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Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Leeds vs Belfast in 2026: cost index 92 vs 85, rent £850 vs £700, income £30,000 vs £29,000, QoL 60 vs 63.
Leeds vs Belfast in 2026: cost index 92 vs 85, rent £850 vs £700, income £30,000 vs £29,000, QoL 60 vs 63.
Leeds ranks #1 with a cost index of 92 and rent of £850/month.
Average cost index across these cities: 89 (-10 vs national average of 99).
Average quality of life: 62/100. Top: Leeds at 60/100.
Safest city: Belfast (60/100 safety score).
Here's the finding that keeps coming up in different analyses: Leeds stands out as the top-ranked city in this analysis. With a cost index of 92 and median income of £30,000, it offers below-average costs relative to the rest of United Kingdom. Financially, that's significant.
On quality of life, Belfast leads with a composite score of 63/100 — reflecting its safety (60), healthcare (68), 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. Leeds leads with 60/100, 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.
Leeds (ranked #1) has a cost index of 92 and rent of £850/mo. Belfast (#2) has index 85 and rent £700/mo — a 7-point gap.