Kingston upon Hull vs Liverpool: buying or renting a home
A typical terraced house costs £40,000 (32%) more in Liverpool than in Kingston upon Hull. Measured against local pay, buying is harder in Liverpool: it takes 4.4× median annual pay, against 4.0× in Kingston upon Hull.
At a glance
| Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool | |
|---|---|---|
| Buying a home | Affordable | Fairly affordable |
| Renting a home | Fairly affordable | Fairly affordable |
| Recorded crime | Above average | Above average |
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 Liverpool (£37,144) is 18% higher than in Kingston upon Hull (£31,419), while a typical terraced house costs 32% more (£165,000 against £125,000). Set against local pay, Kingston upon Hull is the easier of the two for a typical earner to buy in.
Buying a terraced house takes 4.0× annual pay in Kingston upon Hull and 4.4× in Liverpool. Renting one takes 26% of pay in Kingston upon Hull and 30% in Liverpool. Both are harder in Liverpool, and the gap is wider for renting.
Across all property types and measured against pay, Kingston upon Hull is the 8th least expensive of 316 areas to buy in, and Liverpool is the 27th least expensive of 316 areas. For renting against pay, Kingston upon Hull is the 63rd least expensive of 316 areas and Liverpool is the 115th least expensive of 316 areas.
Someone on £40,000 in Kingston upon Hull would need about £53,000 in Liverpool to be equally placed to buy a terraced house, and about £53,500 to be equally placed to rent one. Keeping the same pay after a move to Liverpool would leave you worse 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 121.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in Kingston upon Hull and 124.1 in Liverpool: about the same. The biggest difference is in residential burglary: 11.7 per 1,000 in Kingston upon Hull against 6.1 in Liverpool.
Can a typical earner buy?
| Terraced house | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
| Median full-time pay | £31,419 | £37,144 |
| House price ÷ pay | 4.0× | 4.4× |
| Median pay as a share of income typically needed to buy | 126% | 113% |
| Rent a year as a share of median pay | 26% | 30% |
Buying, by property type
| Type | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £250,000 | £380,000 | +52% in Liverpool |
| Semi-detached | £165,000 | £240,000 | +45% in Liverpool |
| Terraced | £125,000 | £165,000 | +32% in Liverpool |
| Flat | £91,000 | £147,500 | +62% in Liverpool |
Renting, by property type
| Type (average rent a month) | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| Detached | £955 | £1,225 | +28% in Liverpool |
| Semi-detached | £738 | £1,008 | +37% in Liverpool |
| Terraced | £686 | £917 | +34% in Liverpool |
| Flat | £563 | £786 | +40% in Liverpool |
Crime
Police recorded 121.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in Kingston upon Hull and 124.1 in Liverpool: about the same.
| Police recorded crime per 1,000 residents | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool | Difference |
|---|---|---|---|
| All recorded crime (excluding fraud) | 121.5 | 124.1 | +2% in Liverpool |
| Violence against the person | 49.9 | 45.6 | -9% in Liverpool |
| Sexual offences | 4.3 | 4.1 | -4% in Liverpool |
| Robbery | 1.8 | 1.6 | -7% in Liverpool |
| Residential burglary (per 1,000 households) | 11.7 | 6.1 | -48% in Liverpool |
| Vehicle offences | 4.9 | 5.3 | +9% in Liverpool |
| Theft from the person | 0.6 | 1.2 | +86% in Liverpool |
| Criminal damage and arson | 11.3 | 10.3 | -9% in Liverpool |
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 | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 100 | 100 |
| 2006 | 116 | 110 |
| 2007 | 130 | 117 |
| 2008 | 128 | 113 |
| 2009 | 116 | 104 |
| 2010 | 122 | 105 |
| 2011 | 118 | 101 |
| 2012 | 116 | 99 |
| 2013 | 119 | 99 |
| 2014 | 122 | 103 |
| 2015 | 126 | 107 |
| 2016 | 134 | 110 |
| 2017 | 142 | 115 |
| 2018 | 147 | 121 |
| 2019 | 149 | 123 |
| 2020 | 153 | 128 |
| 2021 | 166 | 148 |
| 2022 | 180 | 161 |
| 2023 | 180 | 163 |
| 2024 | 182 | 166 |
| 2025 | 187 | 179 |
| 12 months to July 2026 | 191 | 183 |
In 2005 the average home cost £69,191 in Kingston upon Hull and £99,018 in Liverpool. Now it is £131,982 and £181,637: Kingston upon Hull is up 91% and Liverpool is up 83%. Prices have risen faster in Kingston upon Hull, 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 | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 3.6 years of pay | 4.9 years of pay |
| 2010 | 4.0 years of pay | 4.3 years of pay |
| 2015 | 3.8 years of pay | 4.1 years of pay |
| 2020 | 4.3 years of pay | 4.1 years of pay |
| 2025 | 4.1 years of pay | 4.8 years of pay |
In 2005 a home cost 3.6 years of pay in Kingston upon Hull and 4.9 years in Liverpool. In 2025 it was 4.1 years and 4.8 years.
Affordability has worsened more in Kingston upon Hull 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 | Kingston upon Hull | Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 100 | 100 |
| 2016 | 102 | 103 |
| 2017 | 105 | 104 |
| 2018 | 105 | 104 |
| 2019 | 106 | 105 |
| 2020 | 108 | 106 |
| 2021 | 111 | 111 |
| 2022 | 114 | 119 |
| 2023 | 120 | 127 |
| 2024 | 130 | 138 |
| 2025 | 140 | 151 |
| August 2026 | 151 | 161 |
In 2015 the average rent was £461 a month in Kingston upon Hull and £567 in Liverpool. Now it is £694 and £913: up 51% in Kingston upon Hull and up 61% in Liverpool. Rents have risen faster in Liverpool.
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 Kingston upon Hull to Liverpool
| Earning in Kingston upon Hull | Equivalent to buy in Liverpool | Equivalent to rent in Liverpool |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £39,500 | £40,000 |
| £40,000 | £53,000 | £53,500 |
| £50,000 | £66,000 | £67,000 |
| £60,000 | £79,000 | £80,000 |
Moving from Liverpool to Kingston upon Hull
| Earning in Liverpool | Equivalent to buy in Kingston upon Hull | Equivalent to rent in Kingston upon Hull |
|---|---|---|
| £30,000 | £22,500 | £22,500 |
| £40,000 | £30,500 | £30,000 |
| £50,000 | £38,000 | £37,500 |
| £60,000 | £45,500 | £45,000 |