Is it cheaper to live outside London and commute?
Average London house prices sit well above £500,000, while commuter towns offer £250,000-£400,000 homes — a gap of £100,000+. But a verified commute can cost £5,500-£7,400/year. Here's the real comparison for 2026.
The house price gap
| Location | Avg house price (2026) | vs Inner London (~£550,000) |
|---|---|---|
| Inner London (avg) | ~£550,000+ | — |
| Reading | ~£370,000 | -£180,000 |
| Milton Keynes | ~£324,000 | -£226,000 |
| Bedford | ~£290,000 | -£260,000 |
| Northampton | ~£295,000 | -£255,000 |
| Luton | ~£260,000 | -£290,000 |
What the mortgage saving looks like monthly
A £255,000 lower purchase price (Northampton vs Inner London), with a 10% deposit and 25-year mortgage at 4.5%, saves approximately £1,266/month on the mortgage repayment alone.
Against that, a Northampton-to-London season ticket costs a verified £613/month. Even after the full commuting cost, the net saving is still around £653/month — nearly £7,840/year.
Net monthly saving by town
| Town | House price saving vs Inner London | Monthly mortgage saving | Monthly commute cost (verified) | Net monthly saving |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reading | £180,000 | ~£893/mo | £488/mo | +£405/mo |
| Milton Keynes | £226,000 | ~£1,122/mo | £585/mo | +£537/mo |
| Northampton | £255,000 | ~£1,266/mo | £613/mo | +£653/mo |
| Bedford | £260,000 | ~£1,291/mo | £599/mo | +£692/mo |
| Luton | £290,000 | ~£1,440/mo | £457/mo | +£983/mo |
It's not just about money
A longer commute has real costs beyond pounds and pence: more time spent travelling, less flexibility, and potentially more stress. A 90-130 minute round trip five days a week (Northampton or Bedford) is roughly 375-540 extra hours per year compared to a 50-70 minute round trip (Luton or Reading). Whether that trade-off is worth the difference in net monthly saving is a personal decision — but it's a real cost that doesn't show up in any spreadsheet.
Hybrid working changes this significantly: at 2-3 days per week, the time cost halves or more, while most of the financial saving remains.
Check your own comparison
ABLE Index lets you compare a London postcode against any commuter town, factoring in house prices, commuting costs, council tax and local bills.
Compare London vs a commuter town
See the real monthly difference for your specific situation.
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