Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Roskilde and Lyon

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.

Roskilde
🇩🇰 Denmark
$2,530
/mo nomad
Lyon
🇫🇷 France
$2,025
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Roskilde and in Lyon

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

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

  • Roskilde $2,530
  • Lyon $2,025

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

  • Roskilde $3,882
  • Lyon $3,130

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

  • Roskilde $5,233
  • Lyon $4,236

Roskilde costs about 25% more than Lyon, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

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

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$18.05 DKK 120
$16.87 €15.00
6.99%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$112 DKK 742
$67.0 €59.6
66.58%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$15.03 DKK 100.0
$13.32 €11.85
12.84%
Cappuccino
$6.93 DKK 46.06
$4.11 €3.66
68.61%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$4.07 DKK 27.04
$2.87 €2.55
41.81%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.33 DKK 22.15
$1.73 €1.54
92.49%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$8.17 DKK 54.3
$8.00 €7.12
2.12%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$8.38 DKK 55.7
$6.31 €5.61
32.81%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$2.04 DKK 13.55
$1.51 €1.34
35.10%
White Bread (500g)
$3.76 DKK 25.03
$1.72 €1.53
118.60%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.40 DKK 15.95
$2.49 €2.21
-3.61%
Eggs
$4.89 DKK 32.53
$4.63 €4.12
5.62%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$14.12 DKK 93.9
$22.54 €20.05
-37.36%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$11.50 DKK 76.5
$12.38 €11.01
-7.11%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$17.93 DKK 119
$23.55 €20.95
-23.86%
Apples (1kg)
$2.65 DKK 17.62
$2.40 €2.13
10.42%
Banana (1kg)
$2.78 DKK 18.46
$2.41 €2.14
15.35%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.07 DKK 13.79
$3.54 €3.15
-41.53%
Tomato (1kg)
$4.01 DKK 26.64
$3.07 €2.73
30.62%
Potato (1kg)
$1.75 DKK 11.61
$2.54 €2.26
-31.10%
Onion (1kg)
$1.38 DKK 9.18
$3.08 €2.74
-55.19%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.45 DKK 9.66
$1.35 €1.20
7.41%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.64 DKK 4.25
$1.06 €0.94
-39.62%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$8.70 DKK 57.9
$13.90 €12.36
-37.41%
Wine (Bottle)
$7.55 DKK 50.2
$8.04 €7.15
-6.09%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$1.99 DKK 13.22
$2.75 €2.45
-27.64%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.68 DKK 17.82
$3.32 €2.95
-19.28%
🚌 Getting Around
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
-
$2.29 €2.03
-
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$75.9 DKK 505
$83.6 €74.4
-9.23%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.70 DKK 37.94
$7.92 €7.04
-28.03%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.68 DKK 11.19
$2.17 €1.93
-22.58%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$61.9 DKK 412
$41.68 €37.08
48.49%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$2.27 DKK 15.09
$2.23 €1.99
1.79%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$49.5K DKK 329.0K
$34.8K €31.0K
42.04%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$52.7K DKK 350.6K
$34.9K €31.0K
51.14%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$216 DKK 1,436
$270 €240
-20.03%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$15.77 DKK 105
$14.35 €12.76
9.90%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$43.29 DKK 288
$28.64 €25.48
51.15%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$60.4 DKK 402
$39.31 €34.96
53.63%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
-
$27.36 €24.34
-
Cinema Ticket
$16.22 DKK 108
$14.64 €13.02
10.79%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$374 DKK 2,488
$619 €550
-39.53%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$6,075 DKK 40.4K
$11.3K €10.0K
-46.14%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$106 DKK 704
$109 €96.8
-2.67%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$45.94 DKK 306
$43.48 €38.67
5.66%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$151 DKK 1,004
$123 €109
22.81%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$187 DKK 1,243
$124 €111
50.32%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$1,280 DKK 8,513
$886 €788
44.50%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,141 DKK 7,590
$672 €598
69.81%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$2,560 DKK 17.0K
$1,804 €1,604
41.94%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$1,991 DKK 13.2K
$1,285 €1,143
54.94%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$6,477 DKK 43.1K
$6,364 €5,661
1.77%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$5,960 DKK 39.6K
$3,953 €3,516
50.75%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Roskilde
Lyon
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$4,095 DKK 27.2K
$3,062 €2,723
33.74%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.67
3.68
-0.27%

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

Last update for Roskilde: October 10, 2026

Last update for Lyon: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Roskilde
$1.1K
Lyon
$672 41.1% $469
Eating Out
Roskilde
$360
Lyon
$295 17.9% $65
Groceries & Markets
Roskilde
$351
Lyon
$385 9.8% $34
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Roskilde
$275
Lyon
$313 13.8% $38
Clothing & Footwear
Roskilde
$220
Lyon
$180 18.4% $41
Sport & Entertainment
Roskilde
$93
Lyon
$69 26.1% $24
Getting Around
Roskilde
$90 *
Lyon
$112 23.9% $22

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

Cost Breakdown

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

Good to know
🇩🇰 Roskilde
🇫🇷 Lyon
🕒 Local time
06:12 6:12 AM
06:12 6:12 AM
Same time as Roskilde
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
50,781
522,250
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

EUR, USD to DKK – Danish Krone Converter

Danish Krone exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 6.65 DKK (1 DKK = 0.15 USD). 1 EUR = 7.48 DKK (1 DKK = 0.134 EUR).

Euro exchange rates as of October 18, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

On the map
Between locations
  • Roskilde Lyon 1,210 km ≈ 2 h nonstop flight
From you
  • Roskilde
  • Lyon

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
Roskilde vs Lyon: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Roskilde or Lyon?
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.
How much do you need to earn to live comfortably in Roskilde and in Lyon?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,795 per month in Roskilde and $3,038 in Lyon. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
Where is rent cheaper, Roskilde or Lyon?
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.
How much does it cost to live in Roskilde compared to Lyon?
Monthly expenses with rent come to $2,530 in Roskilde and $2,025 in Lyon. That's a gap of about 25%.
How expensive is transport in Roskilde compared to Lyon?
Public transport costs about 10% less in Lyon. For daily commuters, that gap adds up to noticeable savings over a year.
Can you live on $2,000/month in Roskilde or in Lyon?
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.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Roskilde or Lyon?
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.
How safe is Roskilde compared to Lyon?
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.
Should I move to Roskilde or to Lyon?
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.

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