Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Malmo and Utrecht

For one person, living is cheaper in Malmo: $2,092 a month against $2,987 in Utrecht, rent and utilities included – about $10,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

101

Cost of Living Index in Malmo
Learn more

Malmo Living Index
142

Cost of Living Index in Utrecht
Learn more

Utrecht Living Index

Jump to prices

Malmo

🇸🇪 Sweden

$2,092

/mo nomad

Utrecht

🇳🇱 Netherlands

$2,987

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Malmo and in Utrecht

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

A single person spends $2,092 per month in Malmo vs $2,987 in Utrecht, rent included.

Malmo $2,092
Utrecht $2,987

A couple spends around $3,149 per month in Malmo vs $4,205 in Utrecht, rent included.

Malmo $3,149
Utrecht $4,205

A family of three spends $4,206 per month in Malmo vs $5,423 in Utrecht, rent included.

Malmo $4,206
Utrecht $5,423

Malmo is about 30% cheaper than Utrecht, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Malmo and Utrecht sit above the global median – Malmo by 54%, Utrecht by 120%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$15.17 SEK 149

$22.74 €20.36

-33.29%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$76.1 SEK 746

$84.0 €75.3

-9.50%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$12.18 SEK 120

$13.55 €12.14

-10.11%

Cappuccino

$4.94 SEK 48.44

$4.78 €4.29

3.35%

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

$3.50 SEK 34.36

$3.84 €3.44

-8.85%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.70 SEK 26.51

$3.39 €3.03

-20.35%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$8.69 SEK 85.3

$6.59 €5.91

31.87%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.11 SEK 89.4

$7.15 €6.41

27.41%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.67 SEK 16.36

$1.51 €1.35

10.60%

White Bread (500g)

$2.84 SEK 27.91

$2.98 €2.67

-4.70%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$3.44 SEK 33.76

$2.54 €2.27

35.43%

Eggs

$4.12 SEK 40.42

$4.68 €4.19

-11.97%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.17 SEK 129

$13.36 €11.96

-1.42%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$11.85 SEK 116

$13.92 €12.47

-14.87%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.25 SEK 209

$18.68 €16.73

13.76%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 SEK 29.11

$2.74 €2.45

8.39%

Banana (1kg)

$2.63 SEK 25.76

$2.40 €2.15

9.58%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.94 SEK 28.85

$2.08 €1.86

41.35%

Tomato (1kg)

$4.26 SEK 41.77

$3.78 €3.39

12.70%

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 SEK 15.97

$1.73 €1.55

-5.78%

Onion (1kg)

$1.55 SEK 15.26

$1.88 €1.69

-17.55%

Lettuce (1 head)

$2.51 SEK 24.65

$1.59 €1.43

57.86%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.18 SEK 11.55

$1.38 €1.23

-14.49%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$8.17 SEK 80.2

$14.42 €12.92

-43.34%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.38 SEK 112

$6.82 €6.11

66.86%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.05 SEK 20.11

$1.35 €1.21

51.85%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.37 SEK 23.29

$2.68 €2.40

-11.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.22 SEK 31.65

$3.55 €3.18

-9.30%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$63.9 SEK 627

$132 €118

-51.66%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$6.05 SEK 59.4

$3.73 €3.34

62.20%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.48 SEK 24.37

$2.73 €2.44

-9.16%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$49.44 SEK 485

$45.56 €40.80

8.52%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.79 SEK 17.55

$2.59 €2.32

-30.89%

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

$32.6K SEK 320.3K

$41.0K €36.7K

-20.45%

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

$33.3K SEK 326.5K

$40.1K €35.9K

-17.02%

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

$144 SEK 1,412

$245 €219

-41.30%

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

$25.21 SEK 247

$21.75 €19.48

15.91%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.19 SEK 394

$48.16 €43.13

-16.55%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$39.31 SEK 386

$44.24 €39.62

-11.14%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$29.48 SEK 289

$31.25 €27.99

-5.66%

Cinema Ticket

$17.12 SEK 168

$15.06 €13.49

13.68%

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

$168 SEK 1,651

$3,274 €2,932

-94.86%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$3,352 SEK 32.9K

$7,994 €7,160

-58.07%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$102 SEK 1,001

$93.1 €83.4

9.56%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.62 SEK 448

$51.5 €46.11

-11.40%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$111 SEK 1,086

$103 €91.9

7.89%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$156 SEK 1,533

$126 €112

24.38%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,100 SEK 10.8K

$1,945 €1,742

-43.46%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$852 SEK 8,363

$1,558 €1,395

-45.30%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,765 SEK 17.3K

$3,128 €2,802

-43.57%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,343 SEK 13.2K

$2,229 €1,996

-39.75%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,098 SEK 40.2K

$7,109 €6,367

-42.36%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,158 SEK 31.0K

$4,877 €4,368

-35.25%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$2,979 SEK 29.2K

$4,245 €3,801

-29.82%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

3.05

3.23

-5.57%

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

Last update for Malmo: October 25, 2026

Last update for Utrecht: October 26, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Malmo

$852 40.8%

Utrecht

$1.6K 52.2% 82.8% $706

Groceries & Markets

Malmo

$371 17.8%

Utrecht

$352 11.8% 5.1% $19

Eating Out

Malmo

$304 14.5%

Utrecht

$356 11.9% 17.3% $53

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Malmo

$209 10%

Utrecht

$315 10.5% 50.5% $106

Clothing & Footwear

Malmo

$187 8.9%

Utrecht

$168 5.6% 10.1% $19

Getting Around

Malmo

$95 4.6%

Utrecht

$164 5.5% 71.9% $68

Sport & Entertainment

Malmo

$74 3.5%

Utrecht

$74 2.5% 1.1% $0.8

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,100 in Malmo versus $1,945 in Utrecht. 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 42% higher in Utrecht, 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 $76 in Malmo versus $84 in Utrecht. Groceries tell a different story – $371 in Malmo vs $352 in Utrecht – so Utrecht wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇸🇪 Malmo

🇳🇱 Utrecht

🕒 Local time

09:52 9:52 AM

Same time as Malmo

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

316,588

367,947

💱 Currency

Swedish Krona SEK kr

Euro EUR €

📈 Exchange rate

100 SEK = 10.19 USD

100 SEK = 9.13 EUR

1 EUR = 1.12 USD

Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to SEK – Swedish Krona Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇸🇪 Swedish Krona (kr)

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 9.81 SEK (1 SEK = 0.102 USD). 1 EUR = 10.96 SEK (100 SEK = 9.13 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of November 1, 2026: 1 USD = 0.896 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

USD to SEK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Malmo Utrecht 650 km ≈ 1 h 15 min nonstop flight

From you

Malmo
Utrecht

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

Malmo vs Utrecht: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Utrecht costs about 43% more than Malmo, and outside of rent the gap comes mainly from transport. That’s enough to noticeably affect everyday spending and lifestyle for anyone choosing between the two.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,138 per month in Malmo and $4,481 in Utrecht. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Malmo, especially for central apartments: a one-bedroom in the center costs $1,100 there versus $1,945 in Utrecht.

Kindergarten costs $168 per month in Malmo and $3,274 in Utrecht. For families with young kids, this one expense can tip the scales when choosing between the two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 5% cheaper in Utrecht – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value.

$2,000 is a stretch for both – monthly costs hit $2,092 in Malmo and $2,987 in Utrecht. You’ll need shared housing and careful budgeting no matter which city you pick.

For digital nomads, it depends on budget. Malmo costs $2,092 versus $2,987 in Utrecht. Both appeal to remote workers, and the cost gap matters when income varies month to month.

If budget matters most, go with Malmo. If higher salaries or specific career opportunities are the priority, Utrecht makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.