United Kingdom · Local Authorities · Compare
Leeds vs Manchester
Leeds (Yorkshire and The Humber, England · ~799k people) · Manchester (North West, England · ~556k people)
Of 7 strictly-comparable measures: Leeds leads on 4, 3 effectively tied. 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
Leeds
£37,596/yr
Worse than 70% of UK LAs
Manchester
£37,211/yr
Worse than 73% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
House price
ONS HPSSA-9 median · Year ending Sep 2025
Leeds
£245,000
Better than 62% of UK LAs
Manchester
£247,500
Better than 61% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Monthly rent
ONS PIPR (newly-signed lets) · 2026-03
Leeds
£1,130/mo
Worse than 60% of UK LAs
Manchester
£1,347/mo
Worse than 75% of UK LAs
Leeds: 19% lower median rent.
Council tax (Band D)
MHCLG · 2026-27
Leeds
£2,284/yr
Better than 83% of UK LAs
Manchester
£2,312/yr
Better than 77% of UK LAs
Effectively tied — under 2% apart.
Recorded crime
ONS PFA Table C4 · Year ending Dec 2025
Leeds
116.1/1k
Worse than 94% of UK LAs
Manchester
143.2/1k
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Leeds: 23% lower recorded-crime rate.
Deprivation (IMD)
MHCLG Indices of Deprivation · 2019
Leeds
27.3
Worse than 82% of UK LAs
Manchester
40.0
Worse than 98% of UK LAs
Leeds: lower average deprivation score (27.3 vs 40.0).
Schools (Ofsted)
Ofsted MI · Feb 2026 snapshot
Leeds
94.2%
Better than 65% of UK LAs
Manchester
90.3%
Worse than 76% of UK LAs
Leeds: 3.9 percentage points more pupils in Good/Outstanding schools.
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.
Leeds
Rent takes 36% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.5× median annual pay
Manchester
Rent takes 43% of median gross monthly pay
A median home costs 6.7× median annual pay
Full Leeds profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.
Full Manchester profile →
Every indicator, all state-funded schools with Ofsted grades, and similar areas.