 €3.15

$2.07 DKK 13.79

71.01%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.07 €2.73

$4.01 DKK 26.64

-23.44%

Potato (1kg)

$2.54 €2.26

$1.75 DKK 11.61

45.14%

Onion (1kg)

$3.08 €2.74

$1.38 DKK 9.18

123.19%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.35 €1.20

$1.45 DKK 9.66

-6.90%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.06 €0.94

$0.64 DKK 4.25

65.63%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$13.90 €12.36

$8.70 DKK 57.9

59.77%

Wine (Bottle)

$8.04 €7.15

$7.55 DKK 50.2

6.49%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.75 €2.45

$1.99 DKK 13.22

38.19%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.32 €2.95

$2.68 DKK 17.82

23.88%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.29 €2.03

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$83.6 €74.4

$75.9 DKK 505

10.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$7.92 €7.04

$5.70 DKK 37.94

38.95%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.17 €1.93

$1.68 DKK 11.19

29.17%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$41.68 €37.08

$61.9 DKK 412

-32.65%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.23 €1.99

$2.27 DKK 15.09

-1.76%

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

$34.8K €31.0K

$49.5K DKK 329.0K

-29.60%

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

$34.9K €31.0K

$52.7K DKK 350.6K

-33.84%

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

$270 €240

$216 DKK 1,436

25.04%

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

$14.35 €12.76

$15.77 DKK 105

-9.00%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$28.64 €25.48

$43.29 DKK 288

-33.84%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.31 €34.96

$60.4 DKK 402

-34.91%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$27.36 €24.34

Cinema Ticket

$14.64 €13.02

$16.22 DKK 108

-9.74%

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

$619 €550

$374 DKK 2,488

65.37%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$11.3K €10.0K

$6,075 DKK 40.4K

85.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$109 €96.8

$106 DKK 704

2.74%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.48 €38.67

$45.94 DKK 306

-5.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$123 €109

$151 DKK 1,004

-18.57%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$124 €111

$187 DKK 1,243

-33.48%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$886 €788

$1,280 DKK 8,513

-30.80%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$672 €598

$1,141 DKK 7,590

-41.11%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,804 €1,604

$2,560 DKK 17.0K

-29.55%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,285 €1,143

$1,991 DKK 13.2K

-35.46%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,364 €5,661

$6,477 DKK 43.1K

-1.74%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,953 €3,516

$5,960 DKK 39.6K

-33.67%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,062 €2,723

$4,095 DKK 27.2K

-25.23%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.68

3.67

0.27%

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

Last update for Lyon: October 12, 2026

Last update for Roskilde: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Lyon

$672 33.2%

Roskilde

$1.1K 45.1% 69.8% $469

Groceries & Markets

Lyon

$385 19%

Roskilde

$351 13.9% 8.9% $34

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Lyon

$313 15.5%

Roskilde

$275 10.9% 12.1% $38

Eating Out

Lyon

$295 14.6%

Roskilde

$360 14.2% 21.8% $65

Clothing & Footwear

Lyon

$180 8.9%

Roskilde

$220 8.7% 22.6% $41

Getting Around

Lyon

$112 5.5%

Roskilde

$90 * 3.6% 19.3% $22

Sport & Entertainment

Lyon

$69 3.4%

Roskilde

$93 3.7% 35.4% $24

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $886 in Lyon versus $1,280 in Roskilde. 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 34% higher in Roskilde, 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 $67.0 in Lyon versus $112 in Roskilde. Groceries tell a different story – $385 in Lyon vs $351 in Roskilde – so Roskilde wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇫🇷 Lyon

🇩🇰 Roskilde

🕒 Local time

07:06 7:06 AM

Same time as Lyon

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

522,250

50,781

💱 Currency

Euro EUR €

Danish Krone DKK kr

📈 Exchange rate

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

1 DKK = 0.15 USD

1 DKK = 0.134 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Lyon Roskilde 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight

From you

Lyon
Roskilde

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

Lyon vs Roskilde: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Roskilde costs about 25% more than Lyon, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from eating out. That's enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,038 per month in Lyon and $3,795 in Roskilde. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,025 in Lyon and $2,530 in Roskilde. That's a gap of about 25%.

Public transport costs about 10% less in Lyon. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.

A $2,000 monthly budget goes further in Lyon, where all-in costs run around $2,025, than in Roskilde at $2,530. In Lyon it covers expenses comfortably, while in Roskilde it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Lyon costs $2,025 versus $2,530 in Roskilde. Both have workable remote work infrastructure, but the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

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 Lyon. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Roskilde makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.