- The ONS puts London's average rent at £2,338 a month in September 2026, up 3.5% in a year. That's still the highest of any English region.
- London and the South East are now the slowest-growing regions in England; the North West leads at +5.7%.
- Advertised rents on new London listings hit a record £2,825 in Q3, according to Rightmove, while the number of homes available fell 9% and tenant demand rose 6%.
- In West London, Brent and Hammersmith & Fulham (both +4.9%) are outpacing the London average.
Three measures, three different numbers
You'll see very different London rent figures quoted, and they're all correct. They simply measure different things.
| Measure | London | What it covers |
|---|---|---|
| ONS, September 2026 | £2,338 | All rents actually being paid, including long-running tenancies |
| HomeLet, September 2026 | £2,272 | Rents agreed on new tenancies it references (Greater London, +3.3% a year) |
| Rightmove, Q3 2026 | £2,825 | Asking rents on newly advertised homes (+3.2% a year) |
Asking rents move first and sit highest. The ONS figure includes every existing tenancy, so it moves more slowly. When you price a new let, the asking and agreed figures are the closer guide; the ONS tells you the long-run trend.
West London, borough by borough
Average monthly rents paid in September 2026 and the change over a year, from the ONS borough data.
| Borough | Average | 1-bed | 2-bed | 3-bed | 1 year |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hammersmith & Fulham | £2,861 | £2,025 | £2,656 | £3,031 | +4.9% |
| Ealing | £2,126 | £1,642 | £2,049 | £2,427 | +3.8% |
| Brent | £2,018 | £1,578 | £1,937 | £2,277 | +4.9% |
| Hounslow | £1,962 | £1,589 | £1,956 | £2,254 | +3.6% |
| Harrow | £1,781 | £1,395 | £1,718 | £2,069 | +2.8% |
| Hillingdon | £1,581 | £1,260 | £1,598 | £1,929 | +3.4% |
| London | £2,338 | £1,764 | £2,239 | £2,651 | +3.5% |
Across London, the fastest growth was in Southwark (+7.3%), Islington (+6.6%) and Greenwich (+6.0%). Rents dipped slightly in Kingston and Westminster (both −0.4%). Kensington & Chelsea remains the UK's most expensive borough at £3,739; Bexley is London's cheapest at £1,540.
Supply is shrinking, demand isn't
- Rightmove (Q3 2026): London homes available to rent are down 9% on a year ago, while tenant demand is up 6%. Fewer homes to rent are coming from properties previously listed for sale (15%, down from 17%), a sign of less new landlord investment.
- Zoopla (to 30 August): London rental supply is down 6%, and inner London down 13%.
- RICS (September 2026): tenant demand rose for a third month running, while new landlord instructions keep falling.
Fewer homes and steady demand usually mean shorter void periods for well-priced, well-presented properties. Rightmove puts London's average landlord yield at 6.1%.
What it means for your pricing
Growth has cooled from the rapid rises of recent years, so the gains now come from pricing accurately rather than pushing hard. Overpricing costs more than it saves: an empty week on a £2,338 rent is roughly £540 of lost income. With rent rises now limited to once a year under the Renters' Rights Act, it pays to set the right rent at the start of each tenancy and review it properly each year with a Section 13 notice.
What to do now
- Compare your rent with your borough's figure above, for the right number of bedrooms.
- Price new lets on agreed and asking rents, not on the ONS average, which includes older tenancies.
- Diary your annual rent review and serve a Section 13 notice with at least two months' notice.
- Get a free appraisal before re-letting, so the rent reflects this month's market, not last year's.
Every Morgan Prescott appraisal uses live comparable evidence for the street and property type, not just borough averages, and we come back within 24 hours. For qualifying properties, guaranteed rent fixes your income for two to five years, whatever the market does.
Get a free 24-hour appraisal →Questions landlords ask
What is the average rent in London?
Are London rents still going up?
What is the average rent in Ealing?
Why do different websites show different London rents?
- ONS: Private rent and house prices, UK: October 2026
- ONS: Price Index of Private Rents, monthly statistics (dataset)
- Rightmove: Rental Trends Tracker, Q3 2026
- HomeLet Rental Index: London
- Zoopla: Rental market report, September 2026
- RICS: UK Residential Survey, September 2026
Next update: The ONS publishes the next rent figures on 18 November 2026.
General information, not legal advice. Rules and figures change, so check GOV.UK or a qualified adviser before acting.