Loading
Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Bristol vs Southampton in 2026: cost index 108 vs 110, rent £1,100 vs £1,050, income £34,000 vs £33,500, QoL 62 vs 57.
Bristol vs Southampton in 2026: cost index 108 vs 110, rent £1,100 vs £1,050, income £34,000 vs £33,500, QoL 62 vs 57.
Bristol ranks #1 with a cost index of 108 and rent of £1,100/month.
Average cost index across these cities: 109 (+10 vs national average of 99).
Average quality of life: 60/100. Top: Bristol at 62/100.
Safest city: Bristol (63/100 safety score).
Strip away assumptions, and something unexpected emerges. Bristol stands out as the top-ranked city in this analysis. With a cost index of 108 and median income of £34,000, it offers competitive value despite costs slightly above the national median. This combination is rare — and valuable.
On quality of life, Bristol leads with a composite score of 62/100 — reflecting its safety (63), healthcare (78), and walkability (72) 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. Bristol leads with 62/100, 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.
Bristol (ranked #1) has a cost index of 108 and rent of £1,100/mo. Southampton (#2) has index 110 and rent £1,050/mo — a 2-point gap.