• Bristol and Brighton cost more to live in each month than Stockholm, Paris, Berlin and Frankfurt

• The gap is almost entirely rent. Groceries, energy and broadband remain cheaper in the UK

• Outgoings in Edinburgh and Manchester also outstrip Frankfurt

• London is in a league of its own, topping the chart as Europe’s most expensive city and a month in the capital equating to five months of living costs in Chiang Mai

LONDON, 2 September 2026 – Anyone in Bristol fantasising about living out an Emily in Paris dream could be around £2,265 a year better off for doing it.

New research from bunq, Europe's second largest neobank, reveals that the chic French capital has lower living costs than either the British cities of Bristol and Brighton. The findings come from bunq's 2026 Working Abroad Index, which calculates key cost of living factors including rent, groceries, utilities, mobile and broadband, and public transportation across 75 cities.

Research from bunq found that Bristol ranks as the seventh most expensive European city in the index, with monthly living costs of £1,908, while Brighton ranks ninth at £1,890.

Both are more expensive than capital cities including Stockholm (£1,769), Paris (£1,719), Berlin (£1,674) and the financial centre Frankfurt (£1,618). On these numbers, a Bristol resident who relocated to Paris would be roughly £2,265 a year better off, and a move from Brighton to Berlin would save about £2,564.

UK Cities Ranked

1. London - £2,810

2. Bristol - £1,908

3. Brighton - £1,890

4. Edinburgh - £1,723

5. Manchester - £1,720

6. Cardiff - £1,431

7. Belfast - £1,352

European Cities Ranked

1. London, UK - £2,810

2. Dublin, Ireland - £2,397

3. Amsterdam, Netherlands - £2,371

4. Luxembourg City, Luxembourg - £2,249

5. Copenhagen, Denmark - £1,987

6. Utrecht, Netherlands - £1,909

7. Bristol, UK - £1,908

8. Rotterdam, Netherlands - £1,894

9. Brighton, UK - £1,890

10. Munich, Germany - £1,818

Where the gap sits

With July’s ONS figures showing the average UK monthly private rent had increased by an estimated 3.3% in the 12 months to June 2026, it is no surprise rent accounts for the majority of the costs.

Rent is what sets UK cities from their European counterparts. The average rent cheque in Bristol is £1,287 a month and £1,273 in Brighton, against £1,058 in Paris, £965 in Berlin and £942 in Frankfurt. A Bristol renter pays around £345 a month more than someone in Frankfurt. Rent now makes up 67% of what it costs to live in Bristol or Brighton each month, compared with 62% in Paris and 58% in Berlin and Frankfurt.

Elsewhere in the UK, Edinburgh (£1,723) and Manchester (£1,720) also come in above Frankfurt by £105 and £103 a month respectively. Cardiff (£1,431) and Belfast (£1,352) come up as cheaper options in the UK.

London in a league of its own

London unsurprisingly remains the most expensive city in Europe, with monthly living costs of £2,810. Rent alone accounts for £1,967, with public transport adding £247. That puts it above Dublin (£2,397) in second place, and more than double Belfast. Globally, London ranks fourth, behind New York, San Francisco and Boston.

For people with the flexibility to work abroad, the differences become even more pronounced.

The cost of one month in London could cover more than five months in Chiang Mai, where monthly living costs are £519.

Joe Wilson, Chief Evangelist at bunq, says “London being the most expensive city in Europe may not come as a surprise, it's that Brighton and Bristol, the cities remote workers flock to for a cheaper, laid-back alternative, now cost more than other capitals and banking hubs. If UK remote or hybrid workers want genuine savings, these usual southern favorites aren't it anymore; the real value lies further afield.

He adds: “Our users are digital nomads who see the world as their oyster, so our index is designed to show people how far their money will go in different destinations as they live, work and make some room for play too.”

The 2026 Working Abroad Index is available at https://www.bunq.com/resources/working-abroad-index

About bunq

bunq, Europe’s second-largest neobank, has built the first user-centric bank. By developing a product rooted in its users’ wants and needs, bunq makes life easy for location-independent people and businesses, starting from the way they manage money: how they spend, save, budget and invest. As the world’s first GenAI-powered bank, bunq offers its users safe, secure and simple 24/7 financial support—user-centricity at scale.

Pioneering many things considered impossible, bunq was the first bank to get a greenfield European banking permit in over 35 years, raised the largest series A round ever secured by a European fintech (€193 million), and was the first EU neobank to achieve structural profitability. As part of its mission to build the first global neobank, bunq has also received its US broker-dealer license and applied for its Mexican banking license, with more global expansion to follow. Learn more: www.bunq.com