Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between the United Kingdom and Tonga

Name: Tonga
Address: TO

For one person, living is cheaper in Tonga: $1,067 a month against $2,453 in the United Kingdom, rent and utilities included – about $16,600 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
52

Cost of Living Index in Tonga
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Tonga Living Index

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🇬🇧 United Kingdom

$2,453

/mo nomad

🇹🇴 Tonga

$1,067

/mo nomad

Monthly Cost of Living

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

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $2,453 in the United Kingdom versus $1,067 in Tonga.

United Kingdom $2,453
Tonga $1,067

Estimated couple costs with rent: $3,548 in the United Kingdom versus $1,901 in Tonga.

United Kingdom $3,548
Tonga $1,901

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $4,643 in the United Kingdom versus $2,735 in Tonga.

United Kingdom $4,643
Tonga $2,735

Living in the United Kingdom is roughly 130% more expensive than in Tonga on average.

The United Kingdom (82% above) and Tonga (21% below) straddle the global median.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.82 £15.62

$8.43 TOP 20.30

146.98%

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$86.3 £64.7

$62.2 TOP 150

38.69%

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.76 £8.07

$10.24 TOP 24.66

5.08%

Cappuccino

$4.87 £3.65

$2.93 TOP 7.05

66.21%

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

$2.55 £1.91

$2.79 TOP 6.72

-8.60%

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.85 £1.39

$2.52 TOP 6.07

-26.59%

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.75 £5.06

$3.22 TOP 7.76

109.63%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.49 £4.87

$5.09 TOP 12.26

27.50%

Milk (1 liter)

$1.64 £1.23

$1.53 TOP 3.67

7.19%

White Bread (500g)

$1.66 £1.24

$1.01 TOP 2.44

64.36%

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.17 £1.63

$2.04 TOP 4.90

6.37%

Eggs

$4.02 £3.01

$5.16 TOP 12.44

-22.09%

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.40 £7.05

$8.91 TOP 21.45

5.50%

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.99 £6.74

$5.85 TOP 14.10

53.68%

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.55 £10.92

$7.56 TOP 18.21

92.46%

Apples (1kg)

$2.90 £2.17

$2.73 TOP 6.58

6.23%

Banana (1kg)

$1.60 £1.20

$2.71 TOP 6.52

-40.96%

Oranges (1kg)

$2.78 £2.08

$2.83 TOP 6.81

-1.77%

Tomato (1kg)

$3.39 £2.54

$3.83 TOP 9.22

-11.49%

Potato (1kg)

$1.78 £1.34

$3.10 TOP 7.48

-42.58%

Onion (1kg)

$1.62 £1.21

$2.66 TOP 6.40

-39.10%

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.23 £0.92

$2.26 TOP 5.45

-45.58%

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.66 £1.24

$1.34 TOP 3.24

23.88%

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$23.67 £17.76

$10.31 TOP 24.84

129.58%

Wine (Bottle)

$10.67 £8.00

$16.99 TOP 40.94

-37.20%

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$3.06 £2.30

$3.15 TOP 7.60

-2.86%

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.33 £2.50

$3.37 TOP 8.12

-1.19%

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.34 £2.51

$2.04 TOP 4.91

63.73%

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$103 £77.1

$41.75 TOP 101

146.01%

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.44 £4.08

$2.05 TOP 4.94

165.37%

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$2.36 £1.77

$2.11 TOP 5.09

11.85%

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$26.17 £19.63

$41.87 TOP 101

-37.50%

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.95 £1.46

$1.48 TOP 3.57

31.76%

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

$38.0K £28.5K

$5,815 TOP 14.0K

552.84%

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

$40.6K £30.5K

$8,165 TOP 19.7K

397.61%

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

$315 £236

$186 TOP 448

69.14%

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

$17.88 £13.41

$21.76 TOP 52.4

-17.83%

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.77 £32.09

$124 TOP 299

-65.50%

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$44.93 £33.71

$30.75 TOP 74.1

46.11%

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$17.98 £13.49

$41.12 TOP 99.1

-56.27%

Cinema Ticket

$13.06 £9.80

$42.25 TOP 102

-69.09%

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

$1,753 £1,315

$156 TOP 377

1020.81%

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$22.5K £16.9K

$248 TOP 596

8993.63%

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$90.4 £67.8

$14.49 TOP 34.92

523.95%

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$45.49 £34.13

$17.69 TOP 42.60

157.15%

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$101 £75.9

$21.07 TOP 50.8

380.45%

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$102 £76.4

$29.61 TOP 71.3

243.70%

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,339 £1,005

$627 TOP 1,510

113.67%

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,096 £822

$50.1 TOP 121

2086.89%

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,152 £1,615

$846 TOP 2,038

154.40%

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,699 £1,275

$584 TOP 1,406

191.08%

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,551 £4,165

$415 TOP 1,000

1237.45%

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,374 £3,282

$244 TOP 589

1689.30%

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,324 £2,494

$672 TOP 1,619

394.61%

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.32

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

Last update for the United Kingdom: October 13, 2026

Last update for Tonga: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure

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

Accommodation & Living

United Kingdom

$1.1K 44.7%

Tonga

$50 4.7% 95.4% $1K

Monthly Utilities & Internet

United Kingdom

$375 15.3%

Tonga

$332 31.1% 11.6% $44

Eating Out

United Kingdom

$322 13.1%

Tonga

$181 16.9% 43.8% $141

Groceries & Markets

United Kingdom

$303 12.4%

Tonga

$290 27.1% 4.6% $14

Clothing & Footwear

United Kingdom

$153 6.2%

Tonga

$37 3.5% 75.5% $115

Getting Around

United Kingdom

$133 5.4%

Tonga

$63 5.9% 53.1% $71

Sport & Entertainment

United Kingdom

$71 2.9%

Tonga

$115 10.8% 62.2% $44

Cost Breakdown

National rent averages: $1,252 in the United Kingdom, $207 in Tonga. Capital cities: $2,869 in London vs $622 in Nuku'alofa.

National salary averages: $3,228 in the United Kingdom, $680 in Tonga. Higher pay doesn't always mean more spending money – weigh income against local costs.

Cost Highlights

Rent is 505% higher in the United Kingdom.

Dining out costs 295% more in the United Kingdom.

Public transport is 521% more expensive in the United Kingdom.

Salaries are 375% higher in the United Kingdom, and purchasing power comes out stronger in the United Kingdom.

Good to know

🇬🇧 United Kingdom

🇹🇴 Tonga

🕒 Local time

08:39 8:39 AM

20:39 8:39 PM

12 h ahead of the United Kingdom

🌤 Weather

👥 Population

67,326,569

108,020

💱 Currency

British Pound GBP £

Tongan Paʻanga TOP T$

📈 Exchange rate

1 GBP = 1.33 USD

1 GBP = 1.19 EUR

1 TOP = 0.415 USD

1 TOP = 0.369 EUR

Exchange rates and currency converter

TOP, USD, EUR to GBP – British Pound Converter

🇺🇸 United States Dollar ($)

🇬🇧 British Pound (£)

British Pound exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 0.75 GBP (1 GBP = 1.33 USD). 1 EUR = 0.843 GBP (1 GBP = 1.19 EUR).

Tongan Paʻanga exchange rates as of October 20, 2026: 1 USD = 2.41 TOP (1 TOP = 0.415 USD). 1 EUR = 2.71 TOP (1 TOP = 0.369 EUR).

USD to GBP in detail →

On the map

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Between locations

United Kingdom Tonga 16,610 km ≈ 21 h nonstop flight

From you

United Kingdom
Tonga

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 Tonga: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions

At $1,067 per month in Tonga and $2,453 in the United Kingdom, there's a 130% gap. 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 Tonga: 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 $1,252 in the United Kingdom and $207 in Tonga. Rents vary a lot between cities, so the gap depends on where you settle.

In Tonga, $1,000 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: Tonga wins on affordability; the United Kingdom may offer higher salaries, better infrastructure, and different cultural perks. Both attract large expat communities for different reasons.