Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and the Maldives

Name: Maldives
Address: MV

For one person, living is cheaper in the Maldives: $1,476 a month against $2,462 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $11,800 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
71

Cost of Living Index in the Maldives
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Maldives Living Index

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🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,462

/mo nomad

🇲🇻 Maldives

$1,476

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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 the Maldives actually costs, broken down by who's living it.

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,462 in the United Kingdom versus $1,476 in the Maldives.

United Kingdom $2,462
Maldives $1,476

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,600 in the United Kingdom versus $2,376 in the Maldives.

United Kingdom $3,600
Maldives $2,376

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,738 in the United Kingdom versus $3,276 in the Maldives.

United Kingdom $4,738
Maldives $3,276

Internal cost variation is higher in the United Kingdom: monthly costs span $1,126 to $4,646, compared to $45–$1,503 in the Maldives. City choice carries more weight in the United Kingdom.

Living in the United Kingdom is roughly 67% more expensive than in the Maldives on average.

Both countries sit above the global median: the United Kingdom 81% above, the Maldives 8% above.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.48 £16.02

$6.31 MVR 97.3

240.41%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.7 £63.9

$50.4 MVR 778

69.98%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.61 £7.91

$9.74 MVR 150

8.93%

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$4.95 MVR 76.4

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$9.89 MVR 153

Cappuccino

$4.91 £3.66

$3.31 MVR 51.0

48.34%

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

$2.66 £1.98

$1.59 MVR 24.46

67.30%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 £1.39

$0.29 MVR 4.44

544.83%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 £4.94

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 £5.10

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.25

$1.85 MVR 28.58

-9.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.28

$1.56 MVR 24.10

10.26%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.62

$1.04 MVR 16.04

108.65%

Eggs

$4.00 £2.98

$1.74 MVR 26.81

129.89%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.42 £7.02

$6.33 MVR 97.6

48.82%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.19 £6.85

$6.49 MVR 100

41.60%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.77 £11.01

$10.13 MVR 156

45.80%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 £2.21

$4.00 MVR 61.6

-25.75%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.21

$3.00 MVR 46.33

-46.00%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 £2.13

$3.86 MVR 59.5

-26.17%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 £2.63

$2.58 MVR 39.79

36.43%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$1.76 MVR 27.08

3.98%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 £1.20

$1.75 MVR 27.05

-8.00%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.93

$2.11 MVR 32.53

-40.76%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.24

$0.61 MVR 9.37

172.13%

Bottle of Non-Alcoholic Wine (Mid-Range)

$11.13 MVR 172

Local Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.47 MVR 38.09

Imported Non-Alcoholic Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$4.63 MVR 71.4

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.65 £17.63

$15.03 MVR 232

57.35%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.50 £7.83

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.22

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 £2.62

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.98 £2.97

$0.62 MVR 9.54

541.94%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.1

$28.37 MVR 437

278.64%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.18 £3.86

$1.97 MVR 30.35

162.94%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.75

$1.90 MVR 29.24

23.68%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.84 £20.01

$8.30 MVR 128

223.37%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.48

$0.99 MVR 15.29

101.01%

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

$39.4K £29.4K

$31.9K MVR 492.1K

23.60%

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

$40.5K £30.2K

$30.8K MVR 474.3K

31.63%

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

$327 £244

$129 MVR 1,993

153.10%

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

$18.21 £13.58

$30.04 MVR 463

-39.38%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.60 £32.51

$68.3 MVR 1,054

-36.19%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.36 £31.58

$62.7 MVR 967

-32.47%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.22 £13.58

$20.86 MVR 322

-12.66%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 £10.32

$8.98 MVR 139

54.23%

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

$1,868 £1,393

$181 MVR 2,795

930.55%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K £16.9K

$2,834 MVR 43.7K

698.48%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.9 £69.3

$38.11 MVR 588

143.85%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.92 £34.24

$50.0 MVR 771

-8.16%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £75.8

$86.1 MVR 1,327

18.13%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.2

$52.4 MVR 808

95.00%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 £1,001

$930 MVR 14.3K

44.31%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,073 £800

$678 MVR 10.5K

58.19%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,231 £1,664

$1,939 MVR 29.9K

15.09%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,742 £1,299

$1,484 MVR 22.9K

17.36%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,601 £4,176

$2,663 MVR 41.1K

110.34%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,265 £3,180

$776 MVR 12.0K

449.72%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,349 £2,497

$781 MVR 12.0K

328.64%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

-62.00%

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 the Maldives: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 43.6%

Maldives

$678 46% 36.8% $395

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$389 15.8%

Maldives

$228 15.4% 41.5% $161

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$328 13.3%

Maldives

$127 8.6% 61.3% $201

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$307 12.5%

Maldives

$218 14.8% 29.1% $89

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$154 6.3%

Maldives

$102 6.9% 33.9% $52

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$140 5.7%

Maldives

$42 2.9% 69.8% $98

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$70 2.9%

Maldives

$81 5.5% 15.2% $11

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $1,287 in the United Kingdom, $805 in the Maldives. Capital cities: $2,811 in London vs $939 in Male.

National salary averages: $3,251 in the United Kingdom, $736 in the Maldives. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 60% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 113% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 304% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are about 4.4 times higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in the United Kingdom.

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇲🇻 Maldives

🕒 Local time

17:33 5:33 PM

22:33 10:33 PM

5 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

436,330

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Maldivian Rufiyaa MVR Rf

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 MVR = 6.49 USD

100 MVR = 5.81 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

MVR, 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).

Maldivian Rufiyaa exchange rates as of November 2, 2026: 1 USD = 15.42 MVR (100 MVR = 6.49 USD). 1 EUR = 17.21 MVR (100 MVR = 5.81 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Highest

Between locations

United Kingdom Maldives 8,520 km ≈ 11 h nonstop flight

From you

United Kingdom
Maldives

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 Maldives: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,476 per month in the Maldives and $2,462 in the United Kingdom, the Maldives comes out about 40% 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 the Maldives: 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 $805 in the Maldives. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In the Maldives, $2,000 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: the Maldives wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.