Cost of living comparison
compared to
Virginia vs. United Kingdom Cost of Living Summary
Virginia is 14.1% more expensive than United Kingdom overall.
- Restaurants
-
pay 14.7% more in Virginia
- Groceries
-
pay 71.5% more in Virginia
- Transportation
-
pay 28.2% less in Virginia
- Housing
-
pay 23.0% more in Virginia
- Childcare
-
pay 30.6% more in Virginia
- Entertainment and Sports
-
pay 4.4% less in Virginia
- Clothing
-
pay 8.2% less in Virginia
The cost of groceries, childcare, housing, and restaurants in Virginia are more expensive than in United Kingdom. Expenses including transportation, clothing, and entertainment and sports are lower in Virginia.
Virginia vs. United Kingdom Cost Breakdown
If you lived in Virginia instead of United Kingdom, you would:
pay 14.7% more for restaurants
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Basic meal with drink at inexpensive restaurant |
$20.41
£15.41
|
$19.95
|
|
|
Fast food combo meal
McDonalds, or similar
|
$9.94
£7.51
|
$11.32
|
|
| Bottle of Coca-Cola (11 fl. oz) |
$2.32
£1.75
|
$2.59
|
|
| Bottle of water (11 fl. oz) |
$1.65
£1.24
|
$2.23
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of restaurants
pay 71.5% more for groceries
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Bread
1 loaf
|
$1.59
£1.20
|
$3.66
|
|
| Local cheese (8 oz) |
$4.71
£3.55
|
$7.57
|
|
| Milk (1 gallon) |
$6.20
£4.68
|
$3.86
|
|
|
Eggs
1 dozen
|
$3.87
£2.92
|
$4.30
|
|
| Boneless chicken breast (1 lb) |
$3.87
£2.92
|
$6.27
|
|
| Apples (1 lb) |
$1.32
£1.00
|
$2.78
|
|
| Bananas (1 lb) |
$0.73
£0.55
|
$0.78
|
|
| Oranges (1 lb) |
$1.28
£0.97
|
$2.60
|
|
| Tomatoes (1 lb) |
$1.49
£1.13
|
$2.90
|
|
| Potatoes (1 lb) |
$0.72
£0.54
|
$1.63
|
|
| Onions (1 lb) |
$0.71
£0.54
|
$1.56
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of groceries
pay 28.2% less for transportation
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Gasoline (1 gallon) |
$7.22
£5.45
|
$3.14
|
|
| Monthly public transit pass |
$99.05
£74.80
|
$81.69
|
|
| New Volkswagen Golf 1.4 (standard edition) |
$36,224.29
£27,355.86
|
$33,360.29
|
|
| Taxi trip in downtown area (5 miles) |
$22.08
£16.67
|
$15.32
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of transportation
pay 23.0% more for housing
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Internet connection
50 mbps or faster, cable/dsl
|
$41.90
£31.64
|
$66.63
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment in downtown area |
$1,285.79
£971.00
|
$1,767.25
|
|
| 1-Bedroom apartment outside city center |
$1,062.09
£802.07
|
$1,444.78
|
|
|
Utilities for two
(700 sq ft apartment)
including electric, gas, water, heating
|
$233.57
£176.39
|
$139.02
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of housing
pay 30.6% more for childcare
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Private preschool for 1 child, monthly |
$1,530.71
£1,155.97
|
$1,687.43
|
|
| Middle school for 1 child, two semesters |
$19,375.12
£14,631.70
|
$29,254.08
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of childcare
pay 4.4% less for entertainment and sports
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
| Domestic/local beer (1 pint) |
$6.35
£4.79
|
$5.97
|
|
| Cappuccino in mid-range area |
$4.54
£3.43
|
$5.35
|
|
|
Pack of cigarettes
Marlboro or similar
|
$19.18
£14.48
|
$8.83
|
|
| Monthly membership at local gym |
$49.26
£37.20
|
$56.35
|
|
| Movie ticket to theater/cinema |
$13.88
£10.48
|
$14.65
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of entertainment and sports
pay 8.2% less for clothing
|
United Kingdom
|
Virginia
|
||
|---|---|---|---|
|
Regular jeans
Levi's brand
|
$86.00
£64.94
|
$52.65
|
|
|
Regular dress
from H&M or similar store
|
$44.20
£33.38
|
$42.78
|
|
|
Running shoes
Nike or Adidas
|
$95.21
£71.90
|
$91.01
|
|
| Men's business shoes (leather) |
$101.36
£76.54
|
$114.93
|
|
United Kingdom vs. Virginia - Cost of clothing
The statistics used to build this comparison are calculated using data from users just like you.
We average the price of thousands of data points entered by users across the world.
Learn more about our data sources. Page last updated: December 2025
Change currency:
Compare countries by overall cost of living
See the
cost of living in United Kingdom vs. United States.
This provides a comparison of the average cost of living from cities within United Kingdom and United States.
Help us improve these prices
MyLifeElsewhere is a collaborative project. Please enter price information for your location to help assist us in making these comparisons more accurate.
Learn more
ASK THE ELSEWHERE COMMUNITY
Join the Elsewhere community and ask a question about Virginia or United Kingdom. It's a free, question-and-answer based forum to discuss what life is like in countries and cities around the world.