Cost of living
The real cost of living in Scotland
Up here the water and sewerage charge is billed with council tax, and the energy market works a little differently. This is the all-in monthly cost across Scotland's council areas.
The Scotland cost map
Coloured by estimated total monthly cost (renter view). Tap an area for the full breakdown.
Average area · renting
£1,292/mo
Mean all-in monthly cost across every area, renter view.
Average area · buying
£1,742/mo
Same bills, with a typical mortgage in place of rent.
Cheapest to priciest
£844/mo
The gap between Dumfries and Galloway and Midlothian. Where you live really moves the number.
Cheapest right now
Full list →How prices are moving in Scotland
Average rent: +43% over Sep 2015–Sep 2025
Sep 2015: £604.57/mo; Sep 2016: £604.45/mo; Sep 2017: £616.82/mo; Sep 2018: £633.44/mo; Sep 2019: £646.05/mo; Sep 2020: £658.92/mo; Sep 2021: £660.18/mo; Sep 2022: £699.04/mo; Sep 2023: £778.83/mo; Sep 2024: £846.06/mo; Sep 2025: £865.89/mo
Average house price: +44% over Mar 2016–Mar 2026
Mar 2016: £131,410; Jun 2016: £134,404; Sep 2016: £136,453; Dec 2016: £136,021; Mar 2017: £133,062; Jun 2017: £137,148; Sep 2017: £141,393; Dec 2017: £140,308; Mar 2018: £140,813; Jun 2018: £144,205; Sep 2018: £145,990; Dec 2018: £143,978; Mar 2019: £143,745; Jun 2019: £146,476; Sep 2019: £149,309; Dec 2019: £146,313; Mar 2020: £145,453; Jun 2020: £145,623; Sep 2020: £151,004; Dec 2020: £156,638; Mar 2021: £158,406; Jun 2021: £160,917; Sep 2021: £169,371; Dec 2021: £171,319; Mar 2022: £172,620; Jun 2022: £179,351; Sep 2022: £183,675; Dec 2022: £181,144; Mar 2023: £175,688; Jun 2023: £178,086; Sep 2023: £181,462; Dec 2023: £179,661; Mar 2024: £179,479; Jun 2024: £181,373; Sep 2024: £186,263; Dec 2024: £184,418; Mar 2025: £184,413; Jun 2025: £187,980; Sep 2025: £192,214; Dec 2025: £191,514; Mar 2026: £188,636
See every area in Scotland
Ranked by the real all-in monthly cost, cheapest or priciest first.