For journalists & researchers

UK Trade Pricing Data

Methodology, limitations, and custom data requests for 218,538 modelled service-location estimates across 342 UK cities.

What We Track

How Much? models typical costs for 51 trades across 342 UK cities. These are location-adjusted estimates, not observed quotes for every place and job.

51
Trades
342
UK Cities
639
Job Types
219k+
Priced Services

Key Model Findings

Headline outputs from the current model. When citing them, describe them as How Much? estimates rather than observed market prices.

UK-wide price gap
108.6%
St Albans (East of England) is 108.6% more expensive than Boston (East Midlands) for the same services.
Most expensive city
St Albans
Consumers in St Albans pay 60% above the UK average across all 51 trades tracked.
Cheapest city
Boston
Boston residents pay 23% below the UK average, the lowest of any tracked city.
London premium
+24.3%
London households pay 24.3% more than the UK average for routine services.
North-South divide
+11.8%
Southern England (London, SE, SW, E of England) averages 11.8% more expensive than the North (NE, NW, Yorkshire, Scotland).
Scottish discount
-5.2%
Scottish cities average 5.2% below the UK mean. Aberdeen and Edinburgh remain above average within Scotland.
Biggest single-job gap
£41,600
A single-storey extension costs £38,300 in Boston but £79,900 in St Albans -- a £41,600 difference for the same work.
Dataset size
218,538
51 trades across 342 UK cities generates over 218,538 individually priced services.
Data dates
Source-led
Source and model dates are shown where available. A build date is not treated as proof that every base price was re-reviewed.
Update cadence
As sourced
Prices and multipliers are revised when their underlying sources are checked or replaced; there is no guaranteed monthly or annual refresh cycle.

Methodology

Each trade has a set of national base-price estimates (low / average / high) for common jobs. They are compiled from published cost guides, including sources such as Checkatrade, Heatable, and Boiler Guide. Source coverage and publication dates vary by job; not every base price has been independently verified against multiple sources.

Local estimates are produced by applying a per-city cost multiplier derived from the Office for National Statistics Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings (ASHE). Cities with above-average local wages carry a multiplier above 1.0; cities with below-average wages, below 1.0. Local earnings are used as a proxy for labour-cost differences. The multiplier is uniform across trades within a city, so it does not capture trade-specific regional supply, demand or markups.

Multipliers range from 0.766 (Boston) to 1.598 (St Albans). The median UK city sits at a multiplier close to 1.0 by construction.

Limitations: the dataset models average job costs, not quotes for specific properties. Prices should be understood as typical ranges rather than guaranteed figures. For any specific job, homeowners are advised to obtain multiple written quotes from qualified local tradespeople.

Suggested Story Angles

We are happy to produce custom breakdowns on request for any of the below, including region or city-specific cuts of the data.

Cost of living by city

Ranking the UK's most and least expensive cities for the basket of routine services a typical household needs each year.

The North-South divide in 2026

A data-led take on whether the North-South price gap is widening, narrowing, or shifting towards newer regional clusters.

Which trade has the most local variation?

Single biggest price spread across cities, broken down by trade -- useful for consumer reporters covering moving or renovation.

London premium, service by service

Where the London surcharge bites hardest. Some trades price far above the UK average in London -- others barely move.

Affordable renovation hotspots

For home-and-property desks: cities where extension, rewire, and kitchen fit costs are significantly below the UK average.

Press & Data Requests

For custom data cuts, interviews, or attributed quotes on any of the above topics, please get in touch. We can typically turn around city-level or region-level breakdowns within 24 hours.

Contact
howmuchshoulditcost.co.uk/contact
Response time
Typically within 1 business day (UK)
Attribution
How Much Should It Cost (howmuchshoulditcost.co.uk)

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