Average rent in East of England
The average private rent in East of England was £1,298 a month in September 2026, up 3.8% on a year earlier. The UK average was £1,406 (+3.8%).
Updated Latest data: September 2026 · ONS release 21 October 2026 · Data fetched 2 November 2026, 10:17 GMT
Average rent
£1,298
a month, September 2026
Annual change
+3.8%
UK: +3.8% (−0.1pp)
Monthly change
+0.7%
not seasonally adjusted
Rank by rent
3 of 9
English regions, highest first
In brief
The average private rent in East of England was £1,298 a month in September 2026, up 3.8% on a year earlier (£47 a month more than in September 2025). That is £108 below the UK average of £1,406, and rents rose 0.1 percentage points more slowly than across the UK (3.8%). East of England has the 3rd highest average rent and the 3rd slowest annual rent growth of England's nine regions.
For comparison, the CPI measure of actual rents for housing, which covers the whole UK, rose 4.2% in the year to September 2026. Annual rent growth has slowed from a peak of 8.4% in January 2025; a year ago it was 6.3%. Over the five years since September 2021, the ONS rent index for East of England rose 31.5%; the average rent then was £987 a month.
By size, the average was £900 for one-bedroom homes, £1,153 for two-bedroom homes, £1,403 for three-bedroom homes and £1,987 for homes with four or more bedrooms. By property type, rents for semi-detached houses rose fastest (4.1%) and for flats and maisonettes slowest (3.3%). Across its 45 local authorities, average rents ranged from £841 in Great Yarmouth to £1,934 in St Albans.
East of England: £987 in September 2021, £1,298 in September 2026. UK: £1,406 in September 2026. Series starts January 2015.
In September 2026: East of England +3.8%, UK +3.8%, CPI actual rents +4.2%. East of England's annual change peaked at 8.4% in January 2025.
Compared with the UK and CPI rents
| September 2026 | East of England | UK | CPI actual rents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average rent a month | £1,298 | £1,406 | – |
| Annual change | +3.8% | +3.8% | +4.2% |
| Rank of England's 9 regions: rent | 3 | – | – |
| Rank of England's 9 regions: annual change | 7 | – | – |
Ranks count from the highest rent and the fastest annual rise. CPI actual rents for housing (ONS series D7GQ) is a UK-wide measure and has no average rent.
By bedrooms and property type
| Home | Average rent a month | A year earlier | Annual change |
|---|---|---|---|
| All properties | £1,298 | £1,251 | +3.8% |
| One bedroom | £900 | £868 | +3.7% |
| Two bedrooms | £1,153 | £1,111 | +3.8% |
| Three bedrooms | £1,403 | £1,347 | +4.2% |
| Four or more bedrooms | £1,987 | £1,925 | +3.2% |
| Detached | £1,764 | £1,703 | +3.6% |
| Semi-detached | £1,414 | £1,358 | +4.1% |
| Terraced | £1,279 | £1,230 | +4.0% |
| Flat or maisonette | £1,030 | £997 | +3.3% |
Bedroom and property type groups overlap (a two-bedroom flat counts in both). The annual change is ONS's index-based figure, so it can differ slightly from the change between the rounded average rents.
Rents by local authority in East of England
All 45 local authorities, September 2026. Select a column heading to sort.
| Area | Average rent | Annual change | 1 bed | 2 bed | 3 bed |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St Albans | £1,934 | +2.7% | £1,272 | £1,635 | £2,023 |
| Epping Forest | £1,846 | +5.5% | £1,231 | £1,586 | £1,944 |
| Hertsmere | £1,846 | +4.0% | £1,269 | £1,619 | £1,960 |
| Watford | £1,834 | +2.1% | £1,268 | £1,602 | £1,830 |
| Three Rivers | £1,828 | +2.0% | £1,275 | £1,590 | £1,976 |
| Cambridge | £1,805 | +1.9% | £1,255 | £1,613 | £1,908 |
| Broxbourne | £1,692 | +3.5% | £1,136 | £1,456 | £1,788 |
| Brentwood | £1,623 | +2.3% | £1,109 | £1,401 | £1,721 |
| Dacorum | £1,613 | +2.5% | £1,111 | £1,394 | £1,677 |
| East Hertfordshire | £1,550 | +4.8% | £1,097 | £1,397 | £1,692 |
| Harlow | £1,531 | +4.4% | £1,028 | £1,335 | £1,585 |
| Welwyn Hatfield | £1,510 | +3.3% | £1,061 | £1,373 | £1,645 |
| North Hertfordshire | £1,445 | +6.4% | £1,031 | £1,293 | £1,588 |
| Stevenage | £1,445 | +4.7% | £1,031 | £1,325 | £1,558 |
| Chelmsford | £1,439 | +1.6% | £1,058 | £1,291 | £1,543 |
| Basildon | £1,428 | +4.8% | £985 | £1,272 | £1,513 |
| South Cambridgeshire | £1,407 | +3.0% | £1,010 | £1,280 | £1,531 |
| Thurrock | £1,389 | +5.3% | £946 | £1,222 | £1,484 |
| Southend-on-Sea | £1,316 | +5.1% | £884 | £1,124 | £1,371 |
| Uttlesford | £1,305 | +1.6% | £916 | £1,156 | £1,461 |
| Rochford | £1,302 | +5.0% | £891 | £1,171 | £1,431 |
| Castle Point | £1,266 | +4.6% | £945 | £1,172 | £1,430 |
| Central Bedfordshire | £1,258 | +4.4% | £870 | £1,105 | £1,386 |
| Luton | £1,231 | +3.7% | £913 | £1,122 | £1,348 |
| Braintree | £1,223 | +2.5% | £857 | £1,108 | £1,366 |
| Colchester | £1,200 | +1.7% | £821 | £1,066 | £1,306 |
| West Suffolk | £1,188 | +4.2% | £821 | £1,065 | £1,326 |
| Bedford | £1,177 | +2.5% | £802 | £1,032 | £1,265 |
| Norwich | £1,148 | +0.8% | £781 | £976 | £1,144 |
| Maldon | £1,137 | +2.2% | £794 | £1,031 | £1,244 |
| Huntingdonshire | £1,065 | +4.0% | £750 | £974 | £1,179 |
| Tendring | £1,058 | +3.7% | £761 | £979 | £1,192 |
| East Cambridgeshire | £1,042 | +0.0% | £734 | £962 | £1,172 |
| Peterborough | £1,014 | +4.9% | £711 | £896 | £1,082 |
| Mid Suffolk | £1,011 | +6.9% | £725 | £928 | £1,130 |
| Ipswich | £1,002 | +4.5% | £748 | £921 | £1,054 |
| South Norfolk | £984 | +3.3% | £698 | £893 | £1,112 |
| Babergh | £970 | +3.3% | £719 | £921 | £1,116 |
| Broadland | £941 | +4.1% | £694 | £897 | £1,083 |
| King's Lynn and West Norfolk | £941 | +3.6% | £650 | £849 | £1,054 |
| Breckland | £935 | +4.6% | £670 | £853 | £1,053 |
| North Norfolk | £865 | +4.0% | £623 | £809 | £1,003 |
| East Suffolk | £848 | +5.8% | £607 | £798 | £947 |
| Fenland | £844 | +3.7% | £628 | £809 | £982 |
| Great Yarmouth | £841 | +7.1% | £590 | £770 | £933 |
See also the cost of living calculator and CPI housing inflation.