How much rent should I pay in London? (2026)

These are official ONS averages for August 2026, and they're up 3.5% on a year earlier. They include people who moved in years ago, so homes advertised today usually cost more than the average.

For a 1-bedroom home, the cheapest boroughs on average are:

• Havering — £1,217 a month
• Bexley — £1,229 a month
• Sutton — £1,239 a month

And the most expensive:

• Kensington and Chelsea — £2,640 a month
• Westminster — £2,548 a month
• Islington — £2,178 a month

See every London borough ranked.

There's no legal limit, but two rules of thumb are widely used:

• Around a third of your take-home pay is a common budgeting guide. In London many people pay more, which leaves less for everything else — so work out the full monthly cost below, not just the rent.
• Agents' affordability checks: many letting agents and referencing companies look for a yearly income of about 30 times the monthly rent (2.5 times the yearly rent). For a £1,760 flat, that's about £52,800 a year, on your own or combined with whoever you're renting with. If you're below it, a guarantor can often help.

Rent is only part of it. For an average 2-bedroom home in London, a typical month looks like this:

Energy, water, broadband and insurance are typical estimates; council tax is the London average for Band C in 2026-27. Living alone gets you 25% off council tax.

• Holding deposit: at most one week's rent, to reserve the home while checks are done. It normally goes towards your first rent or deposit.
• Tenancy deposit: at most five weeks' rent (six weeks if the rent is £50,000 a year or more). Your landlord must protect it in a government-approved scheme within 30 days.
• Rent in advance: since 1 May 2026, a landlord can't ask for rent before the tenancy agreement is signed, and then for no more than one month in advance.
• No letting fees: agents and landlords can't charge for viewings, referencing or admin.

So for a £2,232 flat, expect to need roughly £4,807 before you move in: the first month's rent plus a five-week deposit.

Averages can't tell you whether one flat is fairly priced. Compare it with similar homes advertised nearby — same size and type, similar building and condition. Our guide on how to check if a rent is fair explains how, and RentScore does it for any London address. If it's overpriced, here's how to negotiate.