Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between St. Andrews and Hong Kong

For one person, living is cheaper in St. Andrews: $2,285 a month against $3,005 in Hong Kong, rent and utilities included – about $8,600 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

110

Cost of Living Index in St. Andrews
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St. Andrews Living Index
145

Cost of Living Index in Hong Kong
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Hong Kong Living Index

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St. Andrews

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,285

/mo nomad

Hong Kong

🇭🇰 Hong Kong (China)

$3,005

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in St. Andrews and in Hong Kong

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

A single person spends $2,285 per month in St. Andrews vs $3,005 in Hong Kong, rent included.

St. Andrews $2,285
Hong Kong $3,005

A couple spends around $3,891 per month in St. Andrews vs $4,643 in Hong Kong, rent included.

St. Andrews $3,891
Hong Kong $4,643

A family of three spends $5,496 per month in St. Andrews vs $6,281 in Hong Kong, rent included.

St. Andrews $5,496
Hong Kong $6,281

St. Andrews is about 24% cheaper than Hong Kong, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in eating out.

Both St. Andrews and Hong Kong sit above the global median – St. Andrews by 69%, Hong Kong by 122%.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.15 £15.87

$7.80 HK$61.2

171.15%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.9 £65.9

$64.7 HK$508

35.77%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.51 £7.89

$6.24 HK$48.97

68.43%

Cappuccino

$4.61 £3.46

$5.01 HK$39.34

-7.98%

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

$2.84 £2.13

$1.29 HK$10.12

120.16%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.10 £1.57

$1.11 HK$8.74

89.19%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.76 £5.07

$7.77 HK$61.0

-13.00%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.76 £5.07

$6.41 HK$50.3

5.46%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.51 £1.13

$2.90 HK$22.79

-47.93%

White Bread (500g)

$1.71 £1.28

$2.33 HK$18.29

-26.61%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.03 £1.52

$2.23 HK$17.51

-8.97%

Eggs

$4.49 £3.37

$3.45 HK$27.04

30.14%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$7.37 £5.53

$24.96 HK$196

-70.47%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.65 £7.24

$8.79 HK$69.0

9.78%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$15.41 £11.56

$17.71 HK$139

-12.99%

Apples (1kg)

$2.50 £1.88

$4.15 HK$32.59

-39.76%

Banana (1kg)

$1.33 £1.00

$2.63 HK$20.62

-49.43%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.76 £2.07

$4.54 HK$35.65

-39.21%

Tomato (1kg)

$2.86 £2.15

$4.09 HK$32.08

-30.07%

Potato (1kg)

$1.69 £1.27

$3.22 HK$25.25

-47.52%

Onion (1kg)

$1.52 £1.14

$3.26 HK$25.56

-53.37%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.20 £0.90

$1.65 HK$12.94

-27.27%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$2.46 £1.85

$1.74 HK$13.62

41.38%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$22.57 £16.93

$13.45 HK$106

67.81%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.86 £8.15

$15.16 HK$119

-28.36%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.70 £2.03

$1.97 HK$15.44

37.06%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.24

$2.22 HK$17.42

34.23%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$4.79 £3.59

$1.28 HK$10.04

274.22%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$90.1 HK$707

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$4.05 £3.04

$3.67 HK$28.84

10.35%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.44 £1.83

$1.35 HK$10.60

80.74%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$23.73 £17.80

$16.21 HK$127

46.39%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$2.10 £1.58

$4.20 HK$32.94

-50.00%

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

$38.3K £28.7K

$44.9K HK$352.2K

-14.63%

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

$41.2K £30.9K

$36.8K HK$288.9K

11.86%

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

$243 £182

$238 HK$1,865

2.13%

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

$13.40 £10.06

$15.70 HK$123

-14.65%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$41.64 £31.24

$21.91 HK$172

90.05%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$91.6 £68.7

$91.1 HK$715

0.45%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$9.14 HK$71.8

Cinema Ticket

$13.06 £9.80

$12.96 HK$102

0.77%

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

$1,806 £1,355

$1,172 HK$9,201

54.07%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.8K £17.1K

$22.2K HK$174.2K

2.67%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$95.6 £71.7

$67.9 HK$533

40.78%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$48.97 £36.74

$43.57 HK$342

12.39%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$104 £77.8

$83.1 HK$652

24.75%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$88.5 £66.4

$123 HK$963

-27.86%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,366 £1,025

$2,255 HK$17.7K

-39.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,055 £792

$1,752 HK$13.7K

-39.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$3,104 £2,329

$5,173 HK$40.6K

-40.00%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$2,743 £2,058

$3,543 HK$27.8K

-22.58%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$6,137 £4,604

$29.3K HK$229.7K

-79.03%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$2,718 £2,039

$17.5K HK$137.1K

-84.45%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,397 £2,548

$3,285 HK$25.8K

3.40%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.41

3.79

42.74%

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

Last update for St. Andrews: October 18, 2026

Last update for Hong Kong: October 17, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

St. Andrews

$1.1K 46.2%

Hong Kong

$1.8K 58.3% 66% $697

Eating Out

St. Andrews

$323 14.1%

Hong Kong

$203 6.7% 37.3% $121

Groceries & Markets

St. Andrews

$304 13.3%

Hong Kong

$410 13.7% 34.8% $106

Monthly Utilities & Internet

St. Andrews

$298 13%

Hong Kong

$275 9.2% 7.6% $23

Clothing & Footwear

St. Andrews

$152 6.6%

Hong Kong

$143 4.8% 5.8% $8.8

Sport & Entertainment

St. Andrews

$118 5.2%

Hong Kong

$117 3.9% 0.5% $0.6

Getting Around

St. Andrews

$35 * 1.6%

Hong Kong

$106 3.5% 198% $70

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

Cost Breakdown

A central one-bedroom costs $1,366 in St. Andrews versus $2,255 in Hong Kong. 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 3% higher in St. Andrews, which reinforces the cost advantage – you earn more and spend less. Purchasing power leans clearly in its favor.

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88.0 in St. Andrews versus $65.0 in Hong Kong. Groceries tell a different story – $304 in St. Andrews vs $410 in Hong Kong – so St. Andrews wins on supermarket bills even if dining out costs more.

Good to know

🇬🇧 St. Andrews

🇭🇰 Hong Kong

🕒 Local time

22:44 10:44 PM

05:44 5:44 AM

7 h ahead of St. Andrews

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

16,460

1,367,900 Capital

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Hong Kong Dollar HKD $

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 HKD = 0.127 USD

1 HKD = 0.113 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

HKD, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Hong Kong Dollar exchange rates as of October 21, 2026: 1 USD = 7.85 HKD (1 HKD = 0.127 USD). 1 EUR = 8.82 HKD (1 HKD = 0.113 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

St. Andrews Hong Kong 9,480 km ≈ 12 h nonstop flight

From you

St. Andrews
Hong Kong

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

St. Andrews vs Hong Kong: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

Monthly costs with rent: $2,285 in St. Andrews, $3,005 in Hong Kong – roughly 32% apart. Outside of rent, the biggest gap is in eating out.

For a comfortable life, plan on about $3,428 per month in St. Andrews and $4,508 in Hong Kong. That covers rent, food, utilities, transport, and enough left over to feel settled – not just surviving.

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

A mid-range dinner for two costs $88.0 in St. Andrews and $65.0 in Hong Kong. That's a good indicator of the overall restaurant and café pricing gap between the two cities.

Groceries cost about 35% more in Hong Kong, though it depends on what you buy. Local produce may be comparable; imported and premium items show the biggest price gap.

A $3,000 monthly budget goes further in St. Andrews, where all-in costs run around $2,285, than in Hong Kong at $3,005. In St. Andrews it covers expenses comfortably, while in Hong Kong it requires careful planning or may not stretch far enough.

It depends on your priorities. Hong Kong has an edge in some lifestyle areas, with costs from $2,285 in St. Andrews to $3,005 in Hong Kong. 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 St. Andrews. If higher salaries, better infrastructure, or specific career opportunities are the priority, Hong Kong makes more sense. Both are solid long-term options with distinct trade-offs.