Living in the United Kingdom

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The cost of living in the UK

The UK may not seem like the cheapest country to live and work in, however, it does offer a very wide variety of stores and services that will suit any price range. Even the lowest priced stores can offer good quality products. To give some idea of scale, the average wage for a worker is around £5.50 an hour.

Transport and driving in the UK

The UK has numerous public transport services, and most towns are served by their own railway station, and have a local bus service. However, these are not always overly reliable, and nearly all employers will require you to have your own transport in order for you to carry out the duties of your job. You may drive in the UK on your country of origin's driving license for a period of up to 12 months from your arrival. During this period, you will be required to apply for a full UK driving license - see the DVLA website:

http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/Motoring/DriverLicensing/DrivingInGbOnAForeignLicence/index.htm

For permanent positions, most employers will renew or extend your contract once you have obtained your UK driving license as this is an essential requirement for the job.

You can usually buy a decent used car in the UK for around £1,000, and petrol in the UK is usually priced between 95p and £1 a litre. 

Food and clothes shopping

There are many well known food and clothing retail stores all over the UK. We have included below links to the websites of some of the most popular for an example of pricing.

The UK is well served by convenience stores, such as Spar, Co-op and Londis. While not as cheap as a supermarket, they are usually open until very late at night and can provide a relatively broad selection of both food and household items. 

Tesco, Asda and Morrison's are among the best value supermarkets. They mainly sell food and household items, but some larger stores may offer clothing and other products. For those on a budget, stores such as Wilkinson's, Aldi, and Lidl provide a wide range of products for low prices.

For clothing, some of the lowest priced high street stores are Peacocks, Top Man, and Primark.  These will offer clothes that are in with the current trends, for reasonable prices.  If you are looking for higher quality and prices, they are available in stores such as Marks & Spencers, Sainsbury's, Waitrose, Debenhams, Next, and Monsoon.

The UK also has a wide variety of fast-food outlets and restaurants.  A guide to these, and many other popular locations can be found on the AA website.

Everyday commodities

Basic food, and other everyday commodities are readily available from most convenience stores, petrol stations, and of course supermarkets. Here we have created a list of the most commonly used items, and a rough price guide for each one.  

Please note that these prices were sourced from Tesco and are only approximate, and will vary depending on the brands purchased.

Though many shops will sell bottled water, the tap water in the UK is treated and safe to drink. The price is substantially lower than bottled water, at around 0.1 pence a litre depending on your local water supplier.

Internet access

It is now possible to get online from almost anywhere in the UK. There are many companies offering both wireless and cabled broadband services for as little as £9.99 a month. As is often the standard for the UK, you can usually expect a higher quality level of service from the higher priced companies.