Paying the rent or mortgage each month is likely to be your number one financial priority. When you’re budgeting for the months ahead, it’s important to keep your housing at the top of the balance sheet!
If you’re thinking about moving somewhere new or starting a new job, you’re probably wondering how much you can – and should – put aside for monthly rent bills.
Simply use our calculator below, enter a few details, and you’ll have a clearer idea of what to budget for.
UK Rent budgeting calculator
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Usage Guide
The calculator is fairly simple to use, but here are a few quick pointers:
- Enter your pre-tax monthly income, also otherwise known as your monthly gross income.
- Optionally, enter a target percentage of your income that you want to spend on rent. We’ve already set it at 26% based on the UK median (see more below). Feel free to change based on your preferences.
Our monthly rent calculator operates on median data from rent that tenants pay across the UK. The calculator will also show you the amount that you can spend on rent along with some additional context.
How much should I spend on rent in the UK?
That depends on a few factors:
- Where you live,
- The type of property you rent,
- The size of the property you rent, and
- How many dependents live with you
However, it’s important to balance rent with other regular costs of running a property, too. For example, consider budgeting for:
- Council tax
- Entertainment at home (such as streaming, subscriptions, games, etc.)
- Entertainment outside home (such as sports, cinema trips, nights out, etc.)
- Water rates
- Phone and internet bills
- Groceries
- Clothing
- Gym memberships
- Travel costs (petrol, diesel, trains, buses, etc.)
- Energy bills (gas and electricity)
- TV license rates
- Loan repayments and credit card rates
- Mobile bills
- Insurance rates
Once you budget for all of the above, you should have a clear idea of money you have left to spend on rent.
What percentage of my income should go towards rent?
If you’ve worked out your individual figures from our calculations above, but still aren’t sure about what you can afford, the ONS statistics show you can expect to spend between 21% and 30% of your gross income (pre-tax income) on rent.
In England, private renters on a median household income can expect to pay around 26% of their income on median-priced rented homes, compared with 23% in Wales and Northern Ireland. These figures are a couple of percentage points higher than the figures in prior years. No doubt as we all know, this number keeps on climbing as inflation takes hold.
This is only a rough guide compared to the medians and averages across the country. Keep in mind that property values will vary, and even if rent is affordable to you based on your income, if you need to pay more in travel costs as a result, you’re not getting great value for money.
Where is rent most expensive in the UK?
According to figures from Statista, Cambridge and Bristol are the two most expensive cities or areas to rent in outside of London. London rents are typically higher than the rest of the UK as it’s the country’s commercial capital, and is considered more desirable for working and leisure opportunities.
In Cambridge, the average rental property per month costs around £1,431. That’s almost £350 higher than the average UK rent outside of London, at £1,078 per month. Bristol isn’t much cheaper, with average rents reaching £1,254 per property.
Edinburgh follows up close behind at £1,060, with Southampton at £1,006, Cardiff at £984, and Manchester at £928. According to Statista’s records, the average rent you’ll pay in Britain is around £894.
The most affordable rental properties are found across the North East, Wales, and in Northern Ireland.
Please note, these figures are averages from October 2022, at a time of increasing financial expenditure across the country. Therefore, they’re likely to change in due course.
Other rental costs to consider
If you’re renting a property for the first time, remember you’ll likely pay upfront costs on top of your monthly rent.
For example, a legitimate landlord or letting agent will request a security deposit before a rental agreement is legally binding. This is to ensure that, should there be any damages to the property in question, the landlord or letter can remove the cost from your deposit.
Do also remember that letting agency fees, too, may apply. Many people choose to rent through agencies for added protection and clearer communication. However, this often comes at a cost!
Always make sure you’re clear on whether or not specific costs are included in the price of your rental property, or if you’ll need to pay for them separately.
For example, in some cases, letting agencies and/or landlords may roll the costs of energy and phone rental into the price of your let. For many people, this can be better value, and removes the stress of having to balance and pay for other services separately.
Before you sign any letting agreement, make sure you’re clear on any rolling charges that may apply should your contract roll for over a year, for example.