Cheapest UK Cities for Student Accommodation

“Always something or somewhere to go. Bus routes available. Town is a walk away. Eating out has a wide range of choices.”

“Very affordable. A great option for foreign students. Many people online claim it’s a bad place to live in. WRONG. It is a pretty place. If it was cleaner it would be even better.”

“Bolton is actually quite a nice place to live… The uni itself is in the town centre with great places to eat and a really good shopping centre nearby... Public transport is great, the bus station is 2 minutes down the road from uni…”

“A decent town, cost of living for students is much more achievable than other student towns. Public transport could be less fragmented”

“Very cheap to live here. A large variety of student housing. Pubs have excellent food as do some of the individual restaurants. Nights out are always good. Massive selection of bars. Taxis and buses are very very cheap.”

“Loving living it Stoke. Great transport links, easy to get back home. Shopping and eating out are all affordable.”

“The cost is alright here you can get by comfortably. Some shops here, your usual asda, tesco, wilko etc. Again if you want some of the wider variety shops nip up to newcastle on the metro or head to the metro centre. Plenty of public transport and there is a free university bus for students too.”

“Carlisle is a cute small city, you have everything you need within 30 mins of walking. Great parks, good restaurants/take-aways, Carlisle have everything you need.. (Maybe except a Primark...)”

“Nice location,near by the supermarket... Easily accessible location to town...”

“Cost of transportation is relatively low. Living costs are well suited to every budget. Major shop chains are available.”

“Dundee is a low cost of living city. The people are nice and friendly. Unlike other big cities, Dundee is a place which is not very crowded and busy.”

“House prices are very cheap, so are the price of food and commodities. The nightlife is not great, not terrible, and there is an okay range of places to eat. Public transport is very cheap.”

“Plymouth is a good place to live. Cheap cost of living, offers an excellent restaurant and nightlife scene, plenty of options in terms of shopping (essentials, luxury items, etc). The public transport is okay...”

“Aberdeen is a great place to live for a student. There are plenty jobs, cost of living is not high, and there's plenty to do in your free time when you aren't studying.”

“Cheap accommodation in centre. Mander centre has plently of shops. Cheap restaurants, plenty of take aways. Not many places to go on a night out, not much of a night life, but wetherspoons is ok. Plently of transport links to Birmingham running all day. Unfortunately the area is rough…”

“Chester is a lovely city, especially when it comes to shopping. the cost of living here isn't that high as it's an affordable city.”

“Good nights out, low job opportunities, low prices in most places, busses are expensive, taxis are cheap”

“Pretty happy with all of these things - nightlife is fun and relatively safe, cost of living is pretty low and there’s many eateries to choose from”

“I really love northampton... it's not too big to seem daunting. The bus service for uni students is fantastic and would certainly recommend it. I love the nights out as they are cheap yet always fantastic, never disappointed. The shopping could be improved... There is numerous taxi services around…”

“Bedford campus is well organised, there is a shuttle bus which runs every 20/30 mins Mon to Fri from 8 am till 10 pm. It is free for students and stops at the main train station as well as at the main groceries in town centre. A lot of fun going on during weekends and Wednesdays… the student night!”

"Lots of transport link, there are a few pubs and restaurants but nights out are better in Manchester city centre, there is an Aldi and Tesco nearby to do food shopping, it is a cheap place to live."

“It's relatively cheap to live in Loughborough, you have the staple shops such as Lidi and Aldi. - Very limited as to where you can eat. But there is a Nandos in town. Shopping is terrible thus one would have to go to either Leicester or Nottingham.”

“With it being a smallish town centre there arent loads of places to go n a night out.. I find the transport links to places like leeds, manchester, and halifax very good... student housing in huddersfield is some of the cheapest and nicest I've seen, very nice student houses, halls and studios all very well priced.”

“Leicester is a good size city and is great for students as its affordable and its a student-oriented city”

“The city is not expensive; however, eating out is pretty expensive, I would say transportation is really good and cheap.”

“A beautiful city, with a good location and welcoming people, also with a lot of opportunities for student development.”

“Eating is very expensive for students but good nightlife and loads of attractions. Buses regularly and trains. Good shopping centres and always new shops opening”

“It's relatively cheap live in keele,(aim for the residential estate/ forge houses), there are a number of quiet shops but hanley isn't too far if you're after a bigger shopping centre. Nights out are fairly quiet, but again if you like going out and meeting the same people that's not a bad thing...”

“Buses are £1.60 to anywhere in gloucestershire which is great. Everything you need shopping wise, good selection of supermarkets for food too. A lot of restaurants and usually you can get good student deals. Housing after first year shouldn’t cost you more than £100 a week inc. bills.”

“Chinese restaurants are plentiful, shopping is super convenient, the cost of living is within an acceptable range and public transport is excellent”

"Public transport to and from the university is brilliant… The shops in Stirling are pretty good and have everything anyone could need, however, lacks a good number of clothes shops... Eating out is great and there are many options... Cost of living is great - everything you could need is in town...”

"Cost of living here is really quite low nothing is majorly expensive. Eating out can be good for certain places... Nights out can be limited but still really decent. Public transport is cheap and really good always on time, although I used my car, when we did use the bus/train it was reliable.”

“Liverpool is a good city for student living in terms of living costs, but it does not have good places for eating out or shopping, Manchester beats it on this. On the other hand it’s quite compact as a city and everything can be reached at walkable distance”

“Newport is a little town with the larger Telford nearby. There are regular buses…  I think the prices are decent, especially in comparison to living in a city uni. There's lots of pubs and one main club in Newport, so the nightlife isn't like being in a city but on the student nights out it always gets super busy and social.”

“It’s not massively expensive in Colchester. There are lots of restaurants (wagamamas, turtle bay, Taco Bell, etc), but not fantastic for nights out. ATIK is fun when you’re a fresher but soon gets boring. Sub zero on campus is pretty good and very convenient. Buses are very unreliable, Normally late.”

"Perfect city; but boring but not too big. Buses to campus every 10 mins from multiple bus stops. All kinds of bars, pubs, clubs; very lively. Costs range from 90 per week to 170 for all budgets.”

"Hatfield is quite expensive for what it is. The uni... is the only source of nightlife other than a Wetherspoons. The university has a couple of bars and a nightclub on campus. Hatfield does have very good train links with London... There are some nice restaurtants in Hatfield...”

“Inverness is a great city to live in if your not a big fan of big busy cities. It's a small, picturesque city. It has plenty of places to eat out in and the shopping is good...”

“Hull is a great place to be at Uni, there is a wide range of places to relax and is one of the cheapest cities there is!”

"Cardiff is an amazing city... not overwhelming. The pubs are very cool and offer very good deals for students. You can easily get everywhere by bike or bus... you always have something to do, whether it's just a walk in Bute park or Cardiff Bay or a go karting or paintball session… I love living here!”

“It is a friendly compact city where everything is literally on your doorstep... There is so much choice to eat and it is reasonable priced for most places. Nights out are good depending what you are into... There is so much option for pubs and great for drink and non-drinkers.”

"Handy for travel. Plenty of shops to shop in. Cheap enough city overall.”

“Transport is great with trains getting into Central London within an hour. Nightlife is incredibly poor from a students point of view as in reality it only has the SU and pubs to offer-not clubs etc. Cost of living in 2nd and 3rd year are pretty steep. Shopping options are good...”

“It's a small town but it's filled with great pubs, places to eat and tons of charity shops!”

"My uni-run student accommodation is cheap and well worth the money so I'm happy with it. Loads of different places to eat out. Shopping places are high in numbers and varied- loads of shops. Public transport is EXPENSIVE”

"Expensive but lovely. Union is great (and cheap), plenty of social and night life that is also safe. Great place to be.”

"It's a good student city. Housing is a bit too expensive in my opinion, but there is a lot of choice. There are many club and bars, so I think everyone can find their preferred type of nights out”

"Falmouth is a great town to live in! There are cute independent shops, amazing restaurants (including fish and chips!) and best of all...beaches! Asda, Sainsburys and Lidl are nearby, so living on a student budget is manageable”

"I absolutely love Bournemouth and would love to just stay forever! It is not the cheapest flatwise, but the vibrant town and especially the beautiful surroundings are hard to beat. It is great culturally, offering everything from galleries, cinemas and theatres to pubs and nightclubs and has some superb eateries.”

"Canterbury is an excellent place to live, work and study… There are plenty of shops and a great nightlife scene. The only drawback would be public transport, it sucks! I found that the best way to get around is by taxi, as the city is fairly small the taxis are extremely cheap.”

"Beautiful area with stunning views. Cheap accommodation up north, though some overpriced student housing. A range of restaurants though no MacDonald’s.”

"It is great that Glasgow contains most of the cuisine from around the world although it might be costly sometimes. Most of the shopping are located within the city center which requires most of us to spend on the public transport back and forth to the city center.”

"I think it is very expensive for what you get. The location isn't great if you want to live by the uni, but it's next to the train station and Bowling etc so it's not too bad. But it's good fun because of the people you meet :)”

"Beautiful area with stunning views. Cheap accommodation up north, though some overpriced student housing. A range of restaurants though no MacDonald’s.”

"City is worth living. Not too expensive to live. All facilities such as eating out, night outs, shopping, public transport. Everything is worth your money. Birmingham is Best place to live in UK.”

"It’s very peaceful area and city, the cost of living there is very reasonable and manageable. If you live around the city centre then you have all the necessary services around.”

“Living in Cambridge is not cheap however the majority of places are within walking distance with a great student life. There’s loads of public transport options which are not super expensive.”

"The nightlife is also amazing too with many student nights and weekly events on! Leeds can be expensive because it is a City, but it doesn't have to be as a student. You can budget effectively and still treat yourself to the nice/more expensive things!”

"It’s quite expensive to live here but you just have to budget for example; shop at Lidl / Aldi as opposed to Asda and go out on student nights and not on a Saturday where clubs are charging extortionate prices.”

"Beautiful, historic place with LOADS of independent businesses and weird n wonderful shops. Huge variety of places to eat, drink, and loads to do in general. Very good public transport and very cheap to live/get around compared to Southern cities.”

"Such a compact city, didnt even need to use local buses as it was possible to walk everywhere! Great prices for the south too and some amazing restaurants and cafes about. I still visit often even though i have graduated”

"Expensive place to live as a student, house prices rather steep. Pay for what you get however as it is a really nice city to go to uni.”

"Housing appears to be expensive but expected. Shopping is great and plenty of great restaurants… Have no need to use public transport as I am able to walk to most places.”

"Winchester is beautiful but you'll pay a hefty price for it. It's got a small primark and an iceland in town, an aldi quite far out, a big tesco and sainsburys.”

"On the cusp of expensive, Edinburgh provides a range of both amazing cultural and entertaining aspects. Whether you want to live your university life raving in clubs or taking a calming walk in the meadows, you can truly pick your life here.”

"Public transport can be annoying in city centre but the majority of the time I haven’t had any issues. The night live in Bristol is amazing however living costs can be quite expensive due to the amount of students in Bristol. That being said, there are loads of cafes and food places that are cheap.”

"In the town centre there are a variety of shops, restaurants and nightclubs, however there isn't much else in the way of entertaining daytime activities. The public transport is usually consistent, but the student buses tend to be crowded. The're plenty of choices for nightclubs in Reading...”

"The city is beautiful, there are lots of things to do and there are always transport options. However, of course, most things are rather costly. It seems like this place has everything... but it's so expensive.”

"Relatively speaking, an expensive place to live (especially in terms of private accommodation after first year). However, Bath is a very pleasant city, and I enjoyed numerous fun nights out; don't be fooled by anyone saying Bath is "boring", I can assure you it isn't!”

"Cost of living might be a bit expensive but looking past that, everything else is amazing.”

"London is a very expensive city, but if you are frugal you can manage well. The clubs and bars are the best… and there is something for everyone. Shopping pretty much anywhere… is a fantastic experience… the Tube cannot beaten and the buses (esp. the night buses) can be a godsend!”