Rankings

Cheapest places to live in the UK 2026

Q: What is the cheapest place to live in the UK?

Based on council tax Band D rates, the cheapest place to live in the UK is Wandsworth at £1,028/year. The national average across the 351 ranked areas is £2,336/year.

Q: How are the cheapest places ranked?

Areas are ranked by their council tax Band D rate, which is the standard benchmark used across the UK. Council tax is set by local authorities and varies significantly - from under £1,200/year to over £2,200/year.

Q: Which region has the cheapest places to live?

The Scotland has the most areas in the top 20 cheapest, with 15 entries.

Q: Does cheap council tax mean a low cost of living?

Not necessarily. Council tax is just one part of the cost of living. Rent, energy, water and transport costs also vary significantly between areas. For a fuller picture, see our area profiles which break down all major costs, or check our best value rankings which factor in earnings.

From small towns to major cities, here are the cheapest places and cities to live in the UK, ranked by official data. The cheapest place to live in the UK by council tax (Band D) is Wandsworth at £1,028/year, while the average across 351 ranked areas is £2,336/year.

Data last updated: 12 May 2026

The table below ranks all areas by Band D council tax, from lowest to highest. This is the standard benchmark rate set by each local authority. You can search for a specific area, filter by region, or click any column header to sort by rent or earnings instead. Click any area name to see its full cost of living profile.

Worth noting: low council tax does not necessarily mean a low cost of living overall. Several London boroughs appear near the top because they set low council tax rates, but their rent and housing costs are among the highest in the country. For a more complete picture, see the best value rankings which factor in earnings.

#	Area	Region	Council tax Band D (£/yr)	Avg. rent (£/mo)	Avg. earnings (£/yr)
1	Wandsworth	London	£1,028	£2,593	£49,310
2	Westminster	London	£1,050	£3,122	£45,172
3	City of London	London	£1,330	N/A	N/A
4	South Lanarkshire	Scotland	£1,468	£884	£34,293
5	Shetland Islands	Scotland	£1,488	£723	£35,716
6	Na h-Eileanan Siar	Scotland	£1,506	£723	£28,746
7	Hammersmith and Fulham	London	£1,520	£2,724	£42,811
8	North Lanarkshire	Scotland	£1,555	£812	£34,105
9	Fife	Scotland	£1,574	£812	£32,445
10	Dumfries and Galloway	Scotland	£1,579	£554	£29,649
11	Angus	Scotland	£1,599	£834	£30,681
12	Scottish Borders	Scotland	£1,619	£707	£28,796
13	East Renfrewshire	Scotland	£1,620	£826	£39,965
14	Edinburgh	Scotland	£1,626	£1,432	£37,380
15	West Lothian	Scotland	£1,628	£911	£33,302
16	Highland	Scotland	£1,634	£723	£31,416
17	Kensington and Chelsea	London	£1,667	£3,599	£46,690
18	Orkney Islands	Scotland	£1,669	£723	£31,737
19	Inverclyde	Scotland	£1,674	£826	£29,020
20	Perth and Kinross	Scotland	£1,674	£753	£31,851
21	West Dunbartonshire	Scotland	£1,682	£934	£31,962
22	Clackmannanshire	Scotland	£1,684	£900	£31,992
23	Aberdeenshire	Scotland	£1,686	£860	£33,799
24	North Ayrshire	Scotland	£1,686	£663	£34,689
25	Renfrewshire	Scotland	£1,691	£826	£32,832
26	South Ayrshire	Scotland	£1,695	£663	£33,986
27	East Lothian	Scotland	£1,698	£1,432	£33,737
28	Glasgow	Scotland	£1,706	£1,276	£32,121
29	Falkirk	Scotland	£1,715	£900	£32,330
30	East Ayrshire	Scotland	£1,717	£663	£33,117
31	Dundee	Scotland	£1,730	£834	£30,523
32	Moray	Scotland	£1,731	£860	£26,943
33	Aberdeen	Scotland	£1,748	£860	£32,399
34	East Dunbartonshire	Scotland	£1,752	£1,159	£38,000
35	Stirling	Scotland	£1,753	£900	£33,832
36	Argyll and Bute	Scotland	£1,783	£851	£30,436
37	Midlothian	Scotland	£1,816	£1,432	£31,856
38	Tower Hamlets	London	£1,838	£2,396	£45,183
39	Newham	London	£1,944	£1,912	£36,080
40	Windsor and Maidenhead	South East	£1,953	£1,809	£37,653
41	Southwark	London	£1,967	£2,388	£43,006
42	Cardiff	Wales	£2,013	£1,157	£32,756
43	Hillingdon	London	£2,045	£1,549	£36,429
44	Lambeth	London	£2,047	£2,525	£43,666
45	Isles of Scilly	South West	£2,048	N/A	N/A
46	Hackney	London	£2,060	£2,598	£40,237
47	Caerphilly	Wales	£2,083	£736	£30,854
48	Newport	Wales	£2,088	£953	£31,495
49	London	London	£2,090	£2,106	£40,350
50	Greenwich	London	£2,108	£1,944	£39,984
51	Islington	London	£2,108	£2,763	£47,411
52	Barnet	London	£2,133	£1,928	£39,239
53	Ealing	London	£2,139	£2,051	£35,665
54	Bromley	London	£2,140	£1,670	£43,981
55	Dudley	West Midlands	£2,145	£846	£30,822
56	Merton	London	£2,147	£2,083	£43,507
57	Wigan	North West	£2,153	£732	£31,615
58	Torfaen	Wales	£2,156	£853	£33,201
59	Pembrokeshire	Wales	£2,166	£687	£27,243
60	Doncaster	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,168	£684	£31,119
61	Stoke-on-Trent	West Midlands	£2,183	£708	£29,041
62	Hounslow	London	£2,186	£1,907	£35,301
63	Solihull	West Midlands	£2,197	£1,258	£36,672
64	Sunderland	North East	£2,197	£695	£27,989
65	Barking and Dagenham	London	£2,199	£1,687	£32,911
66	Camden	London	£2,208	£2,654	£44,088
67	Vale of Glamorgan	Wales	£2,232	£982	£31,410
68	Brent	London	£2,235	£1,969	£34,871
69	Lewisham	London	£2,237	£1,810	£39,505
70	Swansea	Wales	£2,238	£833	£32,091
71	Sandwell	West Midlands	£2,244	£938	£27,652
72	Basingstoke and Deane	South East	£2,255	£1,324	£39,279
73	Thurrock	East of England	£2,255	£1,344	£36,407
74	Telford and Wrekin	West Midlands	£2,256	£850	£31,459
75	Brentwood	East of England	£2,258	£1,605	£39,864
76	South Kesteven	East Midlands	£2,260	£835	£29,071
77	Isle of Anglesey	Wales	£2,261	£710	£29,944
78	Bracknell Forest	South East	£2,265	£1,501	£36,067
79	Southend-on-Sea	East of England	£2,265	£1,278	£33,594
80	Enfield	London	£2,268	£1,770	£34,962
81	Tendring	East of England	£2,270	£1,048	£29,545
82	Fareham	South East	£2,271	£1,206	£38,851
83	East Lindsey	East Midlands	£2,276	£678	£26,705
84	Epping Forest	East of England	£2,277	£1,826	£38,171
85	South Holland	East Midlands	£2,278	£759	£30,196
86	Braintree	East of England	£2,280	£1,227	£34,546
87	Colchester	East of England	£2,283	£1,216	£31,589
88	Leeds	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,284	£1,130	£31,679
89	York	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,287	£1,173	£32,961
90	Rhondda Cynon Taf	Wales	£2,289	£744	£29,802
91	Portsmouth	South East	£2,292	£1,357	£30,962
92	Trafford	North West	£2,292	£1,358	£35,593
93	Peterborough	East of England	£2,293	£976	£29,828
94	Hull	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,295	£684	£27,309
95	Redbridge	London	£2,295	£1,720	£37,190
96	Wakefield	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,297	£787	£29,954
97	Harlow	East of England	£2,299	£1,513	£30,654
98	Chelmsford	East of England	£2,300	£1,442	£35,791
99	Tamworth	West Midlands	£2,301	£966	£33,167
100	Stafford	West Midlands	£2,303	£882	£33,872
101	Broxbourne	East of England	£2,306	£1,649	£37,283
102	Derby	East Midlands	£2,306	£847	£30,467
103	Test Valley	South East	£2,306	£1,203	£35,314
104	Boston	East Midlands	£2,309	£793	£27,729
105	Wrexham	Wales	£2,309	£759	£29,752
106	Manchester	North West	£2,312	£1,347	£30,067
107	Haringey	London	£2,314	£2,209	£37,563
108	South Staffordshire	West Midlands	£2,314	£942	£31,766
109	Mid Suffolk	East of England	£2,317	£973	£31,507
110	Castle Point	East of England	£2,319	£1,231	£35,975
111	Havant	South East	£2,320	£1,127	£30,819
112	Rushmoor	South East	£2,320	£1,369	£33,734
113	Lincoln	East Midlands	£2,323	£946	£29,824
114	Barnsley	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,326	£670	£31,359
115	Basildon	East of England	£2,327	£1,396	£34,133
116	Maldon	East of England	£2,328	£1,151	£32,599
117	Medway	South East	£2,329	£1,241	£33,857
118	Newcastle-under-Lyme	West Midlands	£2,334	£824	£31,205
119	Uttlesford	East of England	£2,334	£1,285	£41,006
120	East Suffolk	East of England	£2,335	£831	£30,261
121	North Kesteven	East Midlands	£2,338	£857	£30,585
122	Staffordshire Moorlands	West Midlands	£2,338	£718	£31,065
123	Chesterfield	East Midlands	£2,339	£735	£30,621
124	Denbighshire	Wales	£2,339	£701	£26,812
125	South Derbyshire	East Midlands	£2,340	£871	£35,452
126	Tewkesbury	South West	£2,341	£983	£31,603
127	Babergh	East of England	£2,342	£969	£30,118
128	Eastleigh	South East	£2,342	£1,205	£34,474
129	East Hampshire	South East	£2,344	£1,252	£39,682
130	Gosport	South East	£2,344	£1,150	£34,256
131	North Lincolnshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,348	£631	£30,012
132	East Staffordshire	West Midlands	£2,351	£833	£31,517
133	West Suffolk	East of England	£2,351	£1,176	£33,437
134	Carmarthenshire	Wales	£2,351	£668	£30,774
135	Lichfield	West Midlands	£2,352	£1,091	£33,763
136	Powys	Wales	£2,352	£621	£30,275
137	West Lindsey	East Midlands	£2,354	£711	£30,741
138	Gloucester	South West	£2,356	£1,099	£30,455
139	Winchester	South East	£2,360	£1,498	£38,352
140	Bradford	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,361	£737	£28,424
141	Erewash	East Midlands	£2,361	£831	£31,673
142	Birmingham	West Midlands	£2,363	£1,086	£30,180
143	Rochford	East of England	£2,363	£1,285	£38,107
144	Bexley	London	£2,366	£1,531	£36,883
145	Halton	North West	£2,367	£732	£29,819
146	Cheltenham	South West	£2,370	£1,233	£36,014
147	Milton Keynes	South East	£2,372	£1,329	£36,061
148	Wychavon	West Midlands	£2,373	£925	£29,661
149	Dartford	South East	£2,375	£1,556	£36,210
150	Cannock Chase	West Midlands	£2,376	£841	£30,178
151	Flintshire	Wales	£2,376	£778	£32,675
152	Sutton	London	£2,379	£1,545	£38,359
153	Southampton	South East	£2,381	£1,246	£32,907
154	Rotherham	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,382	£678	£29,664
155	Bath and North East Somerset	South West	£2,383	£1,876	£32,481
156	Hinckley and Bosworth	East Midlands	£2,383	£920	£31,591
157	High Peak	East Midlands	£2,385	£900	£32,258
158	Ribble Valley	North West	£2,386	£803	£34,077
159	Waltham Forest	London	£2,387	£1,753	£37,971
160	Harborough	East Midlands	£2,390	£960	£34,321
161	Cotswold	South West	£2,392	£1,263	£32,927
162	Stevenage	East of England	£2,392	£1,417	£35,747
163	Bolton	North West	£2,400	£878	£29,409
164	Hart	South East	£2,400	£1,406	£39,341
165	St. Helens	North West	£2,403	£774	£31,443
166	Charnwood	East Midlands	£2,406	£949	£33,550
167	Hertsmere	East of England	£2,406	£1,787	£36,159
168	Swale	South East	£2,406	£1,104	£33,647
169	Worcester	West Midlands	£2,406	£955	£32,997
170	Oadby and Wigston	East Midlands	£2,407	£1,020	£28,368
171	Amber Valley	East Midlands	£2,408	£784	£30,823
172	Gravesham	South East	£2,408	£1,319	£35,065
173	Dacorum	East of England	£2,409	£1,577	£36,473
174	Ashford	South East	£2,410	£1,239	£32,991
175	Great Yarmouth	East of England	£2,414	£816	£28,808
176	Slough	South East	£2,414	£1,567	£35,521
177	Monmouthshire	Wales	£2,416	£987	£35,020
178	Crawley	South East	£2,418	£1,475	£34,225
179	North West Leicestershire	East Midlands	£2,418	£899	£32,252
180	Canterbury	South East	£2,419	£1,260	£30,188
181	St Albans	East of England	£2,419	£1,912	£45,543
182	Ceredigion	Wales	£2,419	£710	£29,326
183	Calderdale	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,420	£741	£31,708
184	New Forest	South East	£2,420	£1,234	£31,344
185	Three Rivers	East of England	£2,422	£1,807	£39,615
186	North Northamptonshire	East Midlands	£2,424	£978	£32,882
187	Havering	London	£2,425	£1,566	£40,726
188	Chorley	North West	£2,430	£773	£33,337
189	King's Lynn and West Norfolk	East of England	£2,430	£930	£30,581
190	Melton	East Midlands	£2,430	£790	£26,633
191	South Tyneside	North East	£2,434	£720	£28,784
192	Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole	South West	£2,436	£1,397	£31,848
193	Broadland	East of England	£2,438	£934	£30,920
194	Swindon	South West	£2,438	£1,082	£33,135
195	Luton	East of England	£2,440	£1,211	£28,741
196	Horsham	South East	£2,441	£1,444	£36,448
197	Kirklees	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,441	£759	£30,238
198	Plymouth	South West	£2,442	£985	£28,992
199	Forest of Dean	South West	£2,443	£820	£36,589
200	South Ribble	North West	£2,443	£787	£32,740
201	Breckland	East of England	£2,444	£909	£28,930
202	Derbyshire Dales	East Midlands	£2,445	£797	£33,700
203	Tunbridge Wells	South East	£2,446	£1,501	£35,319
204	Tameside	North West	£2,447	£917	£29,877
205	Watford	East of England	£2,447	£1,813	£37,172
206	Warrington	North West	£2,448	£880	£34,144
207	North Hertfordshire	East of England	£2,449	£1,408	£42,703
208	Malvern Hills	West Midlands	£2,451	£938	£28,167
209	Welwyn Hatfield	East of England	£2,452	£1,468	£37,805
210	Blackburn with Darwen	North West	£2,455	£707	£27,502
211	Cheshire East	North West	£2,455	£972	£33,221
212	East Hertfordshire	East of England	£2,455	£1,504	£44,154
213	West Lancashire	North West	£2,456	£794	£31,884
214	Worthing	South East	£2,456	£1,310	£32,823
215	North Norfolk	East of England	£2,460	£856	£28,421
216	Wyre	North West	£2,461	£717	£29,814
217	Dover	South East	£2,462	£962	£33,704
218	North Tyneside	North East	£2,462	£830	£31,106
219	Warwick	West Midlands	£2,462	£1,237	£39,797
220	Redditch	West Midlands	£2,463	£898	£29,113
221	East Riding of Yorkshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,466	£709	£31,881
222	Hyndburn	North West	£2,466	£638	£29,647
223	Cambridge	East of England	£2,467	£1,795	£38,711
224	North East Derbyshire	East Midlands	£2,467	£775	£30,931
225	Ipswich	East of England	£2,468	£985	£30,928
226	Gwynedd	Wales	£2,469	£685	£25,179
227	Chichester	South East	£2,470	£1,319	£28,585
228	Torbay	South West	£2,470	£899	£28,963
229	Bedford	East of England	£2,472	£1,163	£35,987
230	Tonbridge and Malling	South East	£2,472	£1,467	£35,106
231	Conwy	Wales	£2,473	£776	£28,113
232	Mid Sussex	South East	£2,474	£1,405	£37,705
233	Bridgend	Wales	£2,478	£736	£31,475
234	Bromsgrove	West Midlands	£2,479	£977	£36,409
235	Rugby	West Midlands	£2,483	£1,028	£41,814
236	South Norfolk	East of England	£2,483	£969	£32,934
237	Fylde	North West	£2,484	£848	£36,020
238	North East Lincolnshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,484	£614	£28,898
239	Stratford-on-Avon	West Midlands	£2,484	£1,120	£34,847
240	East Cambridgeshire	East of England	£2,485	£1,016	£34,311
241	Richmond upon Thames	London	£2,486	£2,302	£46,594
242	Arun	South East	£2,487	£1,217	£29,809
243	West Northamptonshire	East Midlands	£2,487	£1,070	£33,059
244	Knowsley	North West	£2,488	£805	£32,542
245	Blaby	East Midlands	£2,490	£977	£31,950
246	North Somerset	South West	£2,491	£1,194	£32,996
247	Stroud	South West	£2,491	£1,036	£33,495
248	Thanet	South East	£2,491	£1,107	£28,323
249	Runnymede	South East	£2,493	£1,567	£42,203
250	Darlington	North East	£2,494	£666	£30,100
251	Exeter	South West	£2,495	£1,312	£29,531
252	Wokingham	South East	£2,498	£1,479	£43,538
253	Wirral	North West	£2,501	£830	£32,959
254	Nuneaton and Bedworth	West Midlands	£2,502	£914	£32,402
255	Lancaster	North West	£2,503	£802	£29,651
256	Maidstone	South East	£2,503	£1,282	£34,151
257	Norwich	East of England	£2,503	£1,146	£30,421
258	West Berkshire	South East	£2,505	£1,273	£38,513
259	Westmorland and Furness	North West	£2,508	£797	£33,988
260	Sheffield	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,510	£920	£31,816
261	Cumberland	North West	£2,511	£659	£33,840
262	Harrow	London	£2,511	£1,754	£36,000
263	Wyre Forest	West Midlands	£2,512	£849	£29,408
264	Blackpool	North West	£2,513	£696	£27,979
265	Central Bedfordshire	East of England	£2,516	£1,238	£36,622
266	Cheshire West and Chester	North West	£2,517	£959	£32,391
267	Coventry	West Midlands	£2,517	£1,021	£33,063
268	Mole Valley	South East	£2,520	£1,545	£35,341
269	Rossendale	North West	£2,520	£810	£30,487
270	Sevenoaks	South East	£2,522	£1,781	£34,969
271	Spelthorne	South East	£2,526	£1,633	£37,918
272	Buckinghamshire	South East	£2,527	£1,467	£35,937
273	Shropshire	West Midlands	£2,528	£803	£29,603
274	Leicester	East Midlands	£2,529	£1,026	£27,858
275	Epsom and Ewell	South East	£2,531	£1,682	£43,006
276	Blaenau Gwent	Wales	£2,531	£668	£30,734
277	North Warwickshire	West Midlands	£2,532	£972	£35,067
278	South Cambridgeshire	East of England	£2,536	£1,399	£42,690
279	Fenland	East of England	£2,538	£830	£30,125
280	Folkestone and Hythe	South East	£2,539	£1,132	£33,355
281	Wolverhampton	West Midlands	£2,539	£928	£31,308
282	Neath Port Talbot	Wales	£2,541	£668	£30,709
283	Newcastle upon Tyne	North East	£2,542	£1,206	£30,144
284	North Yorkshire	Yorkshire and The Humber	£2,544	£831	£30,683
285	Redcar and Cleveland	North East	£2,544	£640	£28,630
286	Guildford	South East	£2,547	£1,698	£39,985
287	Adur	South East	£2,548	£1,379	£30,217
288	Burnley	North West	£2,549	£624	£29,680
289	Middlesbrough	North East	£2,549	£709	£30,253
290	South Gloucestershire	South West	£2,551	£1,445	£35,002
291	Bury	North West	£2,555	£965	£31,687
292	Huntingdonshire	East of England	£2,556	£1,045	£33,375
293	Elmbridge	South East	£2,558	£1,832	£42,607
294	Bolsover	East Midlands	£2,559	£692	£29,674
295	Hartlepool	North East	£2,560	£570	£28,830
296	Somerset	South West	£2,561	£980	£29,908
297	Reigate and Banstead	South East	£2,567	£1,628	£40,014
298	West Oxfordshire	South East	£2,567	£1,270	£35,388
299	Wiltshire	South West	£2,572	£1,056	£31,873
300	Herefordshire	West Midlands	£2,574	£815	£29,361
301	Preston	North West	£2,576	£778	£30,038
302	Vale of White Horse	South East	£2,577	£1,332	£38,859
303	Brighton and Hove	South East	£2,581	£1,826	£33,506
304	Cherwell	South East	£2,583	£1,289	£36,568
305	Sefton	North West	£2,583	£919	£29,335
306	Surrey Heath	South East	£2,585	£1,493	£37,793
307	Stockton-on-Tees	North East	£2,590	£732	£29,877
308	Cornwall	South West	£2,591	£1,004	£28,210
309	Salford	North West	£2,594	£1,161	£30,495
310	Merthyr Tydfil	Wales	£2,594	£753	£31,504
311	East Devon	South West	£2,595	£953	£32,154
312	Tandridge	South East	£2,595	£1,596	£33,316
313	Northumberland	North East	£2,597	£664	£30,456
314	South Oxfordshire	South East	£2,598	£1,377	£43,026
315	Woking	South East	£2,598	£1,615	£38,172
316	Croydon	London	£2,600	£1,560	£38,080
317	Mansfield	East Midlands	£2,600	£770	£28,170
318	Rochdale	North West	£2,601	£824	£29,535
319	Torridge	South West	£2,601	£788	£28,752
320	Oldham	North West	£2,602	£910	£29,124
321	Waverley	South East	£2,605	£1,431	£42,326
322	Ashfield	East Midlands	£2,609	£777	£27,797
323	Kingston upon Thames	London	£2,609	£1,796	£41,833
324	Gedling	East Midlands	£2,610	£891	£30,051
325	Reading	South East	£2,613	£1,579	£35,454
326	South Hams	South West	£2,615	£996	£29,721
327	Broxtowe	East Midlands	£2,618	£963	£30,966
328	Stockport	North West	£2,619	£1,091	£33,565
329	County Durham	North East	£2,622	£632	£29,718
330	Isle of Wight	South East	£2,626	£940	£26,740
331	Walsall	West Midlands	£2,627	£904	£29,112
332	Pendle	North West	£2,640	£645	£26,742
333	North Devon	South West	£2,642	£859	£28,386
334	Rushcliffe	East Midlands	£2,643	£1,031	£36,705
335	Teignbridge	South West	£2,643	£944	£28,911
336	Bassetlaw	East Midlands	£2,645	£716	£28,314
337	Eastbourne	South East	£2,654	£1,160	£31,199
338	Mid Devon	South West	£2,656	£869	£31,908
339	Liverpool	North West	£2,674	£893	£30,947
340	Hastings	South East	£2,677	£1,008	£29,323
341	Oxford	South East	£2,678	£1,952	£36,517
342	Newark and Sherwood	East Midlands	£2,682	£787	£29,806
343	Rother	South East	£2,701	£1,162	£30,790
344	West Devon	South West	£2,705	£837	£26,556
345	Bristol	South West	£2,714	£1,888	£34,051
346	Gateshead	North East	£2,716	£785	£29,494
347	Wealden	South East	£2,728	£1,259	£33,376
348	Rutland	East Midlands	£2,738	£968	£39,559
349	Nottingham	East Midlands	£2,755	£1,008	£26,512
350	Lewes	South East	£2,756	£1,320	£33,088
351	Dorset	South West	£2,765	£1,037	£31,444

A closer look at the top 10

The four London boroughs sitting at or near the top of the table (Wandsworth at £1,028, Westminster at £1,050, the City of London at £1,330 and Hammersmith and Fulham at £1,520) tell a very particular story. These authorities have long chosen to keep their Band D rates low, but the average rent in Wandsworth is around £2,593 a month and in Westminster over £3,100. The council tax bill is a rounding error next to the housing bill, so "cheapest" here means cheapest on one line of the budget, not cheapest to live in.

Strip London out and Scotland dominates the top 10. Six of the ten lowest Band D rates are Scottish: South Lanarkshire, the Shetland Islands, Na h-Eileanan Siar, North Lanarkshire, Fife and Dumfries and Galloway. Scotland's system produces lower Band D bills across the board because a larger share of local spending is funded through the block grant from Holyrood rather than the council tax base itself.

The contrast with rent and earnings on the same rows is the interesting part. Dumfries and Galloway at £1,579 Band D pairs with average rent of £554 a month and earnings of £29,649. That is a genuinely low cost of living, and the ratio between what you pay and what you take home is very different to a Wandsworth resident paying £1,028 in council tax while spending £2,500 a month on rent.

To see which areas actually leave the most room in the household budget once rent and council tax are both taken into account, the best value rankings reorder the whole list against local earnings.

Key findings

The cheapest area is Wandsworth at £1,028/year (Band D).
6 of the top 10 cheapest areas are in Scotland.
The average council tax Band D across all 351 ranked areas is £2,336/year.
The gap between the cheapest and most expensive is £1,737/year.

Methodology

Areas are ranked by Band D council tax for the 2026-27 financial year, inclusive of all major precepts (county, police, fire, combined authority where applicable). Where an area lacks Band D data, it has been excluded from the table. The figure shown is the total annual bill a Band D household would pay.

Read more about our data sources and approach on the About page.

Frequently asked questions about the cheapest places to live

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Does cheap council tax mean a low cost of living?

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Data on this page is sourced from: ONS Price Index of Private Rents (PIPR), Scottish Government Private Sector Rent Statistics, ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, ONS / HM Land Registry House Price Statistics, and MHCLG / Scottish Government / Welsh Government council tax data. All data is published under the Open Government Licence.