It’s no secret that prices and salaries vary widely across the UK, and with the cost of living increasing, many Brits are likely to resort to measures such as cost-cutting and taking advantage of financial offers like bank switching deals. Which cities are the best to live in if you want to benefit from the highest disposable income?
The average British adult living in a UK city has £575 a month in disposable income in 2026 after paying taxes, bills and essential living costs. Disposable income can be used for savings, holidays and discretionary spending.
| City | Disposable income |
|---|---|
| Aberdeen | £1,240 |
| Carlisle | £1,186 |
| Derby | £1,163 |
| Derry | £1,003 |
| Dunfermline | £959 |
| Chester | £918 |
| Liverpool | £914 |
| Coventry | £914 |
| Preston | £908 |
| Sheffield | £905 |
| Dundee | £903 |
| Hull | £899 |
| Glasgow | £889 |
| Durham | £886 |
| Milton Keynes | £880 |
| Doncaster | £880 |
| Wakefield | £878 |
| Stoke on Trent | £875 |
| Worcester | £869 |
| Wolverhampton | £864 |
| Sunderland | £857 |
| Birmingham | £854 |
| Plymouth | £848 |
| Lancaster | £831 |
| Colchester | £828 |
| Lincoln | £826 |
| Swansea | £825 |
| Newcastle | £820 |
| Portsmouth | £817 |
| Bradford | £810 |
| Leeds | £809 |
| Salford | £773 |
| York | £764 |
| Gloucester | £762 |
| Hereford | £758 |
| Peterborough | £752 |
| Newport | £752 |
| Southampton | £748 |
| Edinburgh | £734 |
| Belfast | £734 |
| Chelmsford | £733 |
| Cardiff | £731 |
| Norwich | £702 |
| Canterbury | £695 |
| Nottingham | £667 |
| Cambridge | £648 |
| Leicester | £615 |
| Manchester | £581 |
| Oxford | £577 |
| Exeter | £564 |
| Bristol | £554 |
| St Albans | £551 |
| Southend | £474 |
| Bath | £453 |
| London | £381 |
| Brighton | £327 |
We studied the income and the cost of living in 56 cities around the UK to find out which cities have the most and least money to spare. For this analysis, disposable income means the money left over after paying for essentials, including taxes, bills and recurring monthly living costs. It assumes a single UK adult is renting a 1-bedroom flat in a UK city.
1. Dunfermline, £1,206
2. Chester, £1,143
3. Carlisle, £1,137
4. Aberdeen, £1,057
5. Derry, £1,042
1. London, £217
2. Bristol, £423
3. Brighton, £453
4. Canterbury, £474
5. Nottingham, £497
Of the cities analysed, those in Dunfermline, Scotland had the most disposable income each month, with an average of £1,206, 110% higher than the UK average of £575. They are closely followed by Chester residents, who have an average of £1,143 to spare, and Carlisle residents, who have an average of £1,143 left over.
At the other end of the spectrum, residents in London had just £217 a month. Those in Bristol were not far behind with £423 a month, while those in Brighton have just £453 left over each month.
Unsurprisingly, London has the highest living costs of the UK cities analysed, with an average monthly spend of £2,722 on rent and basic costs. The cost to rent a 1-bedroom flat in London is £1,620 – 45% higher than the UK average – so it’s no shock that living costs are so high in the capital.
The cheapest city on the list for living costs was Hull, where the average single Brit could expect to spend just £1,200 on rent and essentials. Other cities with low living costs include Durham (£1,244), Doncaster (£1,269) and Carlisle (£1,291).
The monthly living costs for a single person in most cities were between £1,200 and £2,000, with just the top 7 cities leaping ahead with living costs of more than £2,000.
1. London, £2,722
2. Oxford, £2,249
3. Cambridge, £2,151
4. Bristol, £2,122
5. Bath, £2,094
1. Hull, £1,200
2. Durham, £1,244
3. Doncaster, £1,269
4. Carlisle, £1,291
5. Dunfermline, £1,305
| City | Monthly salary after tax | Monthly living costs | Single room cost | Total living costs | Disposable income |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aberdeen | £2,720 | £895 | £586 | £1,481 | £1,240 |
| Carlisle | £2,423 | £784 | £453 | £1,237 | £1,186 |
| Derby | £2,559 | £821 | £575 | £1,396 | £1,163 |
| Derry | £2,253 | £733 | £517 | £1,250 | £1,003 |
| Dunfermline | £2,313 | £821 | £534 | £1,355 | £959 |
| Chester | £2,394 | £821 | £655 | £1,476 | £918 |
| Liverpool | £2,377 | £837 | £626 | £1,463 | £914 |
| Coventry | £2,432 | £783 | £735 | £1,518 | £914 |
| Preston | £2,252 | £821 | £524 | £1,345 | £908 |
| Sheffield | £2,368 | £815 | £648 | £1,463 | £905 |
| Dundee | £2,293 | £821 | £570 | £1,391 | £903 |
| Hull | £2,176 | £821 | £456 | £1,277 | £899 |
| Glasgow | £2,550 | £873 | £788 | £1,661 | £889 |
| Durham | £2,081 | £784 | £411 | £1,195 | £886 |
| Milton Keynes | £2,629 | £821 | £928 | £1,749 | £880 |
| Doncaster | £2,149 | £815 | £454 | £1,269 | £880 |
| Wakefield | £2,231 | £821 | £533 | £1,354 | £878 |
| Stoke on Trent | £2,166 | £821 | £471 | £1,292 | £875 |
| Worcester | £2,347 | £821 | £657 | £1,478 | £869 |
| Wolverhampton | £2,273 | £821 | £588 | £1,409 | £864 |
| Sunderland | £2,170 | £821 | £492 | £1,313 | £857 |
| Birmingham | £2,427 | £785 | £789 | £1,574 | £854 |
| Plymouth | £2,320 | £821 | £652 | £1,473 | £848 |
| Lancaster | £2,197 | £821 | £546 | £1,367 | £831 |
| Colchester | £2,427 | £821 | £778 | £1,599 | £828 |
| Lincoln | £2,259 | £821 | £613 | £1,434 | £826 |
| Swansea | £2,279 | £821 | £633 | £1,454 | £825 |
| Newcastle | £2,296 | £784 | £691 | £1,475 | £820 |
| Portsmouth | £2,500 | £821 | £862 | £1,683 | £817 |
| Bradford | £2,148 | £821 | £517 | £1,338 | £810 |
| Leeds | £2,382 | £830 | £743 | £1,573 | £809 |
| Salford | £2,431 | £821 | £838 | £1,659 | £773 |
| York | £2,393 | £821 | £808 | £1,629 | £764 |
| Gloucester | £2,254 | £821 | £671 | £1,492 | £762 |
| Hereford | £2,143 | £821 | £565 | £1,386 | £758 |
| Peterborough | £2,237 | £821 | £665 | £1,486 | £752 |
| Newport | £2,190 | £776 | £663 | £1,439 | £752 |
| Southampton | £2,402 | £821 | £834 | £1,655 | £748 |
| Edinburgh | £2,663 | £909 | £1,021 | £1,930 | £734 |
| Belfast | £2,253 | £733 | £786 | £1,519 | £734 |
| Chelmsford | £2,528 | £821 | £975 | £1,796 | £733 |
| Cardiff | £2,357 | £776 | £850 | £1,626 | £731 |
| Norwich | £2,272 | £821 | £749 | £1,570 | £702 |
| Canterbury | £2,323 | £821 | £807 | £1,628 | £695 |
| Nottingham | £2,179 | £821 | £691 | £1,512 | £667 |
| Cambridge | £2,765 | £900 | £1,218 | £2,118 | £648 |
| Leicester | £2,115 | £821 | £680 | £1,501 | £615 |
| Manchester | £2,412 | £875 | £956 | £1,831 | £581 |
| Oxford | £2,639 | £821 | £1,242 | £2,063 | £577 |
| Exeter | £2,265 | £821 | £880 | £1,701 | £564 |
| Bristol | £2,546 | £853 | £1,139 | £1,992 | £554 |
| St Albans | £2,582 | £821 | £1,210 | £2,031 | £551 |
| Southend | £2,098 | £821 | £803 | £1,624 | £474 |
| Bath | £2,367 | £821 | £1,094 | £1,915 | £453 |
| London | £2,998 | £1,043 | £1,574 | £2,617 | £381 |
| Brighton | £2,398 | £899 | £1,172 | £2,071 | £327 |
Sophie Barber
Communications Manager
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