Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manchester and Dudley

For one person, living is cheaper in Dudley: $2,131 a month against $2,532 in Manchester, rent and utilities included – about $4,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

123

Cost of Living Index in Manchester
Learn more

Manchester Living Index
103

Cost of Living Index in Dudley
Learn more

Dudley Living Index

Jump to prices

Manchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,532

/mo nomad

Dudley

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,131

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Manchester and in Dudley

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,532 in Manchester versus $2,131 in Dudley.

Manchester $2,532
Dudley $2,131

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,686 in Manchester versus $2,381 in Dudley.

Manchester $3,686
Dudley $2,381

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,839 in Manchester versus $2,630 in Dudley.

Manchester $4,839
Dudley $2,630

Living in Manchester is roughly 19% more expensive than in Dudley, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Manchester 87% above, Dudley 57% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.23 £15.18

$20.44 £15.33

-1.03%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.1 £65.3

$96.4 £72.3

-9.62%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.83 £8.12

$9.39 £7.04

15.34%

Cappuccino

$4.81 £3.61

$5.01 £3.76

-3.99%

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

$2.44 £1.83

$2.56 £1.92

-4.69%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.95 £1.47

-16.92%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.82 £5.87

$6.62 £4.97

18.13%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.48 £4.86

$6.84 £5.13

-5.26%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.45 £1.09

$1.84 £1.38

-21.20%

White Bread (500g)

$1.95 £1.47

$1.43 £1.07

36.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.86 £1.40

$2.32 £1.74

-19.83%

Eggs

$4.05 £3.04

$3.76 £2.82

7.71%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.76 £7.32

$8.17 £6.13

19.46%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.11 £6.83

$8.50 £6.38

7.18%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.52 £11.64

$15.24 £11.44

1.84%

Apples (1kg)

$3.20 £2.40

$2.60 £1.95

23.08%

Banana (1kg)

$1.52 £1.14

$1.69 £1.26

-10.06%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.02 £2.26

$2.42 £1.81

24.79%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.34 £2.51

$3.72 £2.79

-10.22%

Potato (1kg)

$1.55 £1.17

$1.52 £1.14

1.97%

Onion (1kg)

$1.30 £0.98

$1.56 £1.17

-16.67%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.22 £0.92

$1.09 £0.82

11.93%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.28 £0.96

$1.39 £1.04

-7.91%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.68 £17.77

$22.28 £16.71

6.28%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.88 £8.16

$10.68 £8.01

1.87%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.55 £1.91

$3.26 £2.45

-21.78%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.15 £2.36

$3.29 £2.47

-4.26%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.68 £2.01

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$105 £79.1

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.42 £3.31

$4.35 £3.26

1.61%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.20 £1.65

$1.66 £1.25

32.53%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.45 £22.85

$24.36 £18.27

25.00%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.04 £1.53

$2.02 £1.52

0.99%

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

$39.2K £29.4K

$37.9K £28.5K

3.18%

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

$40.3K £30.2K

$40.9K £30.6K

-1.43%

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

$252 £189

$324 £243

-22.33%

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

$16.62 £12.47

$20.11 £15.08

-17.35%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$40.61 £30.47

$39.35 £29.52

3.20%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$55.1 £41.32

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.02 £13.52

Cinema Ticket

$13.26 £9.95

$15.51 £11.63

-14.51%

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

$1,252 £939

$1,588 £1,192

-21.20%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$19.9K £14.9K

$20.2K £15.1K

-1.40%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$84.2 £63.2

$107 £80.3

-21.33%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$42.72 £32.05

$48.74 £36.57

-12.35%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$92.2 £69.2

$86.5 £64.9

6.59%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$106 £79.8

$98.5 £73.9

7.95%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,789 £1,342

$1,288 £966

38.93%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,242 £932

$940 £705

32.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,014 £2,261

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,961 £1,471

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,552 £3,415

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,349 £3,262

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,460 £2,596

$2,489 £1,868

39.00%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.82

-3.60%

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

Last update for Manchester: October 18, 2026

Last update for Dudley: October 18, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manchester

$1.2K 49.1%

Dudley

$940 44.1% 24.4% $302

Eating Out

Manchester

$320 12.7%

Dudley

$317 14.9% 1.2% $3.7

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manchester

$309 12.2%

Dudley

$383 18% 24.1% $75

Groceries & Markets

Manchester

$301 11.9%

Dudley

$294 13.8% 2.3% $7

Clothing & Footwear

Manchester

$146 5.8%

Dudley

$153 7.2% 4.7% $6.9

Getting Around

Manchester

$132 5.2%

Dudley

$13 * 0.6% 90.4% $119

Sport & Entertainment

Manchester

$82 3.2%

Dudley

$31 * 1.5% 62% $51

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

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $1,789 in Manchester and $1,288 in Dudley. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Manchester pays 39% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $87.0 in Manchester vs $96.0 in Dudley. Groceries flip the comparison at $301 vs $294, with Dudley cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Manchester

🇬🇧 Dudley

🕒 Local time

18:13 6:13 PM

Same time as Manchester

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

503,100

195,000

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manchester Dudley 110 km

From you

Manchester
Dudley

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

Manchester vs Dudley: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Manchester and Dudley differ by about 19% in total monthly costs ($2,532 vs $2,131 including rent). Dudley is meaningfully more affordable – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

Average pay runs 39% higher in Manchester, which matters when comparing affordability. Whether that higher income actually nets you more depends on your spending habits and housing choices.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,789 in Manchester versus $1,288 in Dudley. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,252 in Manchester versus $1,588 in Dudley. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

Dining out is cheaper in Dudley – a meal for two runs $96.0 versus $87.0 in Manchester. If you eat out regularly, this makes a real dent in your monthly spending.

At $2,131 in Dudley versus $2,532 in Manchester, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Dudley but tight or insufficient in Manchester. The gap between the two cities makes Dudley the clear choice for anyone on this budget.

Both cities offer a good standard of living with different trade-offs. Neither is objectively better – the right pick depends on what matters most: affordability, career, cultural scene, or climate.

Expats usually find Dudley gentler on the wallet – expenses run 19% less than in Manchester. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.