Assembling your view…
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Crunching costs, sorting signals, rendering insights.
Manchester vs Nottingham in 2026: cost index 103 vs 94, rent £1,080 vs £880, income £33,800 vs £31,000, QoL 56 vs 59.
Manchester vs Nottingham in 2026: cost index 103 vs 94, rent £1,080 vs £880, income £33,800 vs £31,000, QoL 56 vs 59.
Manchester: cost index 103 (0 vs national avg 103), rent £1,080/month.
North West region average cost index: 99. Manchester is +4 vs region peers.
Quality of life: 56/100 — safety 50, healthcare 74, walkability 78.
Safety score: 50/100 (crime rate 110.5/1k). National average: 61/100.
Strip away assumptions, and something unexpected emerges. Manchester has a cost index of 103 — 0 points below the United Kingdom national average of 103. Median income is £33,800 with rent at £1,080/month, putting the rent-to-income ratio at 38%. Financially, that's significant.
On quality of life, Manchester scores a composite score of 56/100 — reflecting its safety (50), healthcare (74), and walkability (78) metrics. Here's where it gets complicated: affordability and QoL don't always move in the same direction, and United Kingdom is a good example of that tension.
Manchester has a cost index of 103 (national avg: 103), rent £1,080/mo, median income £33,800/yr, and a quality of life score of 56/100.
The North West region of average QoL score is 58/100. Manchester leads with 56/100, reflecting 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.
Manchester: cost index 103, rent £1,080/mo, income £33,800/yr, QoL 56/100. Nottingham: cost index 94, rent £880/mo, income £31,000/yr, QoL 59/100.