The happiest places to live in Britain in 2025
Location matters when choosing your next home. Whether you’re shortening your commute, prioritising school catchment areas or seeking a quieter lifestyle, one question often gets overlooked: will living there actually make you happy?
Rightmove has just published its fourteenth annual Happy at Home Index, surveying thousands of residents across Britain about what makes them content with where they live. The results reveal interesting patterns about community, wellbeing and what truly matters in a location.
What makes a place happy to live
The survey identified key factors that contribute to residential happiness:
- Sense of belonging, community and wellbeing
- Welcoming neighbours and proximity to family and friends
- Access to essential services (hospitals, schools, employment)
- Safety and walkability to amenities
- Access to green spaces, rivers, coast or woodland
- Vibrant high streets
- Rural locations generally score higher than suburban or urban areas
The research also found that happiness with location changes as we age. Those aged 18-24 tend to be less content with where they live, while over-65s are generally the happiest age group.
Top 10 happiest places to live in Britain
| Rank | Place | Region | Average asking price | Average asking rent (p.c.m.) |
| 1 | Skipton | Yorkshire and The Humber | £326,093 | £1,038 |
| 2 | Richmond-upon-Thames | Greater London | £942,522 | £3,189 |
| 3 | Camden | Greater London | £1,036,768 | £3,523 |
| 4 | Harrogate | Yorkshire and The Humber | £394,355 | £1,535 |
| 5 | Woodbridge | East of England | £462,734 | £1,309 |
| 6 | Altrincham | North-West | £643,244 | £2,968 |
| 7 | Macclesfield | North-West | £344,807 | £1,407 |
| 8 | Stirling | Scotland | £226,547 | £1,208 |
| 9 | Cirencester | South-West | £472,990 | £1,975 |
| 10 | Hexham | North-East | £331,198 | £967 |
Source: Rightmove Happy at Home Index 2025
Britain’s least happy locations
At the other end of the scale, the survey’s least happy places were predominantly in the south-east and east of England:
| Rank | Place | Region |
| 1 | Rochester-upon-Medway | South-East |
| 2 | Walsall | West Midlands |
| 3 | Luton | East of England |
| 4 | Peterborough | East of England |
| 5 | Bradford | Yorkshire and The Humber |
Source: Rightmove Happy at Home Index 2025
Regional happiness trends
Overall, residents in the South-West report the highest levels of happiness with where they live, while those in the East Midlands report the lowest satisfaction levels.
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