14/8/2023
Since the pandemic, hybrid working has become the new norm for many workers around the world. According to new global data, three-quarters (74%) of employers now offer some form of a hybrid working model, and workers spend an average of only 3.5 days per week in the office.
Whether you’re commuting into the city, or paying for a hot-desking space, the costs associated with the working week can really add up. But, which cities in the world are the cheapest for hybrid workers?
To find out, the team here at Savoo has analysed 50 of the world’s most popular cities, taking into account factors such as the cost of living, rent, transport, coffee, internet, and hot-desking spaces in each city, to determine the total cost per month of being a hybrid worker. The research has also looked at cities across the UK, to determine where in the country is the cheapest location for those on a more flexible working schedule.
Top ten locations for hybrid workers in the world
| Index | City | Country | Cost of Living | Cost of Local Transport | Cost of a Cappuccino | Cost of Internet | Cost to Rent a 1 Bedroom Apartment in the City Centre | Cost of Hot-desking | Total Cost per Month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Buenos Aires | Argentina | £351 | £0.11 | £1.33 | £17 | £285 | £88 | £754 |
| 2 | Istanbul | Turkey | £377 | £0.28 | £1.54 | £6 | £464 | £47 | £912 |
| 3 | Sao Paulo | Brazil | £517 | £0.71 | £1.46 | £18 | £466 | £215 | £1,239 |
| 4 | Bangkok | Thailand | £508 | £0.99 | £1.79 | £12 | £571 | £154 | £1,275 |
| 5 | Budapest | Hungary | £603 | £0.81 | £1.77 | £13 | £484 | £164 | £1,291 |
| 6 | Naples | Italy | £655 | £1.12 | £1.51 | £24 | £557 | £98 | £1,364 |
| 7 | Osaka | Japan | £652 | £1.21 | £2.37 | £23 | £441 | £334 | £1,489 |
| 8 | Beijing | China | £499 | £3.08 | £3.08 | £14 | £726 | £184 | £1,498 |
| 9 | Warsaw | Poland | £605 | £0.85 | £2.64 | £11 | £736 | £208 | £1,594 |
| 10 | Seoul | South Korea | £939 | £0.79 | £3.09 | £19 | £625 | £169 | £1,789 |
Buenos Aires has been revealed as the cheapest location for hybrid working in the world, with a total average cost of £754 per month. Residents in the Argentinian capital see the cheapest cost of living of all cities analysed, at £351 per month, on average. Rent is also the most affordable here, averaging around £285 per month for a one-bed apartment in the city centre.
For those looking for a caffeine fix on their way to the office, Buenos Aires boasts the cheapest coffee of all cities analysed, at around £1.33 per cup, and for those commuting around the city, local transport is only £0.11 for a one-way ticket. Co-working spaces have really gained in popularity since the pandemic, and hot-desking in the city averages around £88 per month, the third cheapest price of all global cities. Internet prices in the city are a little more expensive here than in other locations in the top five, however, with costs of around £17 per month.
With hybrid workers potentially spending a total of £912 per month, coming in second place is Turkey’s Istanbul. The cost of living is only £26 more here than in Buenos Aires, at £377, though rent is slightly more expensive at £464 for a one-bed apartment.
The city boasts the cheapest internet of all cities by far, with costs around £6 per month. Local transport is also very cheap, averaging £0.28 for a one-way ticket, and those workers looking for affordable hot-desking spaces will do well to head to Istanbul, as the city offers the cheapest prices of any location, at £47 per month.
Brazil’s São Paulo has come in third place, with a total cost of £1,239 per month. The city is one of the cheapest places for coffee, with an average cappuccino costing around £1.46, and transport is also very affordable in the city, costing just £0.71 for a one-way ticket.
The price of a desk in a co-working space in Sao Paulo is the most expensive out of all of the top five however, with monthly costs averaging £215. Internet costs are relatively affordable for those looking to work from home though, at £18 per month.
Bangkok, Thailand (£1,275) and Budapest, Hungary (£1,291) round off the top five cheapest cities in the world for hybrid workers.
Top ten locations for hybrid workers in the UK
| Index | City | Cost of Living | Cost of Local Transport | Cost of a Cappuccino | Cost of Internet | Cost to Rent a 1 Bedroom Apartment in the City Centre | Cost of Hot-desking | Total Cost per Month |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hull | £758 | £2.00 | £2.51 | £41 | £453 | £306 | £1,609 |
| 2 | Shrewsbury | £993 | £2.08 | £2.75 | £27 | £500 | £216 | £1,791 |
| 3 | Huddersfield | £911 | £2.30 | £3.18 | £28 | £467 | £328 | £1,796 |
| 4 | Aberdeen | £927 | £3.00 | £2.97 | £26 | £552 | £286 | £1,863 |
| 5 | Sheffield | £1,019 | £2.05 | £3.21 | £28 | £739 | £118 | £1,963 |
| 6 | Glasgow | £1,058 | £2.50 | £2.95 | £30 | £817 | £132 | £2,101 |
| 7 | Nottingham | £1,039 | £2.70 | £3.09 | £31 | £778 | £190 | £2,106 |
| 8 | Liverpool | £1,016 | £2.10 | £2.89 | £31 | £792 | £240 | £2,135 |
| 9 | Leicester | £1,129 | £2.35 | £3.06 | £32 | £792 | £144 | £2,159 |
| 10 | Northampton | £1,081 | £2.90 | £3.20 | £30 | £800 | £189 | £2,172 |
With a new study revealing that Londoners tend to spend an average of 2.3 days per week in the office, we’ve also looked into where in the UK is the cheapest for those on a hybrid working schedule.
Topping the list of the cheapest cities in the UK for hybrid workers is Hull, with workers spending a total average cost of £1,609 per month. The northern city has the cheapest cost of living of all cities analysed, at around £758 per month, and also the cheapest average rent prices at £453 for a one-bed apartment in the city centre.
Those commuting by public transport in Hull enjoy the cheapest prices of all UK cities, with a one-way ticket averaging just £2. Coffee is also pretty affordable here too, with an average cup costing £2.51. Internet in Hull is quite pricey though, at £40.50 per month, and it is one of the most expensive places for hot-desking in the UK, with fees of around £306 per month.
With hybrid workers in the city potentially spending around £1,791 per month, Shrewsbury has come in second place. The average cost of internet is much cheaper here than in Hull, with prices around £27 per month. For those looking for affordable co-working spaces, a desk is around £216 per month, and picking up a coffee in the city is also relatively cheap, with the average cup costing £2.75. The cost of living here is a little pricier per month than in Hull however, at £933.
Despite being one of the most expensive places in the UK for co-working spaces, with prices around £328, Huddersfield has come in third place. The total cost of being a hybrid worker is around £1,796 in the city, and it sees the second cheapest cost of living (£911) and rent prices (£467) of all cities analysed. Internet is also relatively cheap in the city, with monthly costs of around £26, but hybrid workers might want to limit their takeaway coffees as they are a little pricier here, at £3.18.
Aberdeen (£1,863) and Sheffield (£1,963) round off the cheapest cities in the UK for hybrid workers.
Top tips for saving money when in the office
Whether you’re picking up a nice lunch, or simply tapping your card for the bus or tube, going from working fully remotely to spending a few days a week in the office can have a big impact on the purse strings.
With this in mind, we’ve put together some top tips to help hybrid workers save money when they head into the office:
- 1. Make coffee at home
- As tempting as a nice takeaway coffee might be in the morning, your daily caffeine fix can make a real dent in your paycheck. Brew your own coffee at home and bring it with you in a keep-cup or flask, or wait until you get to work and put the kettle on there.
- 2. Don’t buy breakfast
- Try to avoid buying breakfast on the way to work too. Those regular croissants might be a delicious treat on your morning commute but a few pounds a day could start to set you back a lot throughout the year. Grab breakfast before you leave the house, or leave some cereal and milk in the office to keep costs down.
- 3. Bring a packed lunch
- While a meal deal or quick takeaway lunch might be the most convenient option, buying food every day can really add up. Try making your own salads or sandwiches at home, or why not cook a little extra at dinner time and bring the leftovers into the office the next day?
- 4. Look for discounts on travel
- Commuting into the office can often be a pretty costly expense. If you commute by car, try to organise a carpool with some of your colleagues, or look for cheap daily or weekly rates on car parks. If you’re travelling by train, flexible season tickets can be a good way to cut costs, and don’t forget to check out some of our great travel discounts at Savoo to help you save too!
- 5. Walk or cycle to work
- If you live closer to work, why not ditch the bus, tube, or car altogether and walk or cycle to the office? Aside from saving you money, it can be a great chance to stay active and get outside. Some companies even offer cycle-to-work schemes where they loan you the money for a bike and then you pay it back through salary sacrifice deductions.
Methodology & Sources
To determine the global ranking, Savoo pulled together a seed list of 50 countries, based on a list of the world’s best cities.Numbeo was used to determine the following metrics for each city:
- Cost of living
- Cost of rent on a one-bed flat in the city centre
- Cost of transport
- Cost of a coffee
- Cost of internet
- Cost of hotdesking
To determine the UK ranking, Savoo pulled together a seedlist of 33 cities, based on a list of the best places to live in the UK.
Nomadlist was used to determine the cost of living, the cost of a coffee, and the cost of hotdesking in each location. Numbeo was used to determine the cost of a one-bed flat in the city centre, cost of local transport, and the cost of internet in each location.
For both rankings, the total cost per month was then calculated for each city. To note: the price of individual coffees was multiplied by 8, assuming workers travel to the office 2 days per week, and the price of a one-way ticket on public transport was multiplied by 16 (8 return journeys per month).
*Totals correct at time of writing, subject to change due to currency rates