Cost of Living in United Kingdom - Updated Prices & Insights

Name: United Kingdom
Address: GB

Solo nomad: Estimated monthly costs are $1,016 (excluding rent), and $2,486 including rent.

Family of 3: Estimated monthly costs are $2,575 (excluding rent), and $4,820 including rent.

Meal at Budget Restaurant

$20.24 £15.12

$13.50 £10.08

$40.49 £30.24

Three-Course Dinner for Two, Mid-Range

$87.4 £65.3

$67.3 £50.2

$135 £100

Fast Food Meal (McDonalds, etc)

$10.17 £7.60

$8.81 £6.58

$12.07 £9.01

Cappuccino

$4.73 £3.54

$2.91 £2.17

$6.86 £5.12

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

$2.38 £1.78

$1.53 £1.14

$4.01 £2.99

Water (0.33 liter bottle)

$1.74 £1.30

$1.37 £1.03

$2.74 £2.05

Local Beer (0.5 liter draught)

$6.60 £4.93

$3.96 £2.96

$8.58 £6.41

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$6.45 £4.82

$4.81 £3.59

$8.23 £6.15

Milk (1 liter)

$1.71 £1.28

$1.06 £0.79

$2.49 £1.86

White Bread (500g)

$1.70 £1.27

$1.02 £0.76

$3.03 £2.27

Rice (white) (1kg)

$2.18 £1.63

$1.26 £0.94

$3.98 £2.98

Eggs

$4.06 £3.03

$2.21 £1.65

$6.00 £4.48

Local Cheese (1kg)

$9.91 £7.40

$4.86 £3.63

$20.80 £15.54

Chicken Fillets (1kg)

$8.86 £6.61

$4.37 £3.26

$13.43 £10.03

Beef Round Steak (1kg)

$14.01 £10.47

$6.73 £5.03

$22.91 £17.11

Apples (1kg)

$2.94 £2.20

$1.34 £1.00

$5.34 £3.99

Banana (1kg)

$1.61 £1.20

$1.04 £0.77

$3.34 £2.50

Oranges (1kg)

$2.81 £2.10

$1.33 £0.99

$5.86 £4.38

Tomato (1kg)

$3.55 £2.65

$1.38 £1.03

$6.18 £4.62

Potato (1kg)

$1.63 £1.22

$0.67 £0.50

$2.69 £2.01

Onion (1kg)

$1.54 £1.15

$1.00 £0.75

$2.68 £2.00

Lettuce (1 head)

$1.17 £0.87

$0.70 £0.52

$1.67 £1.24

Water (1.5 liter bottle)

$1.55 £1.16

$0.77 £0.57

$2.74 £2.05

Cigarettes 20 Pack (Marlboro, Camel)

$20.35 £15.20

$16.96 £12.67

$24.42 £18.24

Wine (Bottle)

$10.78 £8.05

$8.09 £6.04

$16.18 £12.08

Local Beer (0.5 liter bottle)

$2.81 £2.10

$1.47 £1.10

$4.07 £3.04

Imported Beer (0.33 liter bottle)

$3.39 £2.53

$1.65 £1.23

$5.71 £4.26

One-way Ticket (Public Transport)

$3.32 £2.48

$2.77 £2.07

$5.53 £4.13

Public Transport Monthly Pass (Regular Price)

$96.3 £72.0

$68.8 £51.4

$248 £185

Taxi Start (Normal Tariff)

$5.49 £4.10

$4.12 £3.08

$7.55 £5.64

Taxi (Normal Tariff) (1km)

$1.52 £1.14

$0.92 £0.69

$3.31 £2.47

Taxi 1hour Waiting (Normal Tariff)

$27.15 £20.28

$16.29 £12.17

$47.52 £35.50

Gasoline (1 liter)

$1.96 £1.47

$1.86 £1.39

$2.23 £1.67

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

$38.3K £28.6K

$35.9K £26.8K

$38.3K £28.6K

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

$41.2K £30.7K

$39.7K £29.6K

$41.8K £31.3K

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

$321 £240

$203 £152

$575 £429

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

$17.42 £13.01

$13.54 £10.12

$40.61 £30.34

Internet (50+ Mbps, Unlimited Data)

$42.91 £32.05

$34.28 £25.61

$61.7 £46.10

Gym Membership (Monthly)

$45.54 £34.02

$26.67 £19.92

$80.0 £59.8

Tennis Court (1 Hour on Weekend)

$15.68 £11.71

$8.02 £5.99

$24.06 £17.97

Cinema Ticket

$13.84 £10.34

$10.96 £8.19

$20.75 £15.50

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

$1,718 £1,283

$1,191 £890

$2,591 £1,936

International Primary School, 1 Child (Yearly)

$21.4K £16.0K

$12.7K £9,496

$35.9K £26.8K

Jeans (Levis 501 Or Similar)

$91.1 £68.1

$33.92 £25.34

$136 £101

Summer Dress (H&M, Zara, etc)

$44.98 £33.60

$27.35 £20.43

$68.4 £51.1

Sport Shoes (Adidas, Nike)

$102 £76.1

$61.1 £45.61

$149 £111

Men's Leather Business Shoes

$105 £78.1

$54.8 £40.96

$171 £128

1-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$1,375 £1,027

$855 £639

$2,931 £2,190

1-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,162 £868

$831 £621

$2,294 £1,713

3-bedroom Apartment, City Center (Monthly)

$2,342 £1,749

$1,505 £1,124

$5,606 £4,188

3-bedroom Apartment, Outside City Center (Monthly)

$1,828 £1,365

$1,215 £907

$3,648 £2,725

Buy Apartment in City Center (m2)

$5,907 £4,413

$3,757 £2,807

$18.5K £13.8K

Buy Apartment Outside City Center (m2)

$4,604 £3,439

$2,604 £1,945

$10.0K £7,474

Average Monthly Net Salary (After Tax)

$3,321 £2,481

20-Year Fixed Mortgage Interest Rate (Annual %)

5.75

4.5

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

Last update: January 12, 2026

By City in United Kingdom

Lowest

Highest

Rank	City	Population	Living Index	Solo costs (no rent) / month	Solo costs (with rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (no rent) / month	Family of 3 costs (with rent) / month	Mobile download speed (Mbps)	Internet download speed (Mbps)
201	Portadown	22000	115	$1,083	$2,286	$2,378	$4,497	143.98	189.13
202	Portsmouth	198974	128	$1,011	$2,581	$2,575	$4,755	149.32	284.43
203	Preston	114300	106	$924	$2,096	$2,268	$4,446	223.01	241.73
204	Ramsgate	37967	109	$848	$2,218	$2,233	$4,386	137.47	206.23
205	Reading	162666	136	$1,063	$2,673	$2,700	$5,354	45.6	292.51
206	Redbridge	-	115	$935	$2,306	$2,424	$4,468	45.85	373.63
207	Redcar	36000	114	$1,118	$2,240	$2,223	$4,340	73.23	257.6
208	Redditch, Worcestershire	-	102	$988	$2,021	$2,473	$4,184	246.46	231.31
209	Retford	-	115	$1,127	$2,337	$2,218	$4,580	98.36	185.88
210	Rhyl, Denbighshire	25149	108	$904	$2,147	$2,670	$4,227	138.51	163.07
211	Rochdale	111261	108	$924	$2,138	$2,841	$4,555	190.62	280.84
212	Rochester	62982	108	$963	$2,149	$2,192	$4,351	105.49	253.23
213	Romford	95894	143	$1,425	$2,866	$3,272	$5,903	109.09	303.55
214	Rotherham	117262	116	$973	$2,323	$2,604	$4,611	48.68	275.54
215	Royal Leamington Spa	-	127	$974	$2,551	$2,150	$4,308	110.78	203.08
216	Rugby	70628	107	$1,098	$2,161	$2,560	$4,345	133.89	226.43
217	Salford	258834	126	$1,077	$2,505	$2,918	$4,805	70.89	286.48
218	Salisbury	45000	127	$958	$2,484	$2,442	$4,547	171.26	150.29
219	Scarborough	61749	100	$770	$2,016	$1,957	$3,702	31.86	213.48
220	Scunthorpe	-	85	$825	$1,725	$2,378	$3,602	61.36	175.24
221	Sevenoaks	-	124	$1,114	$2,487	$2,358	$5,629	7.13	190.63
222	Sheffield	547000	110	$939	$2,185	$2,330	$4,203	264.59	248.3
223	Shrewsbury, Shropshire	-	106	$1,038	$2,158	$2,142	$3,864	58.6	116.8
224	Sittingbourne	39974	125	$1,008	$2,483	$2,577	$4,949	63.67	172.82
225	Slough	164455	134	$869	$2,715	$2,443	$5,214	68.87	214.47
226	Solihull	206091	119	$1,054	$2,330	$2,601	$4,585	174.98	283.48
227	Southampton	228600	134	$1,158	$2,634	$2,820	$4,939	179.43	311.7
228	Southend-on-Sea	181808	102	$938	$2,076	$2,557	$4,914	188.22	228.18
229	Southwark	-	123	$1,245	$2,499	$3,082	$7,046	350.58	306.81
230	St Albans	57795	147	$880	$2,984	$2,217	$5,301	172.04	237.82
231	St Helens	-	100	$1,084	$1,984	$2,751	$4,128	354.86	287.6
232	St. Andrews	16460	107	$1,089	$2,120	$2,527	$5,546	11.52	188.13
233	Stafford	71673	109	$1,042	$2,176	$2,580	$4,360	38.59	167.93
234	Stevenage	89663	123	$920	$2,414	$2,246	$5,190	148.78	297.51
235	Stirling	37800	106	$965	$2,113	$2,290	$4,368	112.32	264.51
236	Stockport	136082	116	$1,120	$2,284	$2,173	$4,451	29.58	281.64
237	Stockton-on-Tees	82729	91	$965	$1,820	$2,900	$3,495	89.47	286.06
238	Stoke-on-Trent	249000	89	$945	$1,808	$2,800	$3,763	31.03	245.94
239	Stourbridge	-	116	$1,011	$2,279	$2,764	$4,542	41.02	331.74
240	Stratford upon Avon	-	125	$1,297	$2,446	$2,641	$4,873	336.2	176.11
241	Sunderland	275300	95	$913	$1,916	$2,814	$3,755	132.86	270.22
242	Surrey	-	166	$1,153	$3,376	$2,772	$4,656	35.71	185.64
243	Sutton	-	115	$941	$2,334	$3,109	$4,626	94.53	328.08
244	Sutton Coldfield	-	113	$844	$2,232	$2,703	$4,400	275.9	293.46
245	Swansea	239000	113	$1,041	$2,216	$2,541	$4,199	32.48	252.11
246	Swindon	183638	115	$932	$2,258	$2,356	$4,436	40.01	264.86
247	Tamworth	-	114	$905	$2,229	$2,418	$4,441	16.56	273.71
248	Taunton	60000	106	$1,049	$2,146	$2,190	$4,489	243.53	119.64
249	Telford	180000	99	$1,111	$1,997	$2,386	$3,711	120.02	189.76
250	Tenterden	-	115	$874	$2,254	$2,474	$4,458	63.31	121.93

Digital Nomad Cost of Living Index

Cost of Living in United Kingdom - Frequently Asked Questions

Overall affordability hinges on location and lifestyle. Cost of Living in United Kingdom tends to be higher in London and the Southeast, with more moderate costs in other regions. For travelers and expats, a mix of housing options – share houses, apartments outside city centers, or short-term rentals – can stretch a budget. Public transport is extensive but not cheap; buying transit passes or using bikes helps. Healthcare access adds value that can offset some costs, though private options exist. Seasonal shifts in tourism or business travel impact prices in hospitality and activities. Tip: build a flexible monthly plan and test several neighborhoods before committing.

Daily life comes down to housing, food, and transport choices. For housing, look at city outskirts, university neighborhoods, or smaller towns to balance rent and commute. Food options range from farmers markets and budget supermarkets to specialty grocers; cooking at home cuts costs, while occasional dining out highlights local flavors. Public transit is robust; buses and rail are convenient, with intercity connections via trains. If you work remotely, seek coworking spaces or cafes with reliable Wi-Fi. For errands, plan weekly routes to reduce trips and consider parcel pickup options. United Kingdom living cost varies by region, so align your base with your work and social needs. Tip: map a weekly groceries-and-ops route to save time and stress.

Quality of life in the UK combines versatility with practical budgeting. Start with a simple budgeting framework, allocating housing, essentials, and savings, then adapt by city. Seasonality affects leisure and transport; shoulder seasons can offer better deals on activities and accommodations in popular destinations. To find a neighborhood fit, assess commute times, local amenities, safety, and community vibe beyond price. Embrace seasonal markets, pub dine-outs, parks, and cultural events to maximize value. Compare patterns across regions by your priorities – historic cities for culture, coastlines for pace, or countryside for space. Tip: keep a flexible month in your plan to test neighborhoods and adjust your route.