These are officially the 25 UK universities with the cheapest student accommodation in 2026

Going to university in the UK is crazy expensive, so you might as well minimise the costs wherever you can. Although fees for undergrad degrees are set at the same price, students spend wildly different amounts of money on rent depending on which universities they go to.

The UK university where student accommodation is the cheapest to rent in 2026 is… drum roll please… the University of Bradford. On average, the student accom in Bradford costs less than £100 per week. Wow, that’s almost reasonable!

Literally only one university from the prestigious Russell Group is ranked among the cheapest unis for rent. The University of Warwick could be a very affordable option for brainy students, as the rent for student rooms in Coventry averages at £167 per week. It’s not great that most of the Russell Group unis are in very expensive cities for students to rent in. This makes it even harder for students from less privileged backgrounds to study with the cleverest professors, and nab the best grad jobs afterwards.

This data all comes from accommodation site Student Crowd. The average rents don’t just apply to halls directly owned by that university, but to student accommodation in the city where that uni is. The figures take into account different types of rooms, such as shared flats and fancier studios.

So, here are the 25 cheapest UK universities for students to rent accommodation for in 2026:

25. University of Northampton

Northampton, £169 per week

23. Coventry University and the University of Warwick

Coventry, £167 per week

22. University of Suffolk

Ipswich, £162 per week

=20. University of Aberdeen and Robert Gordon University (RGU)

Elphinstone Hall at the Uni of Aberdeen
(Credit: Sarah Fryett)

Aberdeen, £158 per week

=18. University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University

Sheffield, £155 per week

17. University of Bedfordshire

Luton, £152 per week

16. Harper Adams University

Newport, £146 per week

15. University of Gloucestershire 

Cheltenham, £143 per week

14. University of Staffordshire

Stoke-on-Trent, £142 per week

13. University of Salford

Salford, £142 per week

12. Teesside University

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A very vibey pic of Teesside Uni’s main entrance
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Middlesbrough, £140 per week

11. University of Greater Manchester (previously known as the University of Bolton)

Bolton, £139 per week

10. University of Wolverhampton

Wolverhampton, £137 per week

9. University of Cumbria

Carlisle, £137 per week

8. University of Huddersfield

Huddersfield, £136 per week

7. Aberystwyth University

Aberystwyth, £134 per week

6. Wrexham University

Wrexham, £133 per week

5. University of Sunderland

Sunderland, £130 per week

4. University of the West of Scotland

Paisley, £134 per week

3. University of Lancashire (previously known as the University of Central Lancashire, or UCLan)

Live love laugh Lancs

Preston, £128 per week

2. University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD)

Carmarthen, £107 per week

1. University of Bradford

Bradford, £93 per week

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