Rightmove: New data – Most affordable cities to rent in

Rightmove logo

Hull tops the list as the most affordable city to rent in

  • The city of Hull tops the list as Great Britain’s most affordable city to rent in, with the average advertised rent in the city now £799 per calendar month (pcm), 48% below the national average
  • Second on the list of Great Britain’s most affordable cities is Carlisle, where the average advertised monthly rent is now £816 pcm. Wrexham is third on the list, at £817 pcm
  • The most expensive city to rent in outside of London is St. Albans (£2,330 pcm), followed by Oxford (£2,041 pcm) and Winchester (£1,985 pcm)
  • The findings come as many students have sent off their university applications this week

 

New data from the UK’s largest property website Rightmove, reveals that Hull has topped the list as the most affordable city in Great Britain to rent.

The average advertised rent in the city of Hull is £799 pcm, the lowest in Rightmove’s analysis of the 50 largest cities. The typical rent in Hull is 48% below the average across Great Britain, which now stands at £1,526 pcm.

A typical monthly rental payment in Hull takes up 26% of the average single monthly earning across Great Britain, compared with 50% nationally.

This is halved if two people were splitting the cost of the rent equally together.

Second on the list of Great Britain’s most affordable cities is Carlisle, where the average advertised monthly rent is now £816. Wrexham is third on the list, at £817 pcm.

The findings come as many students have sent off their university applications this week, with affordable rents being one factor that many will be considering.

At the other end, London continues to be the most expensive city to rent in with the average advertised rent of a home reaching a new record of £2,695 pcm.

St. Albans is second on the list at an average of £2,330 pcm, and Oxford is third at £2,041 pcm.

 

Steve Pimblett, Chief Data Officer at Rightmove, comments, “With average rents continuing to rise in most cities, many are having to consider their affordability when choosing a city to live in, including students heading off for their university adventure later this year.”

“We are seeing rental price growth slowing overall and a better balance between supply and demand. However, as seen by this data, the picture can look quite different depending on where you’re looking to live, and agents tell us the market is still very busy compared with pre-pandemic norms.”

 

Great Britain’s most affordable cities to rent in

Ranking City Average advertised rent per calendar month Average monthly rent as a % of average single monthly earning Average rental price growth compared to last year
1 Hull £799 26% +8.2%
2 Carlisle £816 27% +10.4%
3 Wrexham £817 27% -16.3%
4 Sunderland £833 27% +12.9%
5 Stoke-On-Trent £862 28% +5.5%
6 Bradford £876 29% +8.6%
7 Dundee £885 29% -3.7%
8 Doncaster £893 29% +2.7%
9 Lancaster £964 32% +3.9%
10 Preston £986 32% +3.5%
  GB £1,526 50% +4.3%

 

Great Britain’s most expensive cities to rent in

Ranking City Average advertised rent per calendar month Average monthly rent as a % of average single monthly earning Average rental price growth compared to last year
1 London £2,695 88% +8.2%
2 St. Albans £2,330 76% +2.2%
3 Oxford £2,041 67% +2.8%
4 Winchester £1,985 65% -3.3%
5 Brighton £1,880 62% +3.5%
6 Cambridge £1,870 61% +1.8%
7 Chelmsford £1,857 61% +8.5%
8 Salford £1,739 57% +30.5%
9 Milton Keynes £1,641 54% +9.2%
10 Edinburgh £1,620 53% +5.3%
  GB £1,526 50% +4.3%

 

Rightmove

UK Property news updates shared directly from Rightmove PLC - the country's leading property portal.

You May Also Enjoy

Breaking News

Mortgage Lenders and Administrators Statistics – 2025 Q1

Key findings The outstanding value of all residential mortgage loans increased by 1.2% from the previous quarter to £1,698.5 billion, and was 2.6% higher than a year earlier The value of gross mortgage advances increased by 12.8% from the previous quarter to £77.6 billion, the highest new advances since 2022 Q4, and was 50.4% higher…
Read More
Breaking News

UK Finance later life mortgage lending update Q1 2025

Today, UK Finance has published its later life mortgage lending update for Q1 2025. The report provides a quarterly insight into mortgages taken out by borrowers over the age of 55, the trends in lending, and demographics of those accessing the market. These trends cover mainstream lending to older borrowers, as well as specialist products…
Read More
Estate Agent Talk

Hidden Pitfalls Decreasing Your Home’s Value – top tips from Upstix CEO

Upstix sees asking prices drop hundreds of pounds every week a property is on the market – the Hidden Pitfalls That Could Be Decreasing Your Home’s Value – And What Sellers Need to Know Selling a home is one of life’s biggest financial decisions, but even the most desirable properties can fall short of their…
Read More
Breaking News

Planning authority bias towards large housebuilders

New insight from Searchland and City Sanctuary reveals that large residential developments of 50+ units are far more likely to gain planning approval than smaller schemes, marking a blow for SME developers in what is now being called a ‘wakeup call for policymakers’ and clear evidence of ‘structural bias’. Using Searchland’s internal planning data records*,…
Read More
Breaking News

AI planning tools will help solve the housing crisis

The Prime Minister, Kier Starmer has announced the launch of ‘Extract’, an AI assistant developed by the Government, alongside Google, designed for planning officers and local councils. Richard Beresford, Chief Executive of the National Federation of Builders (NFB), said: “Local Planning Authorities (LPAs) have been developing digital planning tools themselves, resulting in a sprawling mass…
Read More
Breaking News

Breaking Property News 10/06/25

Daily bite-sized proptech and property news in partnership with Proptech-X.   Eco Approach acquires AI retrofit tech leader Propflo to accelerate energy efficiency in UK properties Eco Approach, a national leader in energy performance certification and domestic retrofit, has announced the acquisition of Propflo, an award-winning AI startup helping property and finance professionals understand their…
Read More