Average rent in Northern Ireland
The average private rent in Northern Ireland was £879 a month in July 2026, up 1.7% on a year earlier. The UK average was £1,393 (+3.7%).
Updated Latest data: July 2026 (UK: September 2026) · ONS release 21 October 2026 · Data fetched 2 November 2026, 10:17 GMT
ONS has not yet published Northern Ireland figures after July 2026, so this page compares Northern Ireland with the UK in July 2026.
Average rent
£879
a month, July 2026
Annual change
+1.7%
UK: +3.7% (−2.0pp)
Monthly change
+0.6%
not seasonally adjusted
Rank by rent
3 of 4
UK nations, highest first
In brief
The average private rent in Northern Ireland was £879 a month in July 2026, up 1.7% on a year earlier (£14 a month more than in July 2025). That is £514 below the UK average of £1,393 in July 2026, and rents rose 2.0 percentage points more slowly than across the UK (3.7%). Northern Ireland has the 2nd lowest average rent and the 2nd slowest annual rent growth of the four UK nations (using its July 2026 figure, the latest available).
For comparison, the CPI measure of actual rents for housing, which covers the whole UK, rose 4.1% in the year to July 2026. Annual rent growth has slowed from a peak of 9.9% in April 2024; a year ago it was 7.1%. Over the five years since July 2021, the ONS rent index for Northern Ireland rose 41.2%; the average rent then was £623 a month.
By size, the average was £623 for one-bedroom homes, £769 for two-bedroom homes, £880 for three-bedroom homes and £1,229 for homes with four or more bedrooms. By property type, rents for flats and maisonettes rose fastest (2.7%) and for detached houses slowest (0.6%).
Northern Ireland: £623 in July 2021, £879 in July 2026. UK: £1,393 in July 2026. Series starts January 2015.
In July 2026: Northern Ireland +1.7%, UK +3.7%, CPI actual rents +4.1%. Northern Ireland's annual change peaked at 9.9% in April 2024.
Compared with the UK and CPI rents
| July 2026 | Northern Ireland | UK | CPI actual rents |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average rent a month | £879 | £1,393 | – |
| Annual change | +1.7% | +3.7% | +4.1% |
| Rank of the 4 UK nations: rent | 3 | – | – |
| Rank of the 4 UK nations: annual change | 3 | – | – |
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 | £879 | £865 | +1.7% |
| One bedroom | £623 | £609 | +2.4% |
| Two bedrooms | £769 | £753 | +2.1% |
| Three bedrooms | £880 | £867 | +1.6% |
| Four or more bedrooms | £1,229 | £1,224 | +0.4% |
| Detached | £1,094 | £1,087 | +0.6% |
| Semi-detached | £901 | £892 | +1.0% |
| Terraced | £826 | £814 | +1.6% |
| Flat or maisonette | £766 | £746 | +2.7% |
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.
ONS does not publish Northern Ireland local area figures for September 2026 in this release.
See also the cost of living calculator and CPI housing inflation.