United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
City of Edinburgh vs Highland
City of Edinburgh (Scotland · ~528k people) · Highland (Scotland · ~235k people)
Of 3 strictly-comparable measures: City of Edinburgh leads on 1, Highland on 2. Which trade-offs matter is yours to weigh — the rows below show where each one wins.
Head to head
Median pay
ONS ASHE (residence) · 2025
City of Edinburgh
£42,630/yr
Better than 71% of UK LAs
Highland
£40,305/yr
Better than 59% of UK LAs
City of Edinburgh: 6% higher median pay.
House price
UK HPI mean · Sep 2025
City of Edinburgh
£294,681
Around UK average
Highland
£215,791
Better than 75% of UK LAs
Highland: 37% lower median price.
Monthly rent
Scot Gov PRS (advertised, 2-bed) · 2025 (2-bed median)
City of Edinburgh
£1,325/mo
Worse than 74% of UK LAs
Highland
£715/mo
Better than 88% of UK LAs
Highland: 85% lower median rent.
Not comparable for this pair
- Council tax (Band D): England and Wales only — Scotland bands differently, Northern Ireland uses domestic rates.
- Recorded crime: England and Wales only — Scotland and Northern Ireland publish under different counting rules.
- Deprivation (IMD): England only — SIMD/WIMD/NIMDM use separate methodologies that don't cross-compare.
- Schools (Ofsted): England only — Estyn, Education Scotland and ETI inspect under non-comparable frameworks.
What local pay actually covers
Same-place ratios — each area's own median rent and house price against its own median gross pay. A cheap-looking area stops looking cheap when local pay is lower still.
City of Edinburgh
Rent takes 37% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.9× median annual pay
Highland
Rent takes 21% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 5.4× median annual pay
Full City of Edinburgh profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Highland profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.