London
United Kingdom
Good-quality 1-bedroom rent £2,000/month · prices about 5% above Brussels
Housing, income and price-level figures for London from official statistics, each with its source and date. Country-level context is labelled as country-level.
Official sourcesDated figuresComparable
A global city
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for a brighter
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City Overview
A good-quality 1-bedroom flat costs about £2,000 a month to rent. Prices overall are about 5% above Brussels. 84% of residents say they are satisfied living here, and 59% feel safe walking alone at night.
♙Population8,961,989
▣CurrencyGBP
◷TimezoneEurope/London
▤CountryUnited Kingdom
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What residents of London say
Share of people living in London who gave each answer in the European Commission survey on quality of life in European cities (2023). This is what residents report about their own city, not an official rating.
Satisfied to live in this city84%Average of 27 European capitals: 86%
Feel safe walking alone at night in the city59%Average of 27 European capitals: 68%
Easy to find good housing at a reasonable price21%Average of 27 European capitals: 24%
Easy to find a good job51%Average of 27 European capitals: 47%
Say the city is a good place to live for immigrants73%Average of 27 European capitals: 65%
Say it is a good place for families with young children71%Average of 27 European capitals: 76%
Satisfied with public transport83%Average of 27 European capitals: 71%
Satisfied with health care, doctors and hospitals67%Average of 27 European capitals: 64%
Satisfied with green spaces such as parks87%Average of 27 European capitals: 76%
Satisfied with air quality47%Average of 27 European capitals: 58%
Satisfied with cleanliness54%Average of 27 European capitals: 57%
Agree most people in the city can be trusted63%Average of 27 European capitals: 59%
City services are easy to use online70%Average of 27 European capitals: 68%
Had difficulty paying bills most of the time (last 12 months)10%Average of 27 European capitals: 10%
See how all European capitals rank on these questions →
Source: European Commission and Eurostat, survey on quality of life in European cities, 2023 (dataset urb_percep, area surveyed: London). Where a question has two positive answers, for example "very satisfied" and "rather satisfied", Placeivo adds the two shares. Retrieved 2026-10-13. Full survey data
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Cost of Living in London
About 5% above Brussels
104.5Price level index (Brussels = 100)
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What Stands Out
Favorable signals● High university enrolment nationally● High internet use nationally
Considerations● High rent burden
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Income
Disposable-income benchmark£36,487/year
Salary benchmark£4,152/month
Unemployment rate (city)5.0%City, 2018, Eurostat Urban Audit
Unemployment rate (national)4.7%Country context when available (national)
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Climate & Context
Average temperature12.4°CYear 2025, Open-Meteo
Total rainfall613 mm/yearYear 2025, Open-Meteo
Internet users95%Country context (national)
Physicians per 1,000 people3.3Country context (national)
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City statistics (Eurostat Urban Audit)
Population (city)8,866,541City, 2018, Eurostat urb_cpop1 (DE1001V)
Unemployment rate (city)5.0%City, 2018, Eurostat urb_clma (EC1020I)
Monthly public transport ticket (5-10 km, central zone)Not yet verifiedNo Eurostat city figure for 2015 or later
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Who lives in London
Residents with foreign citizenshipNot yet verifiedNo Eurostat city figure for 2015 or later
Residents with non-EU citizenshipNot yet verifiedNo Eurostat city figure for 2015 or later
Residents born abroadNot yet verifiedNo Eurostat city figure for 2015 or later
Source: Eurostat, Urban Audit city statistics (datasets urb_cpop1, urb_clma, urb_cpopcb, urb_ctran). Area: London (Urban Audit code UK001C); a "greater city" covers more than the municipality. Each figure is the latest year Eurostat publishes for this city, so years differ; figures older than 2015 are not shown. Foreign citizenship and country of birth are different measures. Data updated by Eurostat 2026-10-02, retrieved 2026-10-13.
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Sources & dates for London
Rent
Average monthly rent for a good-quality unfurnished 1-bedroom flat in selected neighbourhoods, excluding utilities. Surveyed by Eurostat for EU staff pay, so it reflects international-standard housing rather than the cheapest local options.£2,000/monthEurostat — Average rent per month in cities by type of dwelling · reference period 2025
Average monthly rent for a good-quality unfurnished 1-bedroom flat in selected neighbourhoods, excluding utilities. Surveyed by Eurostat for EU staff pay, so it reflects international-standard housing rather than the cheapest local options.£2,000/monthEurostat — Average rent per month in cities by type of dwelling · reference period 2025
Rent, all home types
ONS average monthly private rent across all dwelling types in London (houses and flats of every size). A second view of London rents; not the same basis as the Eurostat 1-bedroom figure above, so do not compare it with other cities.£2,317/monthONS Price Index of Private Rents · reference period Jul 2026
ONS average monthly private rent across all dwelling types in London (houses and flats of every size). A second view of London rents; not the same basis as the Eurostat 1-bedroom figure above, so do not compare it with other cities.£2,317/monthONS Price Index of Private Rents · reference period Jul 2026
Disposable income per person
ONS gross disposable household income per head for London.£36,487/yearOffice for National Statistics — Regional gross disposable household income · reference period 2024
ONS gross disposable household income per head for London.£36,487/yearOffice for National Statistics — Regional gross disposable household income · reference period 2024
Rent burden
Placeivo calculation: one year of the rent above divided by regional disposable income per person. A comparison guide, not a household budget.65.8%Placeivo derived affordability calculation — London · reference period 2024
Placeivo calculation: one year of the rent above divided by regional disposable income per person. A comparison guide, not a household budget.65.8%Placeivo derived affordability calculation — London · reference period 2024
Price level (Brussels = 100)
Eurostat correction coefficient for duty stations outside the EU (Brussels = 100).104.5Eurostat — Extra-EU duty-station cost-of-living index · reference period 2025
Eurostat correction coefficient for duty stations outside the EU (Brussels = 100).104.5Eurostat — Extra-EU duty-station cost-of-living index · reference period 2025
Median full-time salary
ONS median gross monthly earnings of full-time employees working in London.£4,152/monthONS ASHE 2025 — London regional full-time earnings · reference period Apr 2025
ONS median gross monthly earnings of full-time employees working in London.£4,152/monthONS ASHE 2025 — London regional full-time earnings · reference period Apr 2025
Average temperature
Open-Meteo historical weather archive (ERA5 reanalysis) for the city centre, measured over one full calendar year (temperature averaged, rainfall added up). One year of weather, not a 30-year climate average.12.4 °COpen-Meteo · reference period 2025
Open-Meteo historical weather archive (ERA5 reanalysis) for the city centre, measured over one full calendar year (temperature averaged, rainfall added up). One year of weather, not a 30-year climate average.12.4 °COpen-Meteo · reference period 2025
Total rainfall
Open-Meteo historical weather archive (ERA5 reanalysis) for the city centre, measured over one full calendar year (temperature averaged, rainfall added up). One year of weather, not a 30-year climate average.613 mm/yearOpen-Meteo · reference period 2025
Open-Meteo historical weather archive (ERA5 reanalysis) for the city centre, measured over one full calendar year (temperature averaged, rainfall added up). One year of weather, not a 30-year climate average.613 mm/yearOpen-Meteo · reference period 2025
Unemployment, homicide rate, doctors, university enrolment and internet use above are national World Bank indicators for the whole country and are marked “national”. See the methodology for how each figure is collected, or report a correction.
⚖Compare London
Compare London
with another city
Compare the canonical measures that both cities actually share.
LondonUnited Kingdom65.8%Rent burden
VS
ParisFrance62.8%Rent burden