Student accommodation can be tricky to find, more so in some cities than in others. Some UK cities get sold out really quickly because of a lack of supply, and some are really expensive because they get such high demand. But you don’t necessarily have to live in the same city where you study. Check out this article about alternative cities for student accommodation.
In this article we list some viable options for living in a different city than the one where you’ll be studying. Travelling between the cities featured is quick and efficient with trains, and in the alternative city you can find additional options for accommodation. These alternative options could be more suitable for you, and in some cases the rents in the alternative city are also noticeably cheaper.
Read on if you’ll be studying in one of the following cities:
- London
- Manchester
- Birmingham
- Durham
- Sunderland
- Warwick
- Southampton
To find out the best and cheapest ways to travel between your new home city and the city where you’ll be studying, check out our post about affordable transport options for students in the UK.
Alternative city for London: Reading
London is such a big city that there are always hundreds of options for student accommodation. However, it’s also so big that getting from one part of London to another can take quite a long time. Additionally, because of its massive popularity, London can also be really expensive.
If you’ll be studying in London, consider the city of Reading as an alternative accommodation option. Reading is a city west of London, and home to just over 300,000 inhabitants in its urban area. You can get from Reading to London’s Paddington station in about 25 minutes by train. So especially if your university will be easily accessible from Paddington, Reading can be a great alternative to living in London itself. We currently list several good options for student accommodation in Reading, many of which are noticeably cheaper than the average London rents.
Alternative city for Manchester: Liverpool
Manchester and Liverpool are both big university cities with lots of fun stuff to do. However, the rents in Liverpool are much cheaper. We currently list 35 different accommodation options in Liverpool for under £150/week, while in Manchester at the moment it can be tricky to find anything that’s under £300/week, with a lot of the cheaper options already being sold out.
The fastest direct trains from Manchester Victoria station to Liverpool Lime Street only take 35 minutes, so commuting between the two cities is perfectly doable. If you’ll be studying in one of the Manchester universities, consider also checking out the options for student accommodation in Liverpool.