A home in Bath has a higher sticker price than one in Bristol — but a Bristol household pays more in council tax every year it lives there. Across 2,624 standard residential sales in Bath and 5,851 in Bristol in 2025 (HM Land Registry Price Paid Data), the median Bath home sold for £399,950 against £350,000 in Bristol: a £49,950 gap upfront. Yet Bristol's 2026-27 council tax Band D is £2,713.68, £330 a year above Bath's £2,383.42.
So which costs more — the spa city or its bigger neighbour eight miles down the A4? The honest answer is "it depends what you're measuring", and this guide lays out every line. All figures were pulled from HM Land Registry, the two councils' published 2026-27 Band D rates, and the Bank of England's latest quoted mortgage rate, in June 2026.
The headline comparison
| Bath & North East Somerset | City of Bristol | |
|---|---|---|
| Median sale price (2025) | £399,950 | £350,000 |
| Sales recorded (2025) | 2,624 | 5,851 |
| Largest property type by volume | Terraced (£365,000) | Terraced (£378,000) |
| Stamp duty at the median (standard) | £9,997.50 | £7,500.00 |
| Council tax Band D (2026-27) | £2,383.42 | £2,713.68 |
| Indicative mortgage (25% deposit, 25yr, 4.32%) | £1,637/mo | £1,432/mo |
| All-in monthly (mortgage + council tax) | £1,835/mo | £1,659/mo |
The pattern is a clean inversion: Bath is dearer to buy, Bristol is dearer to run. Bath is the priciest place to buy across the four West of England authorities yet carries the cheapest Band D bill of the group; Bristol sits mid-table on price but tops it on council tax. That makes the two cities an unusually tidy worked example of the difference between what a home costs to acquire and what it costs to keep.
Buying: the upfront side
The median Bath home (£399,950) costs £49,950 more than the median Bristol home (£350,000) — about 14% more. Both cities are terraced-led markets: terraced houses were the single most-traded property type in each during 2025. Bristol shows an unusual quirk — its terraced median (£378,000) edges above its semi-detached median (£367,500), reflecting sought-after Victorian and Edwardian inner streets in areas such as Bedminster (BS3), Bishopston (BS7) and Cotham/Redland (BS6). Bath keeps the conventional ordering, with detached homes (£590,000) well clear of the rest.
Stamp duty widens the upfront gap a little further. Both medians fall above the £300,000 first-time-buyer nil-rate threshold but below the £500,000 relief ceiling, so a qualifying first-time buyer still gets partial relief in each city (HMRC, 2026):
| Buyer | Bath (£399,950) | Bristol (£350,000) |
|---|---|---|
| Standard rate (SDLT) | £9,997.50 (2.50%) | £7,500.00 (2.14%) |
| First-time buyer relief | £4,997.50 (1.25%) | £2,500.00 (0.71%) |
A mover funding a 25% deposit therefore needs roughly £109,985 in Bath (deposit plus standard stamp duty) against £95,000 in Bristol to get to completion — a £14,985 difference before legal and survey costs. You can model any price and buyer type with the stamp duty calculator, and see the full Bath picture in the average house price in Bath guide and the Bristol equivalent.
Running: the ongoing side
Here the order flips. Bristol's 2026-27 Band D of £2,713.68 is the highest of the four West of England councils, while Bath's £2,383.42 is the lowest — a £330.26 annual difference, or about £28 a month. Over a typical hold the gap compounds: at today's rates it is roughly £1,651 over five years and £3,303 over ten (illustrative, holding the 2026-27 figure flat; councils reset Band D annually).
Mortgage cost moves the other way. At the Bank of England's latest quoted 75% loan-to-value five-year fixed rate of 4.32% (April 2026), a 25% deposit and a 25-year term gives an indicative monthly payment of about £1,637 in Bath (on a £299,962 loan) versus £1,432 in Bristol (£262,500). Your own rate will depend on your lender, deposit, term and credit profile — the figures here are illustrative of the rate-and-term maths, not a quote. Try different deposits and terms on the buy-vs-rent calculator.
Does the council-tax gap change the answer?
This is where it pays to be precise. Bristol is dearer to run — but the council-tax premium does not make Bristol the more expensive city overall. Adding mortgage and council tax together:
- Bath all-in: £1,637 mortgage + £199 council tax = £1,835/month
- Bristol all-in: £1,432 mortgage + £226 council tax = £1,659/month
Bath is about £177 a month dearer all-in, because its £204-a-month mortgage premium (the cost of that £49,950 higher price) dwarfs Bristol's £28-a-month council-tax premium. The inversion is real on the council-tax axis, but the purchase-price gap dominates the total. Put plainly: Bristol's higher annual bill is genuine, but it does not offset the larger sum a Bath buyer borrows in the first place. (These totals cover mortgage and council tax only — energy, insurance and maintenance sit on top of both.)
This is the same lesson that shows up across other multi-city comparisons, such as the South Wales cost comparison: the area with the heaviest council tax is rarely the most expensive place to live once the mortgage is in the frame.
Energy and the housing stock
On energy efficiency the two cities are close. Of the domestic Energy Performance Certificates on record, 32.6% of Bath's stock is rated C or above (15,340 of 46,989) against 29.6% in Bristol (30,834 of 104,263) — both shaped by large shares of older, harder-to-insulate housing, including Bath's Georgian core. One caveat: the modelled running-cost figures on an EPC use dated cost assumptions and bear little relation to current energy bills, so treat the band as the signal, not the pound figures printed on the certificate.
Price direction over the past year
Both cities' published house price indices edged down in the year to March 2026: the Bath & North East Somerset index moved from 101.7 to 100.4 (about −1.3%) and the City of Bristol index from 101.3 to 98.6 (about −2.7%), while the wider South West (−0.8%) and the UK as a whole (+0.1%) were broadly flat (ONS UK House Price Index, March 2026 release). These are recorded index movements, not a forecast — Homecost does not predict future prices.
See the numbers for a real street
Cost depends on the exact postcode, property type and floor area, not just the city average. Enter a Bath postcode such as BA1 1HZ — or any Bristol postcode — to see recorded sale prices, council tax band, energy rating and an estimated monthly cost for the homes on that street. For the wider picture, browse the regional price guides or compare against a national benchmark in the true cost of buying a £400,000 home.
This is general information, not financial, tax or mortgage advice. Stamp duty, relief eligibility and mortgage affordability depend on your individual circumstances. Speak to a qualified adviser before acting.