Cardiff vs Manchester: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £11,000 (4%) more in Cardiff than in Manchester. Measured against local pay, buying is about equally hard in both.
At a glance
| Cardiff | Manchester | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Fairly affordable | Fairly affordable |
| Renting a home | Expensive | Very expensive |
| Recorded crime | Above average | High |
Buying rates the typical price of all homes against median pay; renting rates a year of average rent against median pay; crime rates recorded crime per resident against the England and Wales average.
What the numbers say
Median full-time pay in Manchester (£36,278) is 2% lower than in Cardiff (£36,946), while a typical terraced house costs 4% less (£256,000 against £267,000).
Buying a terraced house takes 7.2× annual pay in Cardiff and 7.1× in Manchester. Renting one takes 38% of pay in Cardiff and 46% in Manchester. Renting is harder in Manchester; buying is about the same.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Cardiff is around the middle of 316 areas (173rd most expensive) to buy in, and Manchester is around the middle of 316 areas (188th most expensive). For renting against pay, Cardiff is the 98th most expensive of 316 areas and Manchester is the 46th most expensive of 316 areas.
Someone on £40,000 in Cardiff would need about £38,500 in Manchester to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £47,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Manchester would leave you better placed to buy. These figures compare housing costs only; they ignore other living costs and the pay you could earn in a new job.
Police recorded 93.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in Cardiff and 142.7 in Manchester, so recorded crime per resident is 52% higher in Manchester. The biggest difference is in residential burglary: 4.6 per 1,000 in Cardiff against 9.3 in Manchester.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Cardiff | Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £36,946 | £36,278 |
| House price ÷ pay | 7.2× | 7.1× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 69% | 71% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 38% | 46% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Cardiff | Manchester | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £460,000 | £400,000 | -13% in Manchester |
| Semi-detached | £307,250 | £310,000 | +1% in Manchester |
| Terraced | £267,000 | £256,000 | -4% in Manchester |
| Flat | £165,000 | £210,000 | +27% in Manchester |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Cardiff | Manchester | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £1,516 | £1,878 | +24% in Manchester |
| Semi-detached | £1,186 | £1,496 | +26% in Manchester |
| Terraced | £1,177 | £1,405 | +19% in Manchester |
| Flat | £995 | £1,147 | +15% in Manchester |
Crime
Police recorded 93.8 crimes per 1,000 residents in Cardiff and 142.7 in Manchester, so recorded crime per resident is 52% higher in Manchester.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Cardiff | Manchester | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 93.8 | 142.7 | +52% in Manchester |
| Violence against the person | 29.8 | 51.9 | +74% in Manchester |
| Sexual offences | 3.5 | 5.6 | +61% in Manchester |
| Robbery | 1.7 | 2.7 | +63% in Manchester |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 4.6 | 9.3 | +102% in Manchester |
| Vehicle offences | 7.5 | 7.9 | +6% in Manchester |
| Theft from the person | 0.9 | 3.9 | +348% in Manchester |
| Criminal damage and arson | 8.0 | 10.0 | +26% in Manchester |
Rates use resident population, so city centres and student areas show higher crime per resident than residents experience. Recorded crime also depends on reporting and police recording practice.
How prices have changed in each area
Average house price for all property types, indexed so that 2005 is 100. A line at 200 means prices have doubled.
Show the figures
| Year | Cardiff | Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 103 | 117 |
| 2007 | 109 | 129 |
| 2008 | 106 | 125 |
| 2009 | 96 | 112 |
| 2010 | 101 | 115 |
| 2011 | 101 | 114 |
| 2012 | 103 | 115 |
| 2013 | 105 | 115 |
| 2014 | 112 | 125 |
| 2015 | 118 | 133 |
| 2016 | 125 | 145 |
| 2017 | 129 | 158 |
| 2018 | 135 | 167 |
| 2019 | 138 | 173 |
| 2020 | 141 | 178 |
| 2021 | 154 | 209 |
| 2022 | 169 | 231 |
| 2023 | 174 | 233 |
| 2024 | 174 | 241 |
| 2025 | 177 | 247 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 179 | 251 |
In 2005 the average home cost £150,636 in Cardiff and £100,202 in Manchester. Now it is £270,053 and £251,205: Cardiff is up 79% and Manchester is up 151%. Prices have risen faster in Manchester, so the gap between the two has narrowed.
Buying a home against local pay, over time
Average house price divided by median full-time pay. Higher means harder to afford.
Show the figures
| Year | Cardiff | Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 6.5 years of pay | 4.8 years of pay |
| 2010 | 6.0 years of pay | 5.0 years of pay |
| 2015 | 6.7 years of pay | 5.4 years of pay |
| 2020 | 7.4 years of pay | 6.3 years of pay |
| 2025 | 7.2 years of pay | 6.8 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 6.5 years of pay in Cardiff and 4.8 years in Manchester. In 2025 it was 7.2 years and 6.8 years.
Affordability has worsened more in Manchester over that time.
How rents have changed in each area
Average monthly rent for all property types, indexed so that 2015 is 100.
Show the figures
| Year | Cardiff | Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 103 | 101 |
| 2017 | 109 | 106 |
| 2018 | 113 | 112 |
| 2019 | 116 | 114 |
| 2020 | 120 | 117 |
| 2021 | 124 | 120 |
| 2022 | 124 | 127 |
| 2023 | 134 | 139 |
| 2024 | 149 | 156 |
| 2025 | 163 | 167 |
| August 2026 | 170 | 174 |
In 2015 the average rent was £691 a month in Cardiff and £790 in Manchester. Now it is £1,177 and £1,373: up 70% in Cardiff and up 74% in Manchester.
What your salary is worth in each area
Salary needed to afford the same kind of home (terraced), going by median prices and average rents.
Moving from Cardiff to Manchester
| Earning in Cardiff | Equivalent to buy in Manchester | Equivalent to rent in Manchester |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £29,000 | £36,000 |
| £40,000 | £38,500 | £47,500 |
| £50,000 | £48,000 | £59,500 |
| £60,000 | £57,500 | £71,500 |
Moving from Manchester to Cardiff
| Earning in Manchester | Equivalent to buy in Cardiff | Equivalent to rent in Cardiff |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £31,500 | £25,000 |
| £40,000 | £41,500 | £33,500 |
| £50,000 | £52,000 | £42,000 |
| £60,000 | £62,500 | £50,500 |