Household Bills & Additional Costs

Household Bills

Household bills include energy bills for gas and electricity, water rates, TV licence and telephone and internet charges.

Check to see which bills are included in your rent - sometimes private landlords will cover the cost of bills.

Make sure you know what is and isn't covered when you choose your accommodation.

Gas and Electricity

The average household's yearly gas and electricity bill, according to Ofgem is approximately £1,690 (June 2024). This obviously varies by the size of the house/flat.

Water

The average annual bill for household water & sewerage bills in England and Wales is £473 in 2024/25. If you have a water meter, you will be charged based on how much water you use. If not, you will pay a fixed amount each year.

TV Licence

You need a TV Licence to watch or record programmes at the same time as they are shown on TV, whether you are watching on TV sets, or other devices including tablets and laptops. You will also need a TV Licence to download or watch BBC programmes on demand, including catch up TV, on BBC iPlayer. This applies to any device and provider you use. If you have a TV in your room you will need a TV licence, regardless of whether you are living in halls or rented accommodation. If you have a joint tenancy several TVs are covered by one licence, but if you have a separate tenancy a licence is needed for each set. The current TV Licence costs £169.50 per year (as at April 2024).

If you go home for the summer holidays, you may be able to get a refund on your TV licence for the remaining months.  See the TV Licencing website for more information.

Home Phone & Broadband

Most broadband connections will require a home phone line, but this is often included in the broadband package. Prices start from around £20/month for Standard broadband. Faster fibre-optic connections cost more, but may be more suitable if there are lots of people sharing one connection. Check out Money Saving Expert's tips on how to get cheap broadband at: www.moneysavingexpert.com/broadband-and-tv/cheap-broadband/

Mobile Phone

Think about your mobile deal. It’s easier to keep track of your spending on ’Pay-as-you-go’, but things can really add up if you’re making a lot of long calls, plus you’ll probably have to buy the handset as well. It’s normally cheapest to buy a package of minutes, texts and internet data each month. Check the different networks to get the best offer. If you get a contract with a ‘free’ phone, you’ll pay for it with a higher monthly bill. Shop around for the best deal, but read what you’re signing carefully, and factor those monthly fees into your budget. Read the small print in mobile phone and internet contracts. Some can be expensive once the free offers have finished and costly to end the contract before the due date.

Council Tax

Full-time students are exempt from Council Tax unless living with non-student adults. Exemption certificates can be printed from the student SOLE page. Where a student is sharing a house with a non-student adult the Council Tax bill for the household will be liable to a 25% reduction.

Shop around for the best deals

Use comparison sites to get the best deal for Gas/Electricity, Broadband, Mobile Phone Contracts, Car Insurance etc. 

U Switch
Money Supermarket
Compare The Market
Go Compare
Handset Expert

Additional Costs

According to the NatWest Student Living Index 2023 students spent on average per month:

• £109.57 on Supermarket food shopping, toiletries & household items
• £37.53 on Eating out (inc. coffees, restaurant, etc)
• £36.67 on Transport whilst visiting home during term time
• £34.48 on Household bills (gas, oil, electric, water and internet)
• £33.78 on Clothes, shoes & accessories
• £32.48 on Going out (inc. gigs, theatre, cinema, clubs but excluding alcohol)
• £30.96 on Alcohol (all consumed - both at home and while out)
• £30.67 on Trips (visiting friends, weekends away, holidays)
• £28.80 on Takeaways (inc. food deliveries, collection)
• £24.72 on Public transport for day-to-day travel
• £22.04 on Car for day-to day travel (inc petrol, MOT, Insurance)
• £16.22 on Self-care and wellbeing (gym, meditation, massage, beauty)
• £12.62 on Mobile phone bills and related costs
• £9.75 on Books, course materials, printing etc
• £6.52 on Sports (equipment, subscription, fees)
• £6.02 on University societies and clubs
• £5.74 on Home entertainment (cable tv, on-demand streaming services)

Obviously costs differ across the country and between students, but this will give you an idea on costs you may incur.

 Further information can be found on the full NatWest Student Living Report 2023