Everyone assumes London. The data says otherwise. Pick your degree and we'll show you where you'd actually keep more money — and buy a home decades sooner.
This compares averages. A software engineer in Newcastle may out-earn a publishing assistant in London. Your actual salary depends on your degree, sector, and employer.
We don't capture: commuting costs, student loan repayments (Plan 2: 9% above £27,295), career progression speed, or network effects. For some industries — investment banking, big law, top-tier consulting — London genuinely is the only serious option. For most graduates, it isn't.
Salaries: HESA Graduate Outcomes survey by UK region, adjusted to city level using ONS ASHE data. These are typical graduate salaries, not top-end scheme pay.
Rents: ONS Private Rental Market Statistics (February 2026). 1-bedroom flat averages.
Council tax: Band A rates, MHCLG 2025/26. Single-person discount not applied.
House prices: ONS UK House Price Index (January 2026).
Tax: 2025/26 rates. Scottish rates for Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee. Student loan not included.
Best alternative city: For each degree area, we find the non-London city with the highest blended score of graduate job volume (sqrt-dampened), sector fit, and monthly disposable income. No hardcoded penalties are applied.