United Kingdom vs United States - Cost of Living Comparison

Updated:

Livingcost

United Kingdom United States
🚶 Cost of living one person
$2183
$2433
👨‍👩‍👧‍👦 Cost of living Family
$5169
$5667
🏠 One person rent
$1371
$1552
🏘️ Family rent
$2364
$2714
🍽️ Food expenses
$503
$618
🚐 Transport expenses
$155
$104
💳 Monthly salary after tax
$3116
$4694
💸 GDP per capita
$46125
$76330
😃 Human freedom index
8.39
8.39
❤️ Life expectancy
80.7
76.3
👮 Corruption perceptions index
71
69
🌐 English speaking %
98.3%
95.5%
🎓 Higher education
100
100
😀 Quality of life
90
86
🏙️ Population
67.3M
331M

The average cost of living in the United Kingdom ($2183) is 10% less expensive than in the United States ($2433). the United Kingdom ranked 12th vs 7th for the United States in the list of the most expensive countries in the world.

The average after-tax salary is enough to cover living expenses for 1.4 months in the United Kingdom compared to 1.9 months in the United States. Ranked 16th and 21st best countries to live in the world.

Salary adjustment calculator
the estimated difference in money purchasing power

Cost of living in United Kingdom vs United States infographic

Share this infographic!

Prices in the United Kingdom vs the United States

We calculate prices for the United Kingdom and the United States as a population-weighted mean of 277 and 2202 cities, respectively. Since large cities tend to have a higher cost of living, it's better to visit specific city pages below for more relevant information.

United Kingdom United States
Eating Out
🍱 Lunch Menu
$18
$18.4
🥂 Dinner in a Restaurant, for 2
$75.3
$73.1
🥪 Fast food meal, equiv. McDonald's
$9.16
$10.5
🍻 Beer in a Pub, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$6.16
$6.08
 Cappuccino
$4.13
$5.09
🥤 Pepsi / Coke, 0.5 L or 16.9 fl oz
$2.24
$2.51
Rent & Utilities
🏙️ 1 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1440
$1611
🏡 Cheap 1 bedroom apartment, 40 m2 or 430 ft2
$1111
$1301
🏙️ 3 bedroom apartment in Downtown, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$2555
$2861
🏡 Cheap 3 bedroom apartment, 80 m2 or 860 ft2
$1959
$2352
🔌 Utility Bill one person, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$174
$122
🔌 Utility Bill for a Family, electricity, heating, water, etc.
$268
$188
🌐 Internet plan, 50 Mbps+ 1 month unlimited
$38
$67
🏦 Mortgage Interest Rate for 20 Years
5.8%
6.5%
🏙️ Apartment price to Buy in city Center, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$8083
$4763
🏡 House price to Buy in Suburbs, 1 m2 or 10 ft2
$5251
$3852
Transportation
🚌 Local transport ticket
$3.3
$2.38
🎟️ Monthly ticket local transport
$85.9
$71.8
🚕 Taxi Ride, 8 km or 5 mi
$18.7
$18.4
 Gas / Petrol, 1 L or 0.26 gal
$1.94
$0.99
Groceries
🥛 Milk, 1 L or 1 qt
$1.53
$1.09
🍞 Bread, 0.5 kg or 1.1 lb
$1.54
$3.44
🍚 Rice, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.02
$4.32
🥚 Eggs, x12
$3.94
$3.89
🧀 Cheese, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$9.27
$13
🐔 Chicken Breast, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$8.7
$11.8
🥩 Round Steak, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$13.5
$16.4
🍏 Apples, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.73
$5.02
🍌 Banana, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.46
$1.78
🍊 Oranges, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$2.76
$4.43
🍅 Tomato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$3.2
$4.66
🥔 Potato, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.36
$2.78
🧅 Onion, 1 kg or 2.2 lb
$1.36
$2.87
🌊 Water, 1 L or 1 qt
$0.92
$1.41
🍹 Coca-Cola / Pepsi, 2 L or 67.6 fl oz
$2.75
$2.51
🍾 Wine (mid-priced), 750 mL bottle
$9.98
$14.4
🍺 Beer, 0.5 L or 16 fl oz
$2.45
$2.12
🚬 Cigarette pack
$16.7
$10.1
💊 Cold medicince, 1 week
$6.83
$9.27
🧴 Hair Shampoo
$5.23
$5.79
🧻 Toilet paper, 4 rolls
$2.84
$4.29
👄 Toothpaste, 1 tube
$2.12
$2.09
Other
🏋️ Gym Membership, 1 month
$44.4
$50
🎫 Cinema Ticket, 1 person
$13.7
$13.9
👩‍⚕️ Doctor's visit
$101
$116
💇 Haircut, simple
$14.3
$20.4
👖 Brand Jeans
$85.3
$53.2
👟 Brand Sneakers
$96.4
$89.3
👶 Daycare or Preschool, 1 month
$1613
$1423
🏫 International Primary School, 1 year
$18419
$19463

Cost of living in other countries

Cost of living

Cities Comparison in the United Kingdom vs the United States

More countries to compare

Cost of Living in Popular cities

In the United Kingdom

City Cost of living Population
London
$3321
8.91M
Birmingham
$2004
1.14M
Leeds
$1872
789K
Glasgow
$1884
626K
Edinburgh
$2043
488K
Manchester
$1998
548K
Bristol
$2136
472K
Sheffield
$1715
518K
Coventry
$2320
363K
Liverpool
$1713
513K
Leicester
$1797
464K
Cardiff
$1770
361K
Westminster
$3004
255K
Bolton
$1711
285K
Belfast
$1741
334K
Nottingham
$1966
289K
Brighton and Hove
$1987
277K
Newcastle upon Tyne
$1910
300K
Milton Keynes
$2241
207K
Southampton
$1824
271K
Derby
$1654
255K
York
$1783
208K
Portsmouth
$1938
248K
Bradford
$1564
293K
Ipswich
$1719
290K
Plymouth
$1744
268K
Aberdeen
$1681
201K
Wolverhampton
$1687
251K
Kingston upon Hull
$1386
260K
Swindon
$1935
222K

In the United States

City Cost of living Population
New York City
$4044
8.8M
Los Angeles
$3165
3.9M
Chicago
$2613
2.75M
Houston
$2221
2.3M
San Diego
$3427
1.39M
Phoenix
$2390
1.61M
Dallas
$2497
1.3M
San Jose
$3502
1.01M
Philadelphia
$2422
1.6M
San Francisco
$3729
874K
San Antonio
$2219
1.43M
Austin
$2590
962K
Seattle
$2974
737K
Washington
$3079
690K
Indianapolis
$2129
888K
Charlotte
$2710
875K
Hempstead
$2627
793K
Fort Worth
$2173
919K
Boston
$3345
676K
Jacksonville
$2246
950K
Denver
$2771
716K
Columbus
$2202
906K
Nashville
$2623
689K
Portland
$2579
653K
Louisville
$1918
633K
Atlanta
$2648
499K
Baltimore
$2197
586K
Detroit
$1979
639K
Las Vegas
$2408
642K
El Paso
$1613
679K