Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Ethiopia

Name: Ethiopia
Address: ET

For one person, living is cheaper in Ethiopia: $1,213 a month against $2,462 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $15,000 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in the United Kingdom
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United Kingdom Living Index
58

Cost of Living Index in Ethiopia
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Ethiopia Living Index

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🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,462

/mo nomad

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

$1,213

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in the United Kingdom and in Ethiopia

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,462 in the United Kingdom versus $1,213 in Ethiopia.

United Kingdom $2,462
Ethiopia $1,213

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,600 in the United Kingdom versus $1,821 in Ethiopia.

United Kingdom $3,600
Ethiopia $1,821

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,738 in the United Kingdom versus $2,429 in Ethiopia.

United Kingdom $4,738
Ethiopia $2,429

Internal cost variation is higher in the United Kingdom: monthly costs span $1,126 to $4,646, compared to $374–$1,300 in Ethiopia. City choice carries more weight in the United Kingdom.

Living in the United Kingdom is roughly 103% more expensive than in Ethiopia on average.

The United Kingdom (81% above) and Ethiopia (11% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.48 £16.02

$4.11 ETB 662

422.63%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.7 £63.9

$42.65 ETB 6,862

101.03%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.61 £7.91

$6.45 ETB 1,038

64.50%

Cappuccino

$4.91 £3.66

$0.86 ETB 138

470.93%

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

$2.66 £1.98

$0.57 ETB 92.5

366.67%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 £1.39

$0.56 ETB 90.6

233.93%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 £4.94

$0.89 ETB 143

644.94%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 £5.10

$1.94 ETB 313

252.58%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.25

$1.03 ETB 166

63.11%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.28

$0.90 ETB 145

91.11%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.62

$1.74 ETB 280

24.71%

Eggs

$4.00 £2.98

$1.79 ETB 288

123.46%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.42 £7.02

$7.49 ETB 1,205

25.77%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.19 £6.85

$10.49 ETB 1,687

-12.39%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.77 £11.01

$9.97 ETB 1,605

48.14%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 £2.21

$4.43 ETB 713

-32.96%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.21

$0.78 ETB 125

107.69%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 £2.13

$2.45 ETB 394

16.33%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 £2.63

$0.67 ETB 108

425.37%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$0.55 ETB 88.3

232.73%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 £1.20

$1.34 ETB 216

20.15%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.93

$0.77 ETB 124

62.34%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.24

$0.57 ETB 91.3

191.23%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.65 £17.63

$7.86 ETB 1,264

200.89%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.50 £7.83

$5.38 ETB 865

95.17%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.22

$0.76 ETB 122

292.11%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 £2.62

$1.49 ETB 240

135.57%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.98 £2.97

$0.35 ETB 55.7

1037.14%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.1

$16.78 ETB 2,699

540.17%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.18 £3.86

$1.36 ETB 218

280.88%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.75

$0.27 ETB 43.19

770.37%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.84 £20.01

$1.97 ETB 316

1262.44%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.48

$1.00 ETB 161

99.00%

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

$39.4K £29.4K

$53.5K ETB 8.6M

-26.26%

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

$40.5K £30.2K

$55.1K ETB 8.9M

-26.46%

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

$327 £244

$142 ETB 22.9K

130.12%

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

$18.21 £13.58

$9.63 ETB 1,550

89.10%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.60 £32.51

$236 ETB 38.0K

-81.52%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.36 £31.58

$42.81 ETB 6,889

-1.05%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.22 £13.58

$35.60 ETB 5,728

-48.82%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 £10.32

$4.96 ETB 799

179.23%

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

$1,868 £1,393

$628 ETB 101.0K

197.60%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K £16.9K

$30.1K ETB 4.9M

-24.93%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.9 £69.3

$36.35 ETB 5,849

155.65%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.92 £34.24

$62.8 ETB 10.1K

-26.84%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £75.8

$78.3 ETB 12.6K

29.79%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.2

$88.6 ETB 14.3K

15.36%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 £1,001

$654 ETB 105.2K

105.25%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,073 £800

$346 ETB 55.7K

210.20%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,231 £1,664

$1,818 ETB 292.5K

22.76%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,742 £1,299

$723 ETB 116.3K

141.05%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,601 £4,176

$1,825 ETB 293.6K

206.95%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,265 £3,180

$1,031 ETB 165.8K

313.80%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,349 £2,497

$203 ETB 32.7K

1546.57%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

-68.71%

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

Last update for the United Kingdom: October 26, 2026

Last update for Ethiopia: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 43.6%

Ethiopia

$346 28.5% 67.8% $727

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$389 15.8%

Ethiopia

$388 32% 0.3% $1.3

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$328 13.3%

Ethiopia

$75 6.2% 77% $252

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$307 12.5%

Ethiopia

$210 17.3% 31.7% $97

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$154 6.3%

Ethiopia

$120 9.9% 22.4% $34

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$140 5.7%

Ethiopia

$21 1.7% 85.1% $119

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$70 2.9%

Ethiopia

$53 4.4% 24.7% $17

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $1,287 in the United Kingdom, $421 in Ethiopia. Capital cities: $2,811 in London vs $707 in Addis Ababa.

National salary averages: $3,251 in the United Kingdom, $180 in Ethiopia. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 206% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 93% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 494% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are about 18 times higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in the United Kingdom.

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇪🇹 Ethiopia

🕒 Local time

14:35 2:35 PM

17:35 5:35 PM

3 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

128,691,692

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Ethiopian Birr ETB Br

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD

1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

ETB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 0.746 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.832 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Ethiopian Birr exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 161 ETB (1,000 ETB = 6.22 USD). 1 EUR = 180 ETB (1,000 ETB = 5.57 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

United Kingdom Ethiopia 5,900 km ≈ 8 h nonstop flight

From you

United Kingdom
Ethiopia

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

United Kingdom vs Ethiopia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,213 per month in Ethiopia and $2,462 in the United Kingdom, Ethiopia comes out about 51% cheaper. Keep in mind it varies by city – the difference can be bigger or smaller depending on where you settle within each country.

Day-to-day life is cheaper in Ethiopia: lower grocery prices, cheaper commutes, and more affordable meals out. Over time, those daily savings make a real difference to your monthly budget and ability to put money away.

Rent for a central one-bedroom averages $1,287 in the United Kingdom and $421 in Ethiopia. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Ethiopia, $1,500 covers most cities easily; in the United Kingdom it stretches only to regional areas and falls short in the capital – you’ll need to make trade-offs on housing or lifestyle.

It depends on what you’re after: Ethiopia wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.