Last update: Nov 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Manchester and Farnborough

For one person, living is cheaper in Farnborough: $2,365 a month against $2,510 in Manchester, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Other living expenses account for most of the difference.

121

Cost of Living Index in Manchester
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Manchester Living Index
113

Cost of Living Index in Farnborough
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Farnborough Living Index

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Manchester

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,510

/mo nomad

Farnborough

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,365

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Manchester and in Farnborough

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,510 in Manchester versus $2,365 in Farnborough.

Manchester $2,510
Farnborough $2,365

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,643 in Manchester versus $3,648 in Farnborough.

Manchester $3,643
Farnborough $3,648

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,776 in Manchester versus $4,932 in Farnborough.

Manchester $4,776
Farnborough $4,932

Living in Manchester is roughly 6% more expensive than in Farnborough, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Manchester 86% above, Farnborough 75% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.16 £14.95

$19.45 £14.43

3.65%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.5 £64.9

$85.9 £63.7

1.91%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.78 £8.00

$9.40 £6.97

14.68%

Cappuccino

$4.78 £3.55

$4.47 £3.31

6.94%

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

$2.62 £1.94

$2.75 £2.04

-4.73%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 £1.29

$2.04 £1.51

-14.71%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$7.92 £5.88

$7.40 £5.49

7.03%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.52 £4.83

$6.65 £4.93

-1.95%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.35 £1.00

$1.44 £1.07

-6.25%

White Bread (500g)

$1.88 £1.39

$1.54 £1.14

22.08%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$1.92 £1.42

$3.64 £2.70

-47.25%

Eggs

$4.04 £3.00

$3.33 £2.47

21.32%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.58 £7.11

$8.68 £6.44

10.37%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.26 £6.87

$8.49 £6.30

9.07%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.66 £11.62

$13.16 £9.76

19.00%

Apples (1kg)

$3.07 £2.28

$1.72 £1.28

78.49%

Banana (1kg)

$1.53 £1.14

$1.94 £1.44

-21.13%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.91 £2.16

$2.87 £2.13

1.39%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.53 £2.62

$2.97 £2.20

18.86%

Potato (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$1.61 £1.19

-4.35%

Onion (1kg)

$1.38 £1.02

$1.62 £1.20

-14.81%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.21 £0.90

$1.03 £0.76

17.48%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.38 £1.03

$0.59 £0.44

133.90%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$24.21 £17.95

$23.42 £17.37

3.37%

Wine (Bottle)

$11.05 £8.19

$11.58 £8.58

-4.58%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.49 £1.84

$2.66 £1.98

-6.39%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.90 £2.15

$2.13 £1.58

36.15%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$2.61 £1.93

$2.75 £2.04

-5.09%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$109 £80.9

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.47 £3.31

$2.99 £2.22

49.50%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.21 £1.64

$1.60 £1.19

38.12%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$30.93 £22.94

$11.90 £8.83

159.92%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.18 £1.61

$1.90 £1.41

14.74%

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

$39.2K £29.1K

$38.5K £28.5K

2.03%

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

$39.9K £29.6K

$40.0K £29.7K

-0.30%

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

$248 £184

$164 £122

51.41%

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

$16.31 £12.10

$15.00 £11.12

8.73%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$39.73 £29.47

$43.20 £32.03

-8.03%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.93 £31.84

$56.3 £41.75

-23.75%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.99 £13.34

$23.69 £17.57

-24.06%

Cinema Ticket

$13.46 £9.98

$9.58 £7.11

40.50%

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

$1,448 £1,074

$1,599 £1,186

-9.42%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.0K £15.6K

$24.0K £17.8K

-12.20%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$83.3 £61.8

$91.8 £68.1

-9.27%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$43.32 £32.13

$39.65 £29.40

9.26%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$95.4 £70.8

$102 £75.5

-6.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$99.9 £74.1

$121 £89.9

-17.58%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,818 £1,348

$1,682 £1,247

8.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,234 £915

$1,307 £969

-5.60%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,925 £2,169

$2,477 £1,837

18.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,921 £1,424

$2,444 £1,813

-21.42%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$4,751 £3,523

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,313 £3,199

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,798 £2,817

$4,037 £2,994

-5.91%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.79

5.16

-7.17%

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

Last update for Manchester: November 2, 2026

Last update for Farnborough: October 31, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Manchester

$1.2K 49.2%

Farnborough

$1.3K 55.3% 5.9% $73

Eating Out

Manchester

$321 12.8%

Farnborough

$307 13% 4.4% $14

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Manchester

$304 12.1%

Farnborough

$222 9.4% 27% $82

Groceries & Markets

Manchester

$301 12%

Farnborough

$272 11.5% 9.6% $29

Clothing & Footwear

Manchester

$145 5.8%

Farnborough

$160 6.7% 10.1% $15

Getting Around

Manchester

$135 5.4%

Farnborough

$22 * 0.9% 83.7% $113

Sport & Entertainment

Manchester

$70 2.8%

Farnborough

$75 3.2% 8% $5.6

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 $1,818 in Manchester and $1,682 in Farnborough. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Farnborough pays 6% more on average while also being the cheaper of the two. The combined effect is a noticeably stronger local purchasing power.

Dining out: $87 in Manchester vs $86 in Farnborough for a mid-range dinner for two. Groceries echo the gap at $301 vs $272 per month, with Farnborough cheaper across the board.

Good to know

🇬🇧 Manchester

🇬🇧 Farnborough

🕒 Local time

23:50 11:50 PM

Same time as Manchester

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

503,100

60,652

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

1 GBP = 1.35 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Manchester Farnborough 260 km

From you

Manchester
Farnborough

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 Farnborough: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Total monthly costs including rent come to $2,510 in Manchester and $2,365 in Farnborough, so Farnborough is about 6% cheaper – a gap that matters a lot on a fixed or modest income.

On paper, salaries run 6% lower in Manchester. That’s worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.

Rent for a central apartment: $1,818 in Manchester versus $1,682 in Farnborough. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.

Childcare runs $1,448 in Manchester versus $1,599 in Farnborough. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.

All in, you’ll spend $2,510 per month in Manchester versus $2,365 in Farnborough – Farnborough is about 6% cheaper, which adds up to real savings over time.

Either city works on $3,000 a month, though Farnborough gives you more room to save. At this income level, the choice is more about lifestyle than financial pressure.

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.