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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Belfast vs Swansea in 2026: cost index 85 vs 84, rent £700 vs £650, income £29,000 vs £28,000, QoL 63 vs 66.
Belfast vs Swansea in 2026: cost index 85 vs 84, rent £700 vs £650, income £29,000 vs £28,000, QoL 63 vs 66.
Belfast ranks #1 with a cost index of 85 and rent of £700/month.
Average cost index across these cities: 85 (-14 vs national average of 99).
Average quality of life: 65/100. Top: Belfast at 63/100.
Safest city: Swansea (62/100 safety score).
The conventional wisdom says one thing. The data says another: Belfast stands out as the top-ranked city in this analysis. With a cost index of 85 and median income of £29,000, it offers below-average costs relative to the rest of United Kingdom. Financially, that's significant.
On quality of life, Swansea leads with a composite score of 66/100 — reflecting its safety (62), healthcare (65), and walkability (62) metrics. Pair that with the housing data, and the pattern sharpens. affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and United Kingdom is a good example of that tension.
The country average QoL score is 61/100. Belfast leads with 63/100, reflecting its safety, healthcare access, walkability, and green space.
Our index is benchmarked to 100 (national median). Sub-categories cover housing, food, transport, utilities, and healthcare. Data sources include ONS, Land Registry, HMRC.
Belfast (ranked #1) has a cost index of 85 and rent of £700/mo. Swansea (#2) has index 84 and rent £650/mo — a 1-point gap.