Revealed: how much it costs to rent a flat in each London borough

Listen, you don’t need us to tell you that living in London is spenny. But seeing the cold, hard, numbers can still be pretty eye-watering. And with the cost of living crisis, they keep going up and up.

Research by the Evening Standard has revealed the average cost of renting a flat in each London borough, and damn, some of it ain’t pretty.

Topping the chart of pricey places to live is (probably unsurprisingly) Kensington and Chelsea, where it costs an average of £3,300 per calendar month to rent a flat. Close behind is Westminster, where it costs an average of £2,950 per month to rent. In third place, and costing a bit less, is Camden, where flats cost an average of £2,499 per month in rent. 

The east London boroughs of Hackney and Tower Hamlets, both popular with young people, have average rents of £2,119 and £2,069 per month, respectively. Meanwhile, the cheapest place to rent in the capital is Bexley, where rent costs an average of £1,326 per month – just behind Sutton at £1,366 per month.

With astronomical hikes in energy bills, council tax, and broadband, not to mention inflated prices of food and travel, it’s likely that the cost of living squeeze could tempt some Londoners to seek out cheaper rent or move elsewhere to get more bang for their buck. 

The figures confirm what we know already: moving to a tube zone further out will probably help save hundreds of pounds of your hard-earned cash. Obviously, that means more to spend on seven pound pints, sourdough and avocados. 

Average monthly flat rent by London borough

Kensington and Chelsea: £3,300

Westminster: £2,950

Camden: £2,499

Hammersmith and Fulham: £2,384

Islington: £2,203

Wandsworth: £2,176

Hackney: £2,119

Tower Hamlets: £2,069

Southwark: £2,064

Lambeth: £2,027

Richmond upon Thames: £1,939

Newham: £1,754

Greenwich: £1,670

Hounslow: £1,615

Brent: £1,600

Merton: £1,768

Ealing: £1,734

Haringey: £1,717

Barnet: £1,683

Kingston upon Thames: £1,616

Lewisham: £1,603

Waltham Forest: £1,595

Harrow: £1,547

Enfield: £1,511

Redbridge: £1,483

Hillingdon: £1,448

Bromley: £1,436

Barking and Dagenham: £1,410

Croydon: £1,371

Havering: £1,363

Sutton: £1,366

Bexley: £1,326

Source: Evening Standard.

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