Last update: Oct 2026

Cost of Living Comparison Between Wels and Gothenburg

For one person, living is cheaper in Wels: $1,885 a month against $2,026 in Gothenburg, rent and utilities included – about $1,700 less a year. Rent and utilities account for most of the difference.

Wels
🇦🇹 Austria
$1,885
/mo nomad
Gothenburg
🇸🇪 Sweden
$2,026
/mo nomad
Monthly Cost of Living

How much you'll spend in Wels and in Gothenburg

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

Monthly costs for one person with rent: $1,885 in Wels versus $2,026 in Gothenburg.

  • Wels $1,885
  • Gothenburg $2,026

Estimated couple costs with rent: $2,801 in Wels versus $3,062 in Gothenburg.

  • Wels $2,801
  • Gothenburg $3,062

Monthly costs for a family of three with rent: $3,717 in Wels versus $4,099 in Gothenburg.

  • Wels $3,717
  • Gothenburg $4,099

Living in Wels costs roughly 7% less than in Gothenburg, and outside of rent the biggest gap is in transport.

Both cities are pricier than the global median: Wels 40% above, Gothenburg 50% above.

Currency
🍽 Eating Out
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Meal at Budget Restaurant
$16.47 €14.65
$13.13 SEK 130
25.44%
Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range
$83.3 €74.1
$83.8 SEK 830
-0.56%
Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)
$11.32 €10.07
$12.47 SEK 124
-9.22%
Cappuccino
$4.27 €3.79
$5.03 SEK 49.80
-15.11%
Coke/Pepsi/Fanta/Sprite (0.33 liter bottle)
$3.38 €3.01
$2.84 SEK 28.14
19.01%
Water (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.98 €2.65
$2.37 SEK 23.44
25.74%
Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)
$5.44 €4.84
$6.84 SEK 67.8
-20.47%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$5.42 €4.82
$7.51 SEK 74.4
-27.83%
🛒 Groceries & Markets
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Milk (1 liter)
$1.51 €1.35
$1.68 SEK 16.68
-10.12%
White Bread (500g)
$2.41 €2.14
$2.69 SEK 26.63
-10.41%
Rice (white) (1kg)
$1.73 €1.54
$3.09 SEK 30.60
-44.01%
Eggs
$3.84 €3.42
$3.81 SEK 37.74
0.79%
Local Cheese (1kg)
$21.73 €19.33
$11.45 SEK 113
89.78%
Chicken Fillets (1kg)
$12.85 €11.43
$11.32 SEK 112
13.52%
Beef Round Steak (1kg)
$21.77 €19.36
$16.54 SEK 164
31.62%
Apples (1kg)
$2.98 €2.65
$3.07 SEK 30.42
-2.93%
Banana (1kg)
$1.77 €1.57
$2.41 SEK 23.88
-26.56%
Oranges (1kg)
$2.72 €2.42
$3.01 SEK 29.83
-9.63%
Tomato (1kg)
$2.81 €2.50
$4.25 SEK 42.09
-33.88%
Potato (1kg)
$2.52 €2.24
$1.74 SEK 17.24
44.83%
Onion (1kg)
$1.63 €1.45
$1.62 SEK 16.06
0.62%
Lettuce (1 head)
$2.26 €2.01
$1.96 SEK 19.47
15.31%
Water (1.5 liter bottle)
$0.75 €0.67
$1.65 SEK 16.30
-54.55%
Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)
$7.51 €6.68
$8.38 SEK 83.0
-10.38%
Wine (Bottle)
$8.94 €7.95
$14.69 SEK 146
-39.14%
Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)
$0.80 €0.71
$2.03 SEK 20.14
-60.59%
Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)
$2.19 €1.95
$2.24 SEK 22.24
-2.23%
🚌 Getting Around
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
One-way Ticket (Public Transport)
$2.70 €2.40
$3.63 SEK 35.97
-25.62%
Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)
$38.48 €34.23
$86.4 SEK 857
-55.48%
Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)
$5.63 €5.01
$5.92 SEK 58.7
-4.90%
Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)
$2.34 €2.08
$1.72 SEK 17.01
36.05%
Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)
$30.71 €27.32
$58.6 SEK 581
-47.60%
Gasoline (1 liter)
$1.79 €1.59
$1.74 SEK 17.29
2.87%
Midsize Hatchback 1.4l (Volkswagen Golf, Toyota Prius, Honda Civic, etc)
$30.7K €27.3K
$33.5K SEK 331.8K
-8.28%
Compact Sedan 1.6l (Toyota Corolla, Mazda3, Kia K4, Hyundai Elantra, etc)
$30.2K €26.9K
$33.4K SEK 331.3K
-9.67%
🧾 Monthly Utilities & Internet
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Utilities for 2 People in 2-bedroom Apartment (Heating, Electricity, Gas, Water, Garbage) (85m2)
$333 €296
$102 SEK 1,011
226.34%
SIM Card Monthly Plan (Calls and 10GB+ Data)
$13.71 €12.19
$19.73 SEK 196
-30.51%
Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)
$37.38 €33.25
$33.00 SEK 327
13.27%
🎉 Sport & Entertainment
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Gym Membership (Monthly)
$45.43 €40.41
$35.48 SEK 352
28.04%
Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)
$33.27 €29.59
$24.00 SEK 238
38.63%
Cinema Ticket
$13.64 €12.13
$18.32 SEK 182
-25.55%
🧸 Childcare & Education
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Preschool or Kindergarten, Full Day, Private, 1 Child (Monthly)
$1,336 €1,189
$217 SEK 2,147
516.69%
International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)
$15.8K €14.0K
$4,293 SEK 42.5K
267.54%
👕👟 Clothing & Footwear
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)
$82.5 €73.4
$87.5 SEK 867
-5.65%
Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)
$59.2 €52.7
$33.46 SEK 332
76.93%
Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)
$111 €98.9
$87.0 SEK 862
27.83%
Men's Leather Business Shoes
$123 €110
$131 SEK 1,298
-5.83%
🏠 Accommodation & Living
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$676 €601
$1,026 SEK 10.2K
-34.12%
1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$550 €489
$903 SEK 8,951
-39.13%
3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)
$935 €832
$1,791 SEK 17.7K
-47.78%
3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)
$791 €704
$1,409 SEK 14.0K
-43.88%
Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)
$4,158 €3,698
$6,190 SEK 61.3K
-32.84%
Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)
$3,425 €3,047
$3,427 SEK 34.0K
-0.04%
💵 Salaries & Financials
Wels
Gothenburg
Difference
Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)
$3,072 €2,733
$3,492 SEK 34.6K
-12.02%
20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)
3.5
3.06
14.38%

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

Last update for Wels: October 11, 2026

Last update for Gothenburg: October 12, 2026

Monthly budget structure
Share of the monthly basket for one person, rent included.
Accommodation & Living
Wels
$550
Gothenburg
$903 64.3% $354
Monthly Utilities & Internet
Wels
$384
Gothenburg
$155 59.7% $229
Groceries & Markets
Wels
$362
Gothenburg
$355 1.9% $6.8
Eating Out
Wels
$280
Gothenburg
$273 2.7% $7.6
Clothing & Footwear
Wels
$169
Gothenburg
$153 9.9% $17
Sport & Entertainment
Wels
$73
Gothenburg
$72 0.8% $0.6
Getting Around
Wels
$67
Gothenburg
$115 73.3% $49

Cost Breakdown

A one-bedroom apartment in the center runs $676 in Wels and $1,026 in Gothenburg. Housing cost is often the main lever when comparing two cities.

Gothenburg pays 14% more on average. The extra income cushions the higher costs, though housing choices and lifestyle decide how much of the gap is truly closed.

Dining out: $83.0 in Wels vs $84.0 in Gothenburg. Groceries flip the comparison at $362 vs $355, with Gothenburg cheaper for home cooking.

Good to know
🇦🇹 Wels
🇸🇪 Gothenburg
🕒 Local time
18:46 6:46 PM
18:46 6:46 PM
Same time as Wels
🌤 Weather
👥 Population
59,853
607,882
💱 Currency
Euro EUR €
Exchange rates and currency converter

SEK, USD to EUR – Euro Converter

Euro exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 0.889 EUR (1 EUR = 1.12 USD).

Swedish Krona exchange rates as of October 19, 2026: 1 USD = 9.91 SEK (1 SEK = 0.101 USD). 1 EUR = 11.14 SEK (100 SEK = 8.98 EUR).

On the map
Between locations
  • Wels Gothenburg 1,070 km ≈ 1 h 45 min nonstop flight
From you
  • Wels
  • Gothenburg

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
Wels vs Gothenburg: Cost of Living - Frequently Asked Questions
Which city is more expensive, Wels or Gothenburg?
Wels wins on cost – living expenses run 7% lower than in Gothenburg. Housing and daily spending are where you'll feel the difference most, making Wels the obvious pick if budget is a priority.
Are salaries higher in Wels or in Gothenburg?
On paper, salaries run 14% lower in Gothenburg. That's worth factoring in alongside costs, though remote workers earning in a stronger currency may not notice the difference at all.
How much does a 1-bedroom apartment cost in Wels compared to Gothenburg?
Rent for a central apartment: $676 in Wels versus $1,026 in Gothenburg. Housing is usually the single largest factor when comparing overall living costs between the two.
How do childcare costs compare in Wels and in Gothenburg?
Childcare runs $1,336 in Wels versus $217 in Gothenburg. Over years of preschool, even a modest monthly gap compounds into a major financial factor for families.
Are groceries more expensive in Wels or in Gothenburg?
Shoppers in Gothenburg pay roughly 2% less for everyday groceries. It's an unusual reversal that partly offsets higher costs elsewhere.
Can you live on $3,000/month in Wels or in Gothenburg?
At $1,885 in Wels versus $2,026 in Gothenburg, a $3,000 budget is realistic in Wels but tight or insufficient in Gothenburg. The gap between the two cities makes Wels the clear choice for anyone on this budget.
Which city is better for digital nomads, Wels or Gothenburg?
Both work as nomad bases, but Wels delivers better value – similar infrastructure at $1,885 monthly. If stretching your runway or maximizing savings is the goal, the price difference makes Wels hard to pass up.
How safe is Wels compared to Gothenburg?
Safety-wise, Wels and Gothenburg are on par. Petty crime is typical for cities this size, and most residents feel comfortable going about their daily routines in either place.
Which city is more affordable for expats?
Expats usually find Wels gentler on the wallet – expenses run 7% less than in Gothenburg. Beyond cost, consider language, visa policies, and how big the international community is in each city.

Wels vs other spots: cost of living compared

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