Cost of living in Glasgow
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Single: 1-bed home. Couple: 2-bed home. Family: 3-bed home with one child. Estimates use average local rent, Band D council tax, and standard figures for groceries, transport and childcare.
Glasgow is Scotland's largest city and noticeably cheaper to live in than Edinburgh. Rents in the Greater Glasgow rental market area average £1,266/month overall and £843 for a one-bed, and a single-person monthly basket of around £1,435 places it among the more affordable big-city options in the UK. Earnings for residents are £32,121/year, slightly below Edinburgh's, with an affordability score of 52.6% (rank #248 of 348): better than most English cities of comparable size. The economy has shifted significantly in the past two decades, with finance, professional services, life sciences, creative industries, and a long-standing engineering base all contributing. The three universities (Glasgow, Strathclyde, Caledonian) add a large student presence, and the cultural infrastructure (music venues, galleries, the SEC) is one of the strongest in the UK. The redevelopment of the city centre, the Clyde, and the Merchant City has changed Glasgow's reputation meaningfully. Honest downsides: weather is what you'd expect from a west-of-Scotland city. Some areas of Glasgow have higher deprivation than the headline numbers imply, and the gap between the affluent west and east end is one of the wider intra-city gaps in the UK. Council tax is among the lowest, but local services have been under pressure.
- Known for:
- Largest city in Scotland; the Merchant City and West End; SEC and a major music-and-arts circuit; three universities; the post-industrial regeneration along the Clyde.
- Transport:
- Trains to London Euston take about 4hr 30min; Edinburgh in 50 minutes. The Glasgow Subway is one of the oldest in the world. ScotRail covers the wider region; Glasgow Airport sits to the west.
- Character:
- Bigger, grittier, and friendlier than its reputation suggests. Lower costs than Edinburgh, a stronger music and arts scene than most UK cities, and a noticeable economic and demographic split between the west end and the eastern districts.
Rent in Glasgow
The average monthly rent in Glasgow is £1,266.
Source: ONS Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR)
Scottish rent figures are based on Broad Rental Market Area (BRMA) averages from the Scottish Government Private Sector Rent Statistics and ONS PIPR, not directly at council level. Councils within the same BRMA share the same headline figure.
Earnings in Glasgow
The average annual salary for residents of Glasgow is £32,121.
The average salary is the middle value: half of residents earn more and half earn less. The mean salary adds up everyone's pay and divides it by the number of people, so a few very high earners pull it up. We use the middle value as the average throughout this site.
Source: ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE)
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Average house prices in Glasgow
Source: ONS / HM Land Registry. Historical trend based on quarterly rolling-year average prices.
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Climate and weather in Glasgow
Summer daytime highs in Glasgow typically reach 19.5°C in July, dropping to around 7.0°C in January. Glasgow gets a fairly typical amount of rain for the UK, with rain falling on about 3.3 days a week. The area gets a typical amount of sunshine for the UK, averaging around 5.1 hours per day in summer. Expect frost on around 96 days per year, mostly between October and April.
| Month | Daytime high | Rainfall | Rain days | Sunshine | Frost days |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jan | 7.0°C | 122mm | 17 | 40h | 17 |
| Feb | 7.7°C | 98mm | 14 | 69h | 15 |
| Mar | 9.6°C | 84mm | 14 | 103h | 14 |
| Apr | 12.5°C | 61mm | 12 | 148h | 9 |
| May | 15.7°C | 66mm | 12 | 193h | 4 |
| Jun | 18.1°C | 69mm | 12 | 161h | 0 |
| Jul | 19.5°C | 84mm | 14 | 160h | 0 |
| Aug | 19.1°C | 93mm | 14 | 150h | 0 |
| Sep | 16.7°C | 89mm | 14 | 118h | 1 |
| Oct | 13.0°C | 119mm | 16 | 87h | 6 |
| Nov | 9.5°C | 112mm | 17 | 56h | 12 |
| Dec | 7.2°C | 127mm | 17 | 37h | 17 |
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How this is calculated
Climate data is based on Met Office 30-year averages (1991-2020), calculated from 9 observation grid points covering the Glasgow local authority area.
Source: Met Office HadUK-Grid , 1991-2020 averages. Crown copyright. Open Government Licence v3.0.
Council tax in Glasgow
Band D council tax in Glasgow is £1,706 per year.
Source: MHCLG / Scottish Government / Welsh Government
Energy costs in Glasgow
A typical household in Glasgow pays approximately £1,723/year (£144/month) for gas and electricity.
Energy region: South Scotland
This estimate is based on the Ofgem price cap for a typical dual-fuel household using 2,700 kWh of electricity and 11,500 kWh of gas per year, paying by Direct Debit. Your actual costs will depend on your usage, tariff, and whether you're on a fixed deal.
Source: Ofgem Energy Price Cap, Q4 2026
Water costs in Glasgow
The combined water and waste water charge from Scottish Water for a Band D home is £652/year (£54/month).
Water company: Scottish Water
In Scotland, water and waste water charges follow the council tax band and are billed with council tax. A lower band pays less and a higher band pays more. A home with one adult gets 25% off, as with council tax: £489 a year (£41 a month). Our single-person monthly cost uses that figure.
Source: Scottish Water 2026-27 charges for a Band D home (water £301.95 and waste water £350.37 a year, billed with council tax)
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Broadband in Glasgow
Glasgow has 91.5% full fibre coverage and 94.8% gigabit-capable coverage across residential premises.
Full fibre take-up: 37% of premises with full fibre available have taken it up.
"Gigabit-capable" means a connection of 1 Gbit/s or faster is available at the premises (full fibre or upgraded cable). "Full fibre" is fibre-to-the-premises specifically. "No decent broadband" counts premises below the 10 Mbit/s down / 1 Mbit/s up Universal Service Obligation.
See all UK areas ranked by broadband coverage →
Source: Ofcom Connected Nations 2025, July 2025
Crime in Glasgow
There were 849 recorded crimes per 10,000 people in Glasgow, which is above the Scotland average of 569. Glasgow ranks #206 out of 303 areas for lowest crime rate.
Recorded crime statistics reflect crimes reported to and recorded by police. They may not capture the full picture of crime in an area, and recording practices vary between forces.
Source: Home Office police recorded crime, 2025-26
Compare Glasgow with another area
How does Glasgow compare?
Side-by-side comparisons against three other UK areas, using the same single-person basket as the rest of the site.
Edinburgh costs around £187/month more than Glasgow on the same basket (£1,622/month vs £1,435/month).
See the full comparison → Glasgow vs ManchesterManchester costs around £200/month more than Glasgow on the same basket (£1,644/month vs £1,435/month).
See the full comparison → Glasgow vs BirminghamBirmingham costs around £37/month more than Glasgow on the same basket (£1,472/month vs £1,435/month).
See the full comparison →Or compare Glasgow with any UK area using the comparison tool.
Nearby areas
Explore the cost of living in areas close to Glasgow.