Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Skien and London

For one person, living is cheaper in Skien: $2,336 a month against $3,986 in London, rent and utilities included – about $19,800 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

113

Cost of Living Index in Skien
Learn more

Skien Living Index
194

Cost of Living Index in London
Learn more

London Living Index

Jump to prices

Skien

🇳🇴 Norway

$2,336

/mo nomad

London

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$3,986

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Skien 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 Skien and in London actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

A single person spends $2,336 per month in Skien vs $3,986 in London, rent included.

Skien $2,336
London $3,986

A couple spends around $3,267 per month in Skien vs $5,791 in London, rent included.

Skien $3,267
London $5,791

A family of three spends $4,197 per month in Skien vs $7,595 in London, rent included.

Skien $4,197
London $7,595

Skien is about 41% cheaper than London, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both Skien and London sit above the global median – Skien by 73%, London by 195%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.21 NOK 200

$25.93 £19.45

-18.20%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$103 NOK 971

$107 £79.9

-3.18%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$15.47 NOK 146

$10.71 £8.03

44.44%

Cappuccino

$5.11 NOK 48.11

$5.47 £4.11

-6.58%

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

$4.36 NOK 41.01

$2.97 £2.23

46.80%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.97 NOK 27.96

$2.20 £1.65

35.00%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$11.89 NOK 112

$9.13 £6.85

30.23%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$12.33 NOK 116

$7.94 £5.96

55.29%

Milk (1 liter)

$2.11 NOK 19.84

$1.86 £1.40

13.44%

White Bread (500g)

$3.92 NOK 36.90

$2.07 £1.55

89.37%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$4.57 NOK 42.98

$2.42 £1.81

88.84%

Eggs

$5.66 NOK 53.3

$5.09 £3.82

11.20%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$13.16 NOK 124

$12.87 £9.66

2.25%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$15.17 NOK 143

$10.43 £7.82

45.45%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$21.79 NOK 205

$16.87 £12.66

29.16%

Apples (1kg)

$3.35 NOK 31.49

$3.11 £2.33

7.72%

Banana (1kg)

$2.70 NOK 25.42

$1.40 £1.05

92.86%

Oranges (1kg)

$3.49 NOK 32.86

$3.08 £2.31

13.31%

Tomato (1kg)

$5.95 NOK 56.0

$3.27 £2.45

81.96%

Potato (1kg)

$2.24 NOK 21.04

$1.58 £1.19

41.77%

Onion (1kg)

$2.78 NOK 26.12

$1.74 £1.31

59.77%

Lettuce (1 head)

$3.04 NOK 28.63

$1.40 £1.05

117.14%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.48 NOK 23.33

$1.80 £1.35

37.78%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$19.02 NOK 179

$23.28 £17.46

-18.30%

Wine (Bottle)

$15.76 NOK 148

$13.03 £9.77

20.95%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.35 NOK 31.58

$3.17 £2.38

5.68%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.33 NOK 40.76

$4.42 £3.32

-2.04%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.26 NOK 30.64

$4.07 £3.05

-19.90%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$47.91 NOK 451

$247 £185

-80.58%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$11.13 NOK 105

$5.58 £4.18

99.46%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.81 NOK 17.02

$3.36 £2.52

-46.13%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$70.8 NOK 667

$56.8 £42.57

24.76%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.27 NOK 21.39

$2.13 £1.60

6.57%

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

$47.5K NOK 447.3K

$38.2K £28.6K

24.42%

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

$43.4K NOK 408.1K

$40.9K £30.7K

6.01%

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

$93.9 NOK 884

$372 £279

-74.78%

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

$33.89 NOK 319

$17.82 £13.37

90.18%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$53.6 NOK 504

$40.37 £30.29

32.70%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$43.10 NOK 406

$60.0 £44.99

-28.13%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$21.29 £15.97

Cinema Ticket

$15.29 NOK 144

$17.74 £13.31

-13.81%

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

$239 NOK 2,247

$2,864 £2,149

-91.67%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$15.7K NOK 148.1K

$35.3K £26.5K

-55.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$63.7 NOK 600

$114 £85.5

-44.12%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$60.4 NOK 568

$54.3 £40.71

11.20%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$87.9 NOK 827

$124 £93.2

-29.26%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$153 NOK 1,442

$163 £122

-6.08%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,042 NOK 9,811

$2,869 £2,152

-63.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$975 NOK 9,183

$2,233 £1,675

-56.32%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,035 NOK 9,746

$5,266 £3,950

-80.34%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$939 NOK 8,841

$3,778 £2,834

-75.14%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$3,395 NOK 32.0K

$18.3K £13.8K

-81.48%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$3,149 NOK 29.6K

$8,024 £6,019

-60.76%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$4,236 NOK 39.9K

$5,037 £3,778

-15.89%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

4.37

4.74

-7.81%

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

Last update for Skien: October 12, 2026

Last update for London: October 10, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

Skien

$975 41.8%

London

$2.2K 56% 129% $1.3K

Groceries & Markets

Skien

$470 20.1%

London

$349 8.8% 25.6% $120

Eating Out

Skien

$391 16.7%

London

$388 9.7% 0.8% $3.3

Monthly Utilities & Internet

Skien

$181 7.8%

London

$430 10.8% 137% $249

Clothing & Footwear

Skien

$164 7%

London

$205 5.1% 24.8% $41

Getting Around

Skien

$81 3.5%

London

$285 7.2% 252% $204

Sport & Entertainment

Skien

$74 3.2%

London

$95 2.4% 29.5% $22

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,042 in Skien versus $2,869 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 19% 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 $103 in Skien versus $107 in London. Groceries tell a different story – $470 in Skien vs $349 in London – so London wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇳🇴 Skien

🇬🇧 London

🕒 Local time

18:37 6:37 PM

17:37 5:37 PM

1 h behind Skien

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

56,769

8,908,083 Capital

💱 Currency

Norwegian Krone NOK kr

British Pound GBP £

📈 Exchange rate

100 NOK = 10.62 USD

100 NOK = 9.45 EUR

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

GBP, USD, EUR to NOK – Norwegian Krone Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇳🇴 Norwegian Krone (kr)

Norwegian Krone exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 9.41 NOK (1 NOK = 0.106 USD). 1 EUR = 10.58 NOK (100 NOK = 9.45 EUR).

British Pound exchange rates as of October 17, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

USD to NOK in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

Skien London 1,050 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

Skien
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

Skien vs London: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,336 in Skien, $3,986 in London – roughly 71% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in transport.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,504 per month in Skien and $5,979 in London. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

Rent is clearly cheaper in Skien, especially for central apartments. Housing is actually the single biggest factor behind the overall cost gap between these two cities.

Interestingly, groceries are about 34% cheaper in London – one category where the pricier city actually offers better value, probably thanks to stronger retail competition or local farming.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $103 in Skien and $107 in London. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

A $2,500 monthly budget goes further in Skien, where all-in costs run around $2,336, than in London at $3,986. In Skien it covers expenses comfortably, while in London it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. London has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $2,336 in Skien to $3,986 in London. Climate, culture, job market, and personal taste all factor in.

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.

If budget matters most, go with Skien. 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.