Living Expenses in the UK
By Wings of Silver •
Hello All,
What will be the average monthly living expenses in the UK for a family living moderately, consisting of a husband + wife + 2 kids in primary schools?
Cost items are:
- Housing
- Utilities (e.g. water, electricity, phone, etc.)
- Food and drink
- Transportation
- Leisure
- Others (e.g. clothes, home needs, etc.)
I got to know that schooling and medication are for free (covered by the government), and that living inside London is more expensive than otherwise.
Replies are appreciated.
Thanks
Living in the UK is expensive compared to many places in the World. The cost of living will of course depend on the individual situation (and tastes!) of each individual, but you still need to be prepared financially. Just because you’ve been working hard to save many thousands of your own currency, doesn’t mean it will be quite as many pounds!
As I am working as an estate agent in Plaza Estate firm so I can give you brief idea about cost of rental flat in London : http://www.plazaestates.co.uk/properties-to-rent
Flat-Share Rental per month East London £290 - £390 (single)
West London £280 - £430 (single)
South London £280 - £500 (single)
North London £300 -£400 (single)
UK cost of Food & Drink
Average pub meal £6 - £10
Average restaurant meal £12 - £20
Pint of beer £2.50 - £3
Average bottle of wine £10
Average meal for two in mid-priced restaurant £40
UK cost of Transportation
Weekly Zone 1-6 Travelcard £41
Monthly Zone 1-2 Travelcard £86
Train trip to Edinburgh £110 (standard single)
Train trip to Cambridge / Brighton £17 - £20 (single)
Avg mid-sized car rental for a weekend £70
Return budget flight to Spain £120 - £150 (budget carrier)
Eurostar return ticket to Paris £125 (standard class)
Return flight to Ireland £50 - £60 (budget carrier)
Thanks for everybody who answered this question.
Anyways the visa request was refused.
The cost of living depends where you live....
argument sake, while in london, you can rent a two bedroom house (fully furnished) ranging from 900 - 1500 pounds.
Gas, electricity is for a small family is 150 - 200 pounds per month /also depends upon usage.
Supplied, cheapest options are TEXCO, ASDA or Lidl.
transportation is expensive by Tube, Buses are cheaper and one can buy daily, weekly or monthly pass.
If one decided to buy car, has to pay a lot in terms of road tax, parking charges, MOT(minimum road worthy condition) for car, seperate driving insurence...if more than one person using same car.
Fuel is pretty expensive.
phone is cheap
Food and drink generally cheaper than here.Housing cost can vary tremendously,depending on where you live,so it's hard to generalise.Are you buying or renting?
Schooling is free but you wont always get into the school of choice.Visits to doctors etc. is free but prescriptions for medication is quite expensive and you have to pay for each item.Dental checks and treatment are also pricey,except for children,OAP's and pregnant women. London transport is not as cheap as it used to be and if you buy a car,check the tax bracket that it comes into as there is a huge difference between the lower end and the higher end. When I left a month ago,petrol was £1.30 per litre (qr 7.25 per lr) Or 10 x the price of fuel here!!!
I hope that helps a bit!
- Housing
Depends where you live in London cheapest areas are in East london Tower Hamlets etc
If you buy your own place then you will have to pay council tax also which can be spread out over 12 months. This tax is for general maintenance.
- Utilities (e.g. water, electricity, phone, etc.)
You can get Sky which will give you phone, internet and broadband for around 60 pounds
water and electricity/gas are charged quarterly and depends upon consumption
- Food and drink
Again depends where you shop Waitrose is a top end supermarket and Asda/Aldi/Lidl are cheaper options
Food can expect to cost around 100 pounds a week
- Transportation
Cars can cost average car around 7-9000 pounds
other realted costs are road tax, insurance & servicing
- Leisure
Again this can vary as there is so much to do in London. London Eye ticket cost 40 pounds, similar Madamme Taussauds 40 pounds. Going to the park nothing. National Museum free also so depends on you
- Others (e.g. clothes, home needs, etc.)
Again depends on you
Hope this helps
It all depends whereabouts you will be living. Schooling is free and most medical things are free on the NHS but there are certain aspects like dental & prescriptions that you have to pay.
Go to http://www.workgateways.com/working-cost-of-living.html to get a rough idea of the costs of living in London.