Cost of Living in Guernsey

The cost of living in Guernsey is considerably higher than most of the UK, with the exception of London. A comparison using Xpatulator.com's Salary Purchasing Power Parity Calculator shows Guernsey to be 6.7% cheaper than London, but 4.4% more expensive than Birmingham, and 4.4% less expensive than Paris. While electricity is approximately 20% more expensive than in the UK, Guernsey has a milder climate, meaning less electricity is required for heating homes. Public transport is not feasible requiring every household to have a car in order to live a normal life in Guernsey. Motoring costs are generally lower in Guernsey due to the lack of MOT inspections and cheaper petrol.

The 10 most expensive cities in Europe:
1. Switzerland, Geneva
2. Switzerland, Zurich
3. Norway, Oslo
4. Liechtenstein, Vaduz
5. Russia, Moscow
6. Denmark, Copenhagen
7. United Kingdom, London
8. Monaco, Monaco
9. France, Paris
10.Finland, Helsinki

Moving to St Peter Port

Today we look at moving to St Peter Port in Guernsey from Frankfurt in Germany. We highlight cost of living and other major differences likely to be experienced in our series of short blogs on moving between different international locations.
In St Peter Port people speak English, French and local forms of French. In Frankfurt people speak German.

Saint Peter Port is the capital of Guernsey. Frankfurt is the largest city in the German state of Hesse and the fifth-largest city in Germany.
St. Peter Port is a small town consisting mostly of steep narrow streets and steps on the overlooking slopes and is the main port. Frankfurt is one of the leading financial centres in Europe.

The overall cost of living rank in St Peter Port is 32 out of 300 global locations, which equates it with high cost of living locations.  An expatriate moving from Frankfurt to St Peter Port will experience a change in cost of living of 1.6%.
In terms of the hardship people are likely to experience, assessed in global terms, St Peter Port is ranked as a minimal hardship location with a hardship index of 10% compared to Frankfurt with a hardship index of 10% which is a minimal hardship location.

Source: http://www.xpatulator.com as at July 2011.

Guernsey, St Peter Port Cost of Living April 2010

Country Full Name: Bailiwick of Guernsey. Status: UK Crown Dependency.

Location: Guernsey is in the English Channel, northwest of France.

Country Climate: Temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% of days are overcast.

Country Terrain: Mostly level with low hills in southwest.

Major Languages: English, French, local forms of French.

Major Religions: Christianity.

Country Population: 0.066 million (2008 est.) 0.066 million (2009 est.).

Country Economy: The economy of Guernsey is linked to financial services, such as banking, fund management, and insurance. Tourism, manufacturing, and horticulture, mainly tomatoes and cut flowers, especially freesias, have been declining. Light tax and death duties make Guernsey a popular offshore finance centre for Private equity funds.

Currency: British Pound (GBP).

Country Inflation: 3.4% (2006)est.).

City: Saint Peter Port is the capital of Guernsey.

City Economy: St. Peter Port is a small town consisting mostly of steep narrow streets and steps on the overlooking slopes and is the main port.
Cost of Living: St Peter Port has an overall cost of living index which equates it with high cost of living locations. The overall cost of living index is comprised of the prices for defined quantities of the same goods and services across all 13 Basket Groups. St Peter Port is currently ranked 54 overall, most expensive place in the world for expatriates to live, out of 282 international locations.

For more cost of living information on Guernsey, St Peter Port