Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Sarajevo and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Sarajevo: $1,204 a month against $4,086 in London, rent and utilities included – about $34,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Sarajevo
🇧🇦 Bosnia and Herzegovina
$1,204
/mo nomad
London
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
$4,086
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Sarajevo and in London

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

A single person spends $1,204 per month in Sarajevo vs $4,086 in London, rent included.

  • Sarajevo $1,204
  • London $4,086

A couple spends around $1,807 per month in Sarajevo vs $5,816 in London, rent included.

  • Sarajevo $1,807
  • London $5,816

A family of three spends $2,410 per month in Sarajevo vs $7,546 in London, rent included.

  • Sarajevo $2,410
  • London $7,546

Sarajevo is about 71% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Sarajevo sits 10% below the global median, while London is 205% above – they fall on opposite sides of the world average.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$8.60 BAM 15.01
$26.62 £20.11
-67.69%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$39.59 BAM 69.1
$108 £81.3
-63.20%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$8.48 BAM 14.79
$10.39 £7.85
-18.38%
Cappuccino
$2.33 BAM 4.06
$5.79 £4.38
-59.76%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.23 BAM 3.88
$3.01 £2.27
-25.91%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.41 BAM 2.47
$2.15 £1.63
-34.42%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$2.94 BAM 5.12
$9.35 £7.06
-68.56%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.91 BAM 5.08
$7.84 £5.93
-62.88%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.16 BAM 2.02
$1.79 £1.35
-35.20%
White Bread (500g)
$1.17 BAM 2.05
$2.06 £1.56
-43.20%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$2.22 BAM 3.87
$2.31 £1.74
-3.90%
Eggs
$3.08 BAM 5.37
$5.05 £3.82
-39.01%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$10.33 BAM 18.02
$12.57 £9.50
-17.82%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$7.73 BAM 13.49
$10.66 £8.05
-27.49%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$14.14 BAM 24.67
$17.13 £12.94
-17.45%
Apples (1kg)
$1.42 BAM 2.48
$3.03 £2.29
-53.14%
Banana (1kg)
$1.70 BAM 2.96
$1.41 £1.07
20.57%
Oranges (1kg)
$1.57 BAM 2.74
$3.05 £2.31
-48.52%
Tomato (1kg)
$1.98 BAM 3.46
$3.38 £2.56
-41.42%
Potato (1kg)
$0.98 BAM 1.71
$1.67 £1.26
-41.32%
Onion (1kg)
$1.14 BAM 1.99
$1.73 £1.31
-34.10%
Lettuce (1 head)
$1.07 BAM 1.86
$1.41 £1.07
-24.11%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.71 BAM 1.24
$1.79 £1.35
-60.34%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$4.02 BAM 7.01
$23.22 £17.55
-82.69%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.02 BAM 13.98
$12.99 £9.82
-38.26%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.89 BAM 1.56
$3.18 £2.40
-72.01%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$1.42 BAM 2.47
$4.41 £3.33
-67.80%
🚌 Getting Around
Sarajevo
London
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$1.24 BAM 2.17
$3.87 £2.93
-67.96%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$35.01 BAM 61.1
$250 £189
-86.00%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$1.47 BAM 2.56
$5.71 £4.31
-74.26%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$1.12 BAM 1.96
$3.33 £2.51
-66.37%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$8.61 BAM 15.02
$57.9 £43.76
-85.13%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.74 BAM 3.03
$2.04 £1.54
-14.71%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$29.9K BAM 52.2K
$37.5K £28.4K
-20.28%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$23.2K BAM 40.5K
$40.9K £30.9K
-43.27%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$220 BAM 384
$376 £284
-41.42%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$14.25 BAM 24.86
$17.88 £13.51
-20.30%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$28.24 BAM 49.28
$40.01 £30.24
-29.42%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$40.15 BAM 70.1
$61.2 £46.22
-34.35%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$19.66 BAM 34.30
$21.07 £15.93
-6.69%
Cinema Ticket
$6.68 BAM 11.66
$17.95 £13.57
-62.79%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$206 BAM 359
$2,865 £2,165
-92.82%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$3,856 BAM 6,727
$35.3K £26.7K
-89.09%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$88.6 BAM 155
$116 £87.7
-23.62%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$37.30 BAM 65.1
$54.1 £40.87
-31.03%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$89.4 BAM 156
$127 £95.7
-29.43%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$99.4 BAM 173
$159 £120
-37.63%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Sarajevo
London
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$449 BAM 783
$2,853 £2,156
-84.27%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$305 BAM 533
$2,301 £1,739
-86.73%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$997 BAM 1,740
$5,201 £3,931
-80.83%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$587 BAM 1,024
$3,723 £2,813
-84.23%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$3,243 BAM 5,658
$19.0K £14.4K
-82.94%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$2,384 BAM 4,159
$7,881 £5,955
-69.75%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Sarajevo
London
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$1,023 BAM 1,785
$4,818 £3,641
-78.76%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
4.08
4.65
-12.26%

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

Last update for Sarajevo: October 4, 2026

Last update for London: October 4, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Sarajevo
$305
London
$2.3K 654% $2K
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Sarajevo
$263
London
$434 65.1% $171
Groceries & Markets
Sarajevo
$231
London
$349 51% $118
Eating Out
Sarajevo
$157
London
$397 152% $239
Clothing & Footwear
Sarajevo
$142
London
$205 44.9% $64
Sport & Entertainment
Sarajevo
$54
London
$97 81.4% $44
Getting Around
Sarajevo
$47
London
$288 512% $241

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $449 in Sarajevo versus $2,853 in London. 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 371% higher in London, 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 $40.00 in Sarajevo versus $108 in London. Monthly groceries follow the same trend: $231 vs $349 – making Sarajevo the more affordable choice for daily food spending.

Good to know
🇧🇦 Sarajevo
🇬🇧 London
🕒 Local time
13:21 1:21 PM
12:21 12:21 PM
1 h behind Sarajevo
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
271,194 Capital
8,908,083 Capital
Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to BAM – Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark Converter

Bosnia and Herzegovina Convertible Mark exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 1.74 BAM (1 BAM = 0.573 USD). 1 EUR = 1.96 BAM (1 BAM = 0.511 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 10, 2026: 1 USD = 0.756 GBP (1 GBP = 1.32 USD). 1 EUR = 0.847 GBP (1 GBP = 1.18 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Sarajevo London 1,620 km ≈ 2 h 30 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Sarajevo
  • London

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
Sarajevo vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
How do living costs in Sarajevo and in London compare overall?
Monthly costs with rent: $1,204 in Sarajevo, $4,086 in London – roughly 239% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.
What salary covers living expenses in Sarajevo compared to London?
For a comfortable life, plan on about $1,806 per month in Sarajevo and $6,129 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.
How do rents compare between Sarajevo and London?
Rent is clearly cheaper in Sarajevo, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.
Which city has cheaper grocery shopping?
Groceries cost about 51% more in London, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.
Which city has cheaper restaurants?
A mid-range dinner for two costs $40.00 in Sarajevo and $108 in London. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.
Which city is more doable on $1,000 per month?
A $1,000 monthly budget goes further in Sarajevo, where all-in costs run around $1,204, than in London at $4,086. In Sarajevo it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.
How does quality of life compare between Sarajevo and London?
It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $1,204 in Sarajevo to $4,086 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.
Is Sarajevo or London safer for residents?
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.
How do I decide between Sarajevo and London?
If budget matters most, go with Sarajevo. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, London makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.

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