Rents are now so unaffordable that more than half (51%) of UK flatsharers have relied on some form of loan, credit, advance or a second income stream to help them pay their rent in the past 12 months1, according to data from flatshare site SpareRoom.
But it’s women who are more likely to be ‘rent burdened’ than men: 79% of women spend more than 30% of their take-home pay on rent compared to 69% for men. And 31% of women spend more than half their take-home pay on rent compared to 20% of men2.
| Right now, what % of your monthly take-home pay goes on rent? | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| Less than 20% | 6.1% | 9.1% |
| 20-29% | 14.9% | 21.6% |
| 30-39% | 26.1% | 29.8% |
| 40-49% | 22.5% | 19.4% |
| 50-59% | 15.8% | 10.6% |
| 60-69% | 7.9% | 5.1% |
| 70% or more | 6.7% | 4.5% |
| Over 30% | 79.1% | 69.3% |
| Over 50% | 30.5% | 20.1% |
A 2025 SpareRoom survey of 6,524 UK flatsharers reveals the gender pay gap puts women at an early disadvantage: 45% of men who rent earn more than £30K per year gross, compared to 41% of women. And 12% of men earn more than £50K per year compared to 8% of women.
| What's your annual income (before tax)? | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| £0 - £9,999 | 9.8% | 8.2% |
| £10,000 - £19,999 | 12.9% | 11.3% |
| £20,000 - £29,999 | 30.6% | 28.8% |
| £30,000 - £49,999 | 32.4% | 33.5% |
| £50,000 - £74,999 | 6.9% | 8.7% |
| £75,000 - £99,999 | 1.1% | 2% |
| £100,000 - £149,999 | 0.3% | 0.7% |
| Over £150,000 | 0.2% | 0.3% |
| Prefer not to answer | 6% | 6.4% |
| Over £30k | 40.8% | 45.3% |
| Over £50K | 8.4% | 11.7% |
As a result, men are more likely than women to consider their rent affordable:
| Do you consider your rent to be affordable? | Women | Men |
|---|---|---|
| Yes | 55.6% | 61.6% |
| No | 44.4% | 38.5% |
Higher rents have an impact on homeownership expectations. Of those renters who expect they’ll never be in a position to buy property in the future, 71% of women said it’s because they don’t earn enough to get a mortgage, compared to 61% of men, while 19% of women said it was because they were in debt, compared to 15% of men.
The data also revealed men are more likely than women to live alongside more people in larger houseshares, in which rooms tend to be cheaper. Men are also more likely to be living with their landlord as lodgers, which is on average 11% cheaper across the UK than renting as a tenant and 17% cheaper in London.
Ella Chisholm, of flatshare site SpareRoom, comments: “The gender pay gap puts women at a distinct disadvantage when it comes to meeting the spiralling cost of living and their plans for the future. As a consequence, women are more prone to debt, pushing homeownership aspirations further out of reach.
“Rents are now so unaffordable people are having to seriously consider what they’re willing to compromise on – factors like location and how many people they share with – to keep costs down. Others have accepted they’ll never buy, so they’re happy to rent somewhere they love living, for a higher price.
“A contributing factor could be that women may be more likely to prioritise their personal safety, choosing areas closer to stations and bus stops to avoid walking long distances alone at night or generally living in areas where they feel safer – even if that comes at a higher cost.”