Disposable income in the UK: What’s left over after living costs?

It’s no secret that prices and salaries vary widely across the UK, and with the cost of living increasing, many Brits are likely to resort to measures such as cost-cutting and taking advantage of financial offers like bank switching deals. Which cities are the best to live in if you want to benefit from the highest disposable income?

What is the average disposable income in the UK?

The average British adult living in a UK city has £532 a month in disposable income in 2025 after paying taxes, bills and essential living costs. Disposable income can be used for savings, holidays or other spending.

What is the average disposable income in cities around the UK?

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We studied the income and the cost of living in 56 cities around the UK to find out which cities have the most and least money to spare. For this analysis, disposable income means the money left over after paying for essentials, including taxes, bills and recurring monthly living costs. It assumes a single UK adult is renting a 1-bedroom flat in a UK city.

Of the cities analysed, those in Aberdeen, Scotland had the most disposable income each month, with an average of £1,240, 133% higher than the UK average of £532. They are closely followed by Carlisle residents, who have an average of £1,186 to spare, and Derby residents, who have an average of £1,163 left over.

At the other end of the spectrum, residents in Brighton had just £327 a month while those in London were not far ahead with £381 a month. People living in Bath have just £453 left over each month.

Which UK city has the highest living costs?

Unsurprisingly, London has the highest living costs of the UK cities analysed, with an average monthly spend of £2,617 on rent and basic costs. The cost to rent a 1-bedroom flat in London is £1,574 – 47% higher than the UK average – so it’s no shock that living costs are so high in the capital.

The cheapest city on the list for living costs was Durham, where the average single Brit could expect to spend just £1,195 on rent and essentials. Other cities with low living costs include Carlisle (£1,237), Derry (£1,250), Doncaster (£1,269) and Hull (£1,277).

The monthly living costs for a single person in most cities were between £1,000 and £2,000, with just the top 5 cities leaping ahead with living costs of more than £2,000.

Full data for disposable income and living costs

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Methodology

• For rent, we found the total price per room of a 3-room apartment to get an approximate figure for the rent a single person could expect to pay.
• To get the disposable income figure for each city, we used ONS data to calculate the average monthly income in each city after taxes, then the monthly single person’s rent and living costs were subtracted from the average monthly income after tax.
• For our research, disposable income refers to the money left over after paying all essential costs, including taxes, rent, bills and living costs.

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