London has long enjoyed its reputation as the epicentre of the UK, with big-name brands, new businesses and entrepreneurs all falling over themselves to showcase their talents and put themselves on the main stage of The Big Smoke. But could London finally be losing its shine?
As the UK faces its biggest cost-of-living crisis since the end of the Second World War, more and more of us are setting our sights on cities a little further north. In particular, Manchester is fast-becoming London city dwellers’ new favourite town with businesses liking event management manchester. With vibrant nightlife, incredible restaurants and a world-famous music scene, many of the capital’s previous residents are packing their bags and heading up to Manchester and its northerly neighbours.
But why Manchester? What is it about this particular city that’s attracting all the Londonites? And is this Mancunian dream just a flash in the pan? Will the current trend of northern living fizzle out, with droves of people heading back down south with their tails between their legs in the coming years?
Today, we’re going to take a look at what is making Manchester the hottest city in the UK. We’ll compare the costs of living in the capital with its up-and-coming northern counterpart. Plus, we’ll see if Manchester really is the new London.
Manchester vs London: a tale of two cities
When it comes to choosing a city to live in, most of us consider a variety of factors. These include important day-to-day aspects, such as the cost of living, transportation, job opportunities, culture, nightlife and entertainment. And while both London and Manchester offer their own brands of ‘city living’, how do you know which one is best for you and your individual circumstances?
With that in mind, let’s take a look at how London and Manchester fare when it comes to everyday life in the two cities.
Cost
For most of us, where we live is influenced heavily by the cost of living. As the UK moves closer towards a recession, and with prices going up and wages staying stagnant, the cost of things like rent and bills has never been so important.
It’s obvious to say but London is by far the most expensive place to live in all of the UK. And while wages are certainly a little higher in the capital, most of us will struggle to live in one of Europe’s most expensive cities without a seriously high-paying job to keep us afloat.
Rent aside, the general cost of living is far greater in London than in the north of England. Train fares, lunches from Pret and after work drinks will all tug on your purse strings more in the capital than in other parts of the country.
In fact, cost is such a major concern right now that many people in London and the rest of the UK are cutting back on luxuries, such as drinks and meals out, in favour of board games and wine at home, in a bid to cut their spending.
For instance, if you’re a fan of casinos, no wagering sites offer you the chance to withdraw your bonus money more easily, giving you more fun to be had from the comfort of your living room. Not to mention, there’s no expensive bar bill when you play at home!
While Manchester is by no means cheap, residents in this northern city can enjoy cheaper rent, as well as more economical travel and better-priced pints of beer. Not to mention, transport in Manchester is a lot cheaper than in London. All of these things add up to make Manchester the cheaper place to live by a long shot.
Business opportunities
For many years, people believed that all the best business opportunities in the UK were in London. And while this may have been true a couple of decades ago, with more and more businesses switching to remote and hybrid models of working, employees are no longer required to do long commutes from home into their office. This gives everyone more freedom of movement and businesses more scope when it comes to where they want to set up their headquarters.
Many big businesses have relocated to places like Manchester in recent times, in order to cut costs of rent and management fees. A good example is the BBC, which relocated lots of its staff from London to its Salford venue in Manchester in 2011.
Other huge companies like Google, Amazon and Microsoft have also opened offices in and around Manchester, due to its cheaper overall running costs. So if it’s good enough for Apple, it’s good enough for us!
As you can see, it’s not all about London when it comes to business. And as remote working seems to be a pandemic trend set to stay, we see no reason why new businesses feel the need to set up in London anymore, when places like Manchester offer so much for a fraction of the cost.
Transport
When it comes to getting around town, London has some truly eye-watering costs compared to Manchester. To give you an idea, a Tube ticket that covers all London zones will cost you about £20 a day, not including bus or any overground trains. Whereas in Manchester, you can get a £10 travelcard that will let you use all available modes of transport in and around the city. Furthermore, things like taxis and private car hire are always a lot cheaper outside the capital.
Although many more of us find ourselves working from home since the beginning of the pandemic, the cost of travel is still an important factor when living in any major city. But it’s especially important in English cities like London and Manchester, where more often than not you’re trying to stay out of the rain!
Shopping
London is renowned for its shopping areas, with places like the West End and Bond Street housing the biggest names in fashion along their bustling streets.
But for most of us, we’re not looking for the latest from Balenciaga or Gucci, so high street shops will more than suffice. And the good news for the shopaholics out there is that Manchester is home to plenty of great shopping streets and dedicated centres, such as the Arndale Shopping Centre and the well-known Trafford Centre.
Furthermore, Manchester is also known for its small boutiques and independent vendors, which is something that London is lacking these days.
Of course, London will always have more shops than any other city in the UK, but Manchester is a serious contender for second place when it comes to world class shops.
Nightlife
The great thing about the UK is that all of its major cities have great nightlife, with venues that are well-known in other parts of the country. In London, you can go to the big-ticket venues, such as the O2, Wembley Stadium and Hammersmith Apollo. And in Manchester, you have a lot of other fantastic music venues, nightclubs and comedy clubs.
But where you might have to travel for a couple of hours to get to your favourite venue in London, Manchester city centre is a lot smaller and easier to get around. Therefore, if you want to take in a few laughs at a great comedy club, before heading out for a few beers and some shape-throwing in your local nightclub, Manchester offers a far more convenient and cheaper night out.
Music
Music is where Manchester could trump London, without a doubt. Manchester has been the source of some of the UK’s biggest bands, including Joy Division, The Smiths, Happy Mondays, Stone Roses and, of course, Oasis.
The north of England has a long, rich history when it comes to creating world-famous bands, and a lot of the most revered artists on the planet started out in small Manchester venues, such as Rafters, Twisted Wheel and The Hacienda.
There’s no doubt that London is also home to some of music’s biggest stars, along with the biggest venues attracting a worldwide audience. However, if you’re looking for indie music and an intimate gig that won’t cost you the earth, you can’t get better than Manchester.
Is Manchester the new London?
Asking if Manchester is the new London is like asking if salt is the new pepper. They might both seem like similar entities, but they are so individual and unique that it really isn’t a reasonable comparison.
London attracts visitors all year round, who flock to its streets for 5-star hotels, boutique shopping, international gastronomy and world-class entertainment from the biggest names in movie and film.
But living in this vast metropolis is an entirely different experience. The rising cost of pretty much everything makes living the London dream a little unrealistic for the vast majority of us. And unless you’re pulling in a six-figure salary, the reality of living in the UK’s biggest and most expensive city could be far from what you imagined.
On the flip side, Manchester is another vibrant city, filled with entertainment, culture and its own unique charm. We would never pit the two against each other, but we will say this: as the cost of living crisis continues to push people out of the capital, a lot more of us are heading north for a similarly lively city experience, without the London price tag.
