The average agreed rent for new tenancies in the UK ranged from *** British pounds to ***** British pounds, depending on the region. On average, renters outside of London paid ***** British pounds, whereas in London, this figure amounted to ***** British pounds. Rents have been on the rise for many years, but the period after the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated this trend. Since 2015, the average rent in the UK increased by about ** percent, with about half of that gain achieved in the period after the pandemic. Why have UK rents increased so much? One of the main reasons driving up rental prices is the declining affordability of homeownership. Historically, house prices grew faster than rents, making renting more financially feasible than buying. In 2022, when the house price to rent ratio index peaked, house prices had outgrown rents by nearly ** percent since 2015. As house prices peaked in 2022, home buying slowed, exacerbating demand for rental properties and leading to soaring rental prices. How expensive is too expensive? Although there is no official requirement about the proportion of income spent on rent for it to be considered affordable, a popular rule is that rent should not exceed more than ** percent of income. In 2024, most renters in the UK exceeded that threshold, with the southern regions significantly more likely to spend upward of ** percent of their income on rent. Rental affordability has sparked a move away from the capital to other regions in the UK, such as the South East (Brighton and Southampton), the West Midlands (Birmingham) and the North West (Liverpool, Manchester, Blackpool and Preston).

Between 2008 and 2024, the average weekly rent for private renters in England has shown a significant increase. In the 2009, the average rent was 153 British pounds, and by 2024, it had risen to 237 British pounds. Excluding London, the average rent started at 130 British pounds in 2009 and reached 191 British pounds in 2024, demonstrating a similar upward trend but at a lower rate compared to the overall average in England. Rental households in England Renting is common in England. Nearly one in five households occupied a dwelling that was privately rented in 2024. While the majority of households in the country live in an owner-occupied home, this percentage has declined since the early 2000s. Meanwhile, the share of households occupying a private rental has doubled over the past decade. This shows a growing rental sector and a shift in tenure trends in the country. Buying vs renting costs For a long time, the average monthly costs of buying a home were lower than renting. In 2021, housing costs started to increase steeply, closely followed by rental costs. This resulted in the gap nearly closing in 2023. This trend can also be observed through the house price to rent ratio - an index that follows the development of house prices relative to rents, with 2015 as a baseline year. Between 2015 and 2022, the ratio grew steadily, indicating that property prices rise faster than rents. However, with rental growth accelerating and catching up with property prices in 2022, the index declined notably.

Median monthly rental prices for the private rental market in England by bedroom category, region and administrative area, calculated using data from the Valuation Office Agency and Office for National Statistics.

Rent Inflation in the United Kingdom increased to 3.20 percent in February from 3.10 percent in January of 2026. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United Kingdom Rent Inflation.

Comprehensive dataset of average rental costs across major US cities, including one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartment prices

This dataset contains average rents of Camden housing stock by bedroom size. These values are from the annual Housing Revenue Account Budget and Rent Review document - links to this document are included in the dataset.

Summary of average monthly rents in private rental market, recorded per 12 month rolling period. Data updated quarterly by local authority areas for England. The release presents the mean (average), median, lower quartile, and upper quartile gross monthly rent paid (ignoring any adjustment for services not eligible for housing benefit), for a number of bedroom/room categories for each Local Authority (LA) in England for the 12 month period stated. Full set of local authority tables available on the VOA website. Full notes, methodolgy and glossary available from http://www.voa.gov.uk/corporate/statisticalReleases/120823_PRRM_ReleaseNotes.html

This is the mean (average) gross monthly rent in pounds for properties with one bedroom on the private rental market for the area, over a 12 month period. These are self-contained properties including houses, bungalows, flats and maisonettes. These statistics taken from the Valuation Office Agency (VOA) administrative database are simple price averages rounded to the nearest £1. The sample used to produce these statistics is not statistical and may not be consistent over time; as such, these data should not be compared across time periods or between areas. Housing Benefit claimants are not included in the sample.Data is Powered by LG Inform Plus and automatically checked for new data on the 3rd of each month.

Price to Rent Ratio in the United Kingdom decreased to 110.71 in the fourth quarter of 2025 from 111.09 in the third quarter of 2025. This dataset includes a chart with historical data for the United Kingdom Price to Rent Ratio.

Rent Affordability: Average monthly private rent as a percentage of median monthly salary - (2 bedroom properties)

Renting an apartment in Cambridge cost on average ***** British pounds per month in July 2025. This made it one of the most expensive cities for renters in the UK after London. In London region, the average rent amounted to ***** British pounds. According to the source, this figure shows the asking rent, adjusted for achieved rents. A comparison of the rent prices of different London boroughs shows that costs may vary by several hundred and even over a thousand British pounds. Looking at the regional prices, Northern Ireland, Wales, and the Northeast emerged as the regions with the most affordable rents.

Amount charged weekly by Local Authorities for social housing.
Rents data are based on the financial year.

Stock figures used to estimate the average for each county, region and the nation are taken at 1st April of the following financial year. Average rents data between 2003/04 and 2007/08 inclusively is based on total stock figures from Housing Revenue Account (HRA) audited base claim form. Before 2003/04 the average rents data is based on total stock figures from the Housing Revenue Account (HRA) second subsidy claim form.

Rents data for 2008/09 are based on total stock figures as at the beginning of the financial year. This data is taken from the HRA subsidy base data form. Average rent data for this year are provisional and will be updated when stock data at the start of the following financial year become available.

For a few authorities no rent figure is given because the stock is now very small and the authority no longer reports average rents. For some local authorities the average rent for 2003/04 is lower than in 2002/03. This may be due to some local authorities supplying net rents excluding service charges from 2003/04 onwards. Prior to 2003/04 some of them may have been including service charges in their rent figures. Average rent figures do not account for stock composition.

'LSVT': all or most of the local authority stock has been transferred to the RSL sector, so the average rent is no longer applicable. LSVTs are not taken into account when calculating county, regional or national averages. MYT (Mid-Year Transfer) refers to those authorities that have transferred their stock in full, part way through the financial year.

Where a local authority has transferred part of it's stock mid-year, the stock figure used to estimate averages is taken as at 1st April the following financial year. MYT information is provided from 2003/04 onwards only. Prior to 2003/04 average rents figures may be based on stock figures at the start of the financial year prior to any mid-year transfer.

The districts, unitary authorities and counties listed above are based on 1 April 1998 boundaries. Figures for any 'new' re-organised areas have been estimated retrospectively applying the new boundaries back to 1996. Average rents data for 2003/04 and onwards are based on a standardised 52 week collection. Data prior to 2003/04 may have been reported on various different collection scales. Average rent is calculated from stock-owning local authorities that have provided data.

View Live Tables on Rents and Tenancies on DCLG website

Average rents for council owned stock are reported in section H of the Local Authority Housing Statistics data

This is the average weekly Private Registered Provider (PRP) rent in GBP for the financial year.Until 2011, data was collected by the Tenant Services Authority via the annual Regulatory and Statistical Return (RSR). From 2012, it was collected by the Homes and Communities Agency via the Statistical Data Return (SDR). In 2018, the responsibility for the SDR was moved to the Regulator of Social Housing (RSH).

Figures are based on general needs stock available for social rent only and are only taken from the larger Private Registered Providers (PRPs) completing the long form. Up to 2006, the threshold for completing the long form was that the PRP owned/managed at least 250 units/bed spaces. From 2007, this increased to 1,000 units/bed spaces. From 2012, the threshold for completing the long form of the SDR was that the PRP owned at least 1,000 units/bed spaces.

The average PRP rents within a local authority area can move down from one year to the next. This is especially true if, during the latest year, most of the LA stock has been transferred through a large-scale voluntary transfer to the PRP sector. Averages are calculated for self-contained units only.

Data is Powered by LG Inform Plus and automatically checked for new data on the 3rd of each month.

The average weekly rent of social renters in England increased by about 47 British pounds from 2009 to 2024. From a value of 71 British pounds per week in 2009, social housing rent rose to a value of 118 British pounds per week in 2024. In 2024, around four million houses were being rented out socially.