UK rents hit £1,400 a month, £2,332 in London — £79 a month more than a year ago

Average private rent in the UK reached £1,400 a month in August 2026, up 3.8% on the year. In July the annual rate was 3.7%, so rents are not cooling — they are edging up again. The figures were published by the Office for National Statistics on 16 September.

What is the average rent in each of the four nations?

England is the most expensive: £1,459 a month, up 4.0% on the year, against 3.8% a month earlier. Wales is £846 with the fastest annual rise of the four nations, 4.3%. Scotland is £1,013 but with growth of just 1.1% — the slowest in the UK. Northern Ireland's figures run two months behind: £874 and 1.6% on June data.

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The gap between the nations is wide: renting in England costs on average 1.7 times what it costs in Wales, while pay does not differ by anything like that.

What is happening to rents in London?

London remains a separate universe at £2,332 a month — 1.7 times the UK average. The story is not the level but the turn: annual growth in the capital accelerated from 3.0% in July to 3.5% in August. In money that is roughly £79 a month, or about £950 a year, on top of what the same flat cost twelve months ago.

The most expensive area in the country is Kensington and Chelsea at £3,690 a month.

Where are rents rising fastest?

Not in the south. The fastest annual rises are in the North East and the North West of England, both at 5.8% — twice the London rate. The slowest is the South East at 3.0%. In percentage terms it is exactly the regions people moved to for cheaper housing that are catching up.

What do rents look like by property type and bedrooms?

Detached homes are the most expensive at £1,589 a month; flats and maisonettes the cheapest at £1,367. By bedrooms the spread is wider still: one-bedroom homes average £1,136, four or more bedrooms £2,080. For a family that needs a second or third bedroom, every extra room costs more than the last.

Are house prices rising too?

Far more slowly. The average UK house price in July 2026 was £273,000, up 1.4% on the year. England £293,000 (+1.1%), Wales £215,000 (+2.6%), Scotland £196,000 (+2.3%). Northern Ireland stands apart at £202,000 and +9.2% on second-quarter data.

The comparison is the news: buying is getting more expensive nearly three times more slowly than renting. For anyone renting while saving a deposit, that is a rare good line — the target is moving away more slowly than the rent is rising.

What can you do if your rent goes up?

Since 1 May 2026 the rules in England are different. Rent can be raised only once a year, never in the first 12 months of a tenancy, and only by written notice on form 4A with at least two months' warning. An increase can be challenged at the First-tier Tribunal for a £47 fee, and from this year the tribunal cannot set the rent higher than the landlord asked for. The application must be made before the date the new rent starts. Full procedure: how to challenge a rent increase.

When is the next rent data published?

The next release is 21 October 2026. ONS publishes September inflation the same day — the figure used to uprate the State Pension — so 21 October will be a heavy day for numbers.