Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Russia

Name: Russia
Address: RU

For one person, living is cheaper in Russia: $1,267 a month against $2,462 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $14,300 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

119

Cost of Living Index in the United Kingdom
Learn more

United Kingdom Living Index
61

Cost of Living Index in Russia
Learn more

Russia Living Index

Jump to prices

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,462

/mo nomad

🇷🇺 Russia

$1,267

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,462 in the United Kingdom versus $1,267 in Russia.

United Kingdom $2,462
Russia $1,267

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,600 in the United Kingdom versus $1,985 in Russia.

United Kingdom $3,600
Russia $1,985

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,738 in the United Kingdom versus $2,703 in Russia.

United Kingdom $4,738
Russia $2,703

Internal cost variation is higher in the United Kingdom: monthly costs span $1,126 to $4,646, compared to $82–$1,922 in Russia. City choice carries more weight in the United Kingdom.

Living in the United Kingdom is roughly 94% more expensive than in Russia on average.

The United Kingdom (81% above) and Russia (7% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$21.48 £16.05

$11.95 ₽962

79.75%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$85.7 £64.0

$42.75 ₽3,443

100.56%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.61 £7.93

$6.65 ₽536

59.55%

Cappuccino

$4.91 £3.67

$3.18 ₽256

54.40%

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

$2.66 £1.99

$1.31 ₽106

103.05%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.87 £1.39

$0.62 ₽49.95

201.61%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.63 £4.95

$2.40 ₽193

176.25%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.84 £5.11

$3.04 ₽245

125.00%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.68 £1.26

$1.25 ₽101

34.40%

White Bread (500g)

$1.72 £1.28

$0.85 ₽68.7

102.35%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.62

$1.49 ₽120

45.64%

Eggs

$4.00 £2.99

$1.68 ₽135

138.10%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.42 £7.04

$12.17 ₽980

-22.60%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$9.19 £6.86

$6.03 ₽485

52.40%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.77 £11.03

$12.18 ₽981

21.26%

Apples (1kg)

$2.97 £2.21

$1.94 ₽157

53.09%

Banana (1kg)

$1.62 £1.21

$1.89 ₽152

-14.29%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.85 £2.13

$1.84 ₽148

54.89%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.52 £2.63

$3.30 ₽265

6.67%

Potato (1kg)

$1.83 £1.37

$0.79 ₽63.3

131.65%

Onion (1kg)

$1.61 £1.20

$0.65 ₽52.0

147.69%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.25 £0.93

$1.49 ₽120

-16.11%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.24

$0.77 ₽61.8

115.58%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.65 £17.66

$3.14 ₽253

653.18%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.50 £7.84

$8.68 ₽699

20.97%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.98 £2.23

$1.11 ₽89.2

168.47%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.51 £2.62

$2.20 ₽177

59.55%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.98 £2.97

$0.55 ₽44.11

623.64%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$107 £80.2

$36.54 ₽2,943

193.98%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.18 £3.87

$2.53 ₽204

104.74%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.35 £1.75

$0.48 ₽38.27

389.58%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.84 £20.04

$6.79 ₽547

295.29%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.99 £1.48

$0.85 ₽68.1

134.12%

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

$39.4K £29.5K

$54.1K ₽4.4M

-27.05%

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

$40.5K £30.2K

$40.9K ₽3.3M

-0.98%

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

$327 £244

$144 ₽11.6K

127.51%

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

$18.21 £13.60

$7.28 ₽586

150.14%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$43.60 £32.56

$8.96 ₽722

386.61%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$42.36 £31.63

$38.71 ₽3,117

9.43%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$18.22 £13.61

$32.62 ₽2,627

-44.14%

Cinema Ticket

$13.85 £10.34

$7.53 ₽606

83.93%

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

$1,868 £1,395

$489 ₽39.4K

281.69%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.6K £16.9K

$16.5K ₽1.3M

37.21%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$92.9 £69.4

$91.7 ₽7,384

1.35%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.92 £34.30

$55.2 ₽4,445

-16.80%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £75.9

$136 ₽10.9K

-25.11%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.4

$127 ₽10.2K

-19.39%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,342 £1,003

$618 ₽49.8K

117.30%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,073 £802

$418 ₽33.6K

157.06%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,231 £1,667

$1,186 ₽95.5K

88.17%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,742 £1,301

$788 ₽63.5K

120.99%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,601 £4,183

$3,068 ₽247.1K

82.58%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,265 £3,185

$2,132 ₽171.7K

100.03%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,349 £2,502

$977 ₽78.7K

242.72%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

21.25

-74.96%

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 Russia: October 25, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 43.6%

Russia

$418 33% 61.1% $656

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$389 15.8%

Russia

$160 12.6% 58.9% $229

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$328 13.3%

Russia

$180 14.2% 45.2% $148

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$307 12.5%

Russia

$228 18% 25.8% $79

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$154 6.3%

Russia

$184 14.6% 19.5% $30

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$140 5.7%

Russia

$44 3.5% 68.9% $97

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$70 2.9%

Russia

$54 4.2% 23.2% $16

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $1,287 in the United Kingdom, $490 in Russia. Capital cities: $2,811 in London vs $1,533 in Moscow.

National salary averages: $3,251 in the United Kingdom, $817 in Russia. Higher pay doesn’t always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 163% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 102% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 261% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are about 4 times higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in the United Kingdom.

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇷🇺 Russia

🕒 Local time

13:02 1:02 PM

16:02 4:02 PM

3 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

145,975,300

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Russian Ruble RUB ₽

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.34 USD

1 GBP = 1.2 EUR

100 RUB = 1.24 USD

100 RUB = 1.11 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

RUB, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 0.747 GBP (1 GBP = 1.34 USD). 1 EUR = 0.834 GBP (1 GBP = 1.2 EUR).

Russian Ruble exchange rates as of October 31, 2026: 1 USD = 80.53 RUB (100 RUB = 1.24 USD). 1 EUR = 89.92 RUB (100 RUB = 1.11 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

Lowest

Highest

Between locations

United Kingdom Russia 2,500 km ≈ 3 h 45 min nonstop flight

From you

United Kingdom
Russia

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 Russia: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,267 per month in Russia and $2,462 in the United Kingdom, Russia comes out about 49% 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 Russia: 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 $490 in Russia. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Russia, $2,500 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: Russia wins on affordability, while salaries, visas, language, and lifestyle can tip the balance either way.