Inner London room rents have moved into four figures, with the average room costing £1,002 a month in the third quarter of 2026, according to flatshare site SpareRoom.
The figure is up 2.3% on the previous quarter and 1.1% on a year earlier, and sits just below the record of £1,003 set in Q4 2023. Supply moved the other way, with room rental listings in inner London falling 7.3% year on year. Outer London rents averaged £800, edging down 0.2%, while supply there fell 1.7%.
London room rents by postcode
East London has the lowest average room rent by postcode area at £958 and has also seen the smallest annual increase, at 0.4%. South-west London averages £1,065 and is rising 2.4% year on year. The SW and SE postcodes dominate the list of districts with the fastest-rising rents, led by Chelsea (SW3), where the average rose 16.6% to £1,472. South Kensington and Knightsbridge (SW7) followed with a 13.3% rise to £1,682, and Earl's Court and West Brompton (SW5) gained 12.4% to £1,397.
SW7 is also the most expensive postcode in London, with an average room rent more than double that of the cheapest, E12 Manor Park, at £752. The West End (W1) comes next at £1,519, ahead of Chelsea and Bloomsbury and High Holborn (WC1) at £1,447. Six postcodes still offer average rents below £800, all in the east and north of the capital: E12, East Ham (E6), Winchmore Hill (N21), Forest Gate (E7), Plaistow (E13) and Lower Edmonton (N9).
Rents fell sharply in some districts. Winchmore Hill saw the largest drop, down 17% to £761, followed by Holland Park (W8), down 7.1% to £1,340, and Totteridge and Whetstone (N20), down 6.3% to £860. Notting Hill, South Woodford, Forest Gate, Highbury, New Cross, Barnes and Plaistow also recorded declines of between 4.4% and 5.3%.
Supply tightens in central London
Rent and supply data by postcode area shows the sharpest squeeze in central London. In the WC postcodes, rents rose 7.3% to a record £1,464 while supply fell 30.1%. EC rents climbed 5.2% to £1,289 as listings dropped 11.3%. Record averages also appeared in the N, SE, SW and W postcodes, while the E postcode area rose 0.4% to £958 with supply down 6.5%. Across Greater London, rents rose 0.6% to £932 and supply fell 5.8%.
SpareRoom's latest data draws on almost 103,000 London room ads, covering rooms only rather than whole properties. Rents are mean asking prices including bills, rooms priced under £150 a month are excluded, and postcodes with fewer than 25 listings are left out.
"With average rents now into four figures, to affordably rent an average room in a London flatshare people will need a gross salary of at least £40K," said Matt Hutchinson, director at SpareRoom.
"That excludes many, including some essential and service workers, and young people starting their careers. Choked supply increases rents, so tumbling rental stock in the capital should concern everyone, as should the absence of any plan to improve the situation. The Government must acknowledge the problem and do everything in its power to encourage and incentivise new supply."
