The cost of living crisis is affecting all of us, with the price of rent, energy , fuel and even groceries rapidly rising.
But which regions in the UK are paying the most for living expenses?
A study by money.co.uk looked at the average prices of rent, houses, utilities and council tax across UK authorities, to reveal the UK areas paying the most in living costs.
They looked at rent, house prices gas, electricity and council tax costs.
Unsurprisingly, the fancy London region of Kensington and Chelsea is the most expensive region for both rent and house prices.
The average monthly rent is £2,971, and the average house costs £1.5million.
The most expensive region outside of London for rent and house prices is Elmbridge in the Southeast, with an average monthly cost of rent at £1,565 and an average house price of £667,118.
The most expensive region for electricity is Merseyside and North Wales with an average bill of £807.
The most expensive region for gas is London with an average bill of £581.
The region paying the most for council tax is Nottingham with an average Band D bill of £2,226.
This is how UK regions compare when it comes to the cost of living crisis.
Most and least expensive regions for rent
The most expensive local authority for rent is Kensington and Chelsea with an average monthly rent of £2,971.
In comparison, the cheapest local authority for rent is East Ayshire, with an average monthly rent of £456 - more than £2,500 cheaper.
Most and least expensive regions for house prices
The most expensive local authority for house prices is again Kensington and Chelsea, with an average house price of £1,513,711.
On the other hand, the local authority with the cheapest house prices is Inverclyde, with an average price of £111,462.
That's £1,402,249 (more than 170%) cheaper than the most expensive average house price.
Most and least expensive regions for electricity
Merseyside & North Wales is the most expensive authority for electricity, with residents paying on average £807 a year due to an average unit cost of 22.41p per kWh.
The local authority paying the least for electricity is Northern Ireland, with an average bill of £699 a year and an average unit cost of 19.43p per kWh.
Most and least expensive regions for gas
|
The Local Authority with the most expensive gas costs |
Average overall bill 2021 |
The local authority with the cheapest gas costs |
Average overall bill 2021 |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
1. |
London |
£581 |
North East |
£538 |
2. |
Southern |
£575 |
Yorkshire |
£542 |
3. |
South West |
£574 |
East Midlands |
£542 |
The most expensive local authority for gas costs is London, with an average bill of £581 a year and a unit cost of 4.27p per kWh.
The cheapest authority is the North East, with an average bill of £538 a year.
Most and least expensive regions for council tax
The most expensive authority for council tax is Nottingham, with an average band D bill costing £2,226.
The cheapest area, on the other hand, for council tax is Westminster with an average band D bill of £829 a significantly cheaper amount.
The difference between the most expensive local authority and the cheapest is £1,397.
