The most competitive towns to rent in the UK
Key Points
- Rental agency SpareRoom has named Bootle in Merseyside the most competitive place to rent a room in the UK.
- The group's data shows that Bootle is also one of the cheapest towns to rent in the country with an average rent of £487 a month for a room.
- None of the highest demand areas are in cities, but all sit within commuting distance of one.
- "The prolonged high cost of living has split the flatshare market," said Matt Hutchinson, Director of SpareRoom.
- The current Rent a Room Scheme lets homeowners earn up to a set threshold of £7,500 a year tax-free for letting a furnished room.
Rental agency SpareRoom has named Bootle in Merseyside the most competitive place to rent a room in the UK, with an average of 12.5 renters enquiring for every room in the city.
Notably, the group’s data shows that Bootle is also one of the cheapest towns to rent in the country with an average rent of £487 a month for a room.
By comparison, Richmond-upon-Thames in London ranked as the second most competitive town where the average room rent is £1,006 a month, more than double Bootle’s.
Musselburgh, five miles East of Edindburgh, ranks third on the list with with 10.2 enquirers per room and an average room rent of £678.
Notably, none of the highest demand areas are in cities, but all sit within commuting distance of one, a strong market for flatsharers and young and upcoming professionals. The tightest clusters can be seen surrounding London, Manchester, and Edinburgh.
| Rank | Town/City | Enquirers per room | Average room rent Q2 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bootle | 12.5 | £487 |
| 2 | Richmond-upon-Thames | 11.7 | £1,006 |
| 3 | Musselburgh | 10.2 | £678 |
| 4 | Widnes | 8.7 | £536 |
| 5 | Worcester Park | 8.6 | £536 |
| 6 | Alderley Edge | 8.6 | £698 |
| 7 | Wilmslow | 8.6 | £698 |
| 8 | Teddington | 8.6 | £835* |
| 9 | Ashton-under-Lyne | 8.5 | £609 |
| 10 | Deeside | 8.4 | £590 |
| 11 | Sale | 8.4 | £692 |
| 12 | Ware | 8.3 | £691 |
| 13 | Hamilton | 8.1 | £615 |
| 14 | Balerno | 8.0 | £710 |
| 15 | Currie | 8.0 | £710 |
| 16 | Juniper Green | 8.0 | £710 |
| 17 | Morden | 8.0 | £824 |
| 18 | West Bromwich | 8.0 | £533 |
*Rent based on small sample size
“The prolonged high cost of living has split the flatshare market,” said Matt Hutchinson, Director of SpareRoom. “You’ve got hard-up renters being priced out of shared living in major cities; you’ve got affluent young professionals who don’t see renting solo as a sensible stepping stone to buying so they’re sharing for longer to save faster; and you’ve got those flatsharing in their 40s, 50s and beyond who may prefer a suburban lifestyle.”
Hutchinson added that suburban areas hold more unde-occupied homes than cities, which SpareRoom described as an underused supply source for the rental market.
“In suburbia there are typically more under-occupied homes that offer an underused but critical supply source for the rental market,” Hutchinson said. “Encourage more homeowners to rent out rooms to lodgers, and take advantage of tax relief on their earnings, and we could ease demand in the tightest spots while curbing rent rises all round.”
The current Rent a Room Scheme lets homeowners earn up to a set threshold of £7,500 a year tax-free for letting a furnished room. Notably, this threshold has not changed in 10 years and SpareRoom noted that increasing these thresholds to current rent levels would benefit the market.
