How we worked it out
Where we had to choose a figure, we picked the one that makes paying the bills yourselves look dearer.
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- Energy: Ofgem’s price cap for your region, paid by Direct Debit Source: Ofgem. Use is the government’s median for a home with that many adults or bedrooms, whichever is higher Source: DESNZ.
- Water: the metered charges of your water and sewerage companies, from their own charges schemes. Use is 122 litres each a day Source: Discover Water. Without a postcode, we use the dearest pair. In Scotland, an all-student house pays no water charges Source: Scottish Water.
- Broadband: Ofcom’s average price for your speed Source: Ofcom.
- TV licence: £180 a year, one for the house Source: GOV.UK.
- Council tax: none, because a house where everyone is a full-time student doesn’t pay it Source: GOV.UK.
The water charges schemes we used
Affinity Water, Anglian Water, Bournemouth Water, Bristol Water, Cambridge Water, Essex & Suffolk Water, Hafren Dyfrdwy, Northumbrian Water, Portsmouth Water, SES Water, Severn Trent, South East Water, South Staffs Water, South West Water, Southern Water, Thames Water, United Utilities, Welsh Water, Wessex Water and Yorkshire Water.
What packages tend to cost
| People | Each a week |
|---|---|
| 3 | £30 to £40 |
| 4 | £19 to £32 |
| 5 | £20 to £30 |
| 6 | £15 to £27 |
| 7 or more | £18 to £22 |
These are the lowest and highest prices letting agents publish in seven cities, checked in November 2026. They’re asking prices, not what people paid.
In Reading, nine packages for one four-bedroom house averaged £408 a month, against about £280 for the same bills set up separately Source: University of Reading.
What it leaves out
- Cheaper deals, such as a fixed energy tariff, and set-up fees.
- Northern Ireland, where energy prices are set differently and homes don’t pay water charges.
Postcode locations from Code-Point Open: contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026, Royal Mail data © Royal Mail copyright and database right 2026, and National Statistics data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Electricity network areas: supported by National Energy SO Open Data. Water and sewerage areas digitised from the legal records by the Water Services Regulation Authority (Ofwat) with support from Ordnance Survey, used under the Open Government Licence v3.0.