Money, cost of living – one of the most requested topics especially among those who plan to travel to Iceland! Some people think how much they will be able to earn while working when moving to Iceland and what life conditions they will be able to get when living here. Some others wonder how soon they will empty their own bank account after a few days of exploring the country. This is an important thing to consider especially before coming to settle in Iceland. We will try to answer the question about Moving to Iceland – Cost of Living in Reykjavik.
Moving to Iceland and the cost of Living in Reykjavik is proportional to the earnings in Iceland, that’s for sure. This is quite obvious that in the biggest cities like Reykjavik the expenses are higher and vice versa, we spend less money living on the countryside or outside the city.
Let’s start with this Moving to Iceland – Cost of Living in Reykjavik article and the possible wage we can obtain:
The minimum wage in Iceland is 260.000 ISK. Overtime extras include working after 16 or 17 and during the weekends. The law also provides an extra bonus if you have worked for a minimum of 12 weeks per year for one employer of 82.000 ISK. Workers are guaranteed a meal break and coffee. As a rule, it is a lunch break (30-60 minutes) and two 20 minute pauses.
- Properties’ cost in Reykjavik
Something you should take into account if Moving to Iceland – Cost of Living in Reykjavik is that renting a property in Reykjavik, the heart of Iceland, is definitely more expensive than any other place besides big cities. While renting we need to think about the cost of monthly rental but also the cost of a security deposits which is usually equal to three times the rental monthly cost.
Prices vary depending on the location of the apartment, year of building, equipment and mainly size. The average cost for a house share is 65.000 ISK. The price goes up if you wish to rent a whole flat. Here the prices vary between 120.000 ISK – 350.000 ISK. There are websites where you can easily find a suitable place for you.
- Utility Bills
When moving to Iceland you need to bear in mind that our monthly rent does not include the utilities like heating, electricity, gas etc. We should add here extra 15 000 ISK. Additionally, we need to cover the costs of Internet and Mobile phone on our own. That can vary between 3.000 ISK to 10.000 ISK. The prices depend on the company and tariffs provided. For instance, 8 Mbps internet costs 6.780 ISK
3. Public transport
Public transportation is not well developed and quite expensive. What we can mostly count on are taxis especially at night and here costs can come from 1.500 ISK – 5.000 IKS within the Reykjavik area. Anyway, you can still get on a beautiful yellow public bus within Reykjavik that will be able to take you to most of places you need. The single fare adult ticket costs 400 ISK. Monthly it can give you a total cost of 6.000 ISK- 11.000 ISK depending on the use of course. You can now compare it with t cost of a shuttle from Reykjavik Center to Keflavik International Airport which costs 1.950 ISK
4. Food expenses
Here, the costs are definitely high. In our Moving to Iceland – Cost of Living in Reykjavik post we need to mention that the food is quite expensive. Monthly, you should count around 44 000 ISK – 80.000 ISK to spend on your basic purchases at the supermarket. You should though add here some extra costs in case of eating out, going out with friends or simply having coffee in one of the coffee shops. Just to have an idea of the costs that you can encounter, a glass of beer might cost 9.000 ISK– 1.200 ISK and a cup of coffee 350 ISK – 600 ISK where a dinner in restaurant would cost you around 4.000 ISK – 10.000 ISK.
- Additional costs
You always need to take into account extra costs too calculate the Cost of Living in Reykjavik and that is because you can’t always know when they will come up. If one day you plan to go to the cinema you need to be prepared for a cost of around 1.300 ISK per ticket. Swimming pool for single entrance will cost you around 900 ISK. Summer is coming and you need to get in shape again? You can get a gym monthly membership will cost you from 900 ISK – 12 900 ISK. Clothes can be more expensive but it is also necessary to calculate the total average costs. Here one dress can cost around 9.000 ISK and pair of leather shoes to 27.000 ISK.
Moving to Iceland – Cost of Living in Reykjavik
Below you can see some additional examples of prices to know before moving to Iceland:
Bread for 2 people for 1 day – 335 ISK
500 gr of cheese – 923 ISK
1 liter of milk – 176 ISK
Standard haircut in downtown – 4.800 ISK
1 liter of gas – 197 ISK
A package of Marlboro cigarettes – 1.226 ISK
One cocktail drink in the club – 1.985 ISK
Doctor visit – 4.750 ISK
1 box of antibiotics – 2.100 ISK
1 tube of toothpaste – 415 ISK
