Edinburgh at a glance
- Edinburgh ranks 8th of 10 priced cities in United Kingdom on cost: $2,432 a month in essentials, 25% above Belfast, the cheapest.
- The average net salary of $3,542 covers that 1.5×.
- 92 men per 100 women aged 20–39, measured at city level.
- PM2.5 averages 6.2 µg/m³ a year, 1× the WHO guideline of 5.
Green is the better side of each figure. Every line is computed from the tables below.
Monthly cost breakdown
Rent outside centre plus utilities, groceries, dining and local transport make up the essentials figure. Not a full lifestyle budget. The middle column is the median across the 10 United Kingdom cities we track, so every row says whether Edinburgh is the cheap side of its own market or the dear one. Green is the better side of each row.
| Essentials, monthlyrent outside centre + bills + food + transit | $2,432 | $2,170 | $262 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rent, 1-bed outside centremonthly, USD | $1,212 | $1,106 | $106 |
| Rent, 1-bed city centremonthly, USD | $1,624 | $1,361 | $263 |
| Groceriesmonthly, one person | $182 | $172 | $10 |
| Dining outmonthly, one person | $520 | $460 | $60 |
| Utilitiesmonthly: power, water, heating, internet | $421 | $361 | $60 |
| Local transportmonthly pass or fare equivalent | $97 | $104 | $6 |
| Average net salarymonthly, after tax; average, not median | $3,542 | $3,352 | $189 |
| Rent, 3-bed outside centremonthly, USD | $2,107 | $1,842 | $265 |
| Rent, 3-bed city centremonthly, USD | $2,829 | $2,527 | $302 |
Single person, USD. Data updated August 6, 2026.
Everyday prices
What single items cost in Edinburgh, in USD. The monthly figures above are built from these. Cheaper side of each row in green.
Eating out
| Meal, inexpensive restaurant | $24.01 | $21.18 | $2.84 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meal for 2, mid-range, three courses | $106.70 | $97.36 | $9.34 |
| McMeal at McDonald's | $10.25 | $10.46 | $0.21 |
| Cappuccino, regular | $5.16 | $5.08 | $0.08 |
| Domestic beer, 0.5 L draught | $8.00 | $7.54 | $0.46 |
| Imported beer, 0.33 L bottle | $8.00 | $6.67 | $1.33 |
| Coke/Pepsi, 0.33 L | $2.43 | $2.59 | $0.16 |
| Water, 0.33 L bottle | $2.16 | $1.94 | $0.22 |
Groceries
| Milk, 1 L | $1.80 | $1.75 | $0.05 |
|---|---|---|---|
| White bread, 500 g | $2.36 | $1.77 | 1.34× as much |
| White rice, 1 kg | $2.33 | $2.27 | $0.06 |
| Eggs, 12 | $5.09 | $4.02 | 1.27× as much |
| Local cheese, 1 kg | $9.65 | $9.75 | $0.10 |
| Chicken fillets, 1 kg | $9.33 | $9.18 | $0.15 |
| Apples, 1 kg | $2.97 | $3.03 | $0.06 |
| Bananas, 1 kg | $1.76 | $1.71 | $0.05 |
| Tomatoes, 1 kg | $3.58 | $3.53 | $0.05 |
| Potatoes, 1 kg | $1.94 | $1.87 | $0.07 |
| Onions, 1 kg | $1.46 | $1.55 | $0.09 |
| Water, 1.5 L bottle | $1.71 | $1.60 | $0.11 |
Transport & bills
| One-way ticket, local transport | $2.93 | $3.30 | $0.37 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monthly transit pass | $97.36 | $103.37 | $6.01 |
| Taxi start | $5.33 | $5.07 | $0.26 |
| Taxi, 1 km | $1.87 | $1.96 | $0.08 |
| Gasoline, 1 L | $2.02 | $2.04 | $0.02 |
| Basic utilities, 85 m² flat | $377.69 | $319.00 | $58.69 |
| Internet, 60 Mbps+ | $43.09 | $41.77 | $1.33 |
| Mobile plan, monthly | $17.65 | $19.34 | $1.69 |
Leisure
| Gym, monthly | $50.02 | $45.49 | $4.53 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cinema, one seat | $14.67 | $14.34 | $0.33 |
Dating-age sex ratio
Edinburgh has 92 men per 100 women aged 20–39 (city level). That is the 7th-highest of 8 United Kingdom cities we track. United Kingdom's national figure is 103.2, so Edinburgh runs 11 below the country as a whole.
A supply figure, 20–39. The dating-pool model is in Pro.
How Edinburgh ranks against every city we track
Edinburgh sits ahead of 88% of the 898 cities we track on clean air. On women aged 20–39 it is ahead of 87% of 892. Its weakest measure is cost of living, ahead of only 10% of 542.
Longer is better on every row: bar length is where Edinburgh sits among all the cities carrying that measure, which is why the count differs by row.
Need the full United Kingdom model?
Open the gated deep-dive for city shortlist, cost detail, weather, visa, tax, dating-market signals, and subregion rankings.
Unlock United Kingdom deep-dive
Photo: Andrew Colin, CC BY 2.0.
