🏴
Bristol
Origin gross
£50,000
- COL index
- 134.5
- Take-home
- £39,520
- Tax bands
- rUK
🏴🏴2026 · Locked vignette
Bristol → Cardiff Relocation Salary
Locked £50,000 vignette: need about £31,264 in Cardiff (-37%). ONS PIPR rent COL 134.5 → 84.1, with PAYE + Class 1 NI take-home.
By Sammy S. · Founder · AuthorUpdated for 2026
COL-adjusted verdict
Cardiff needs less gross to match Bristol
£31,264 in Cardiff vs £50,000 in Bristol — gap ≈ £18,736.
Side-by-side scoreboard
🏴
Cardiff
Equivalent gross
£31,264
- COL index
- 84.1
- Take-home
- £26,030
- Tax bands
- rUK
Housing (ONS)
Average private rents and house prices from ONS PIPR / UK HPI local statistics — stress-test context alongside the COL-adjusted salary.
Bristol
Bristol
- Avg rent
- £1,883/mo
- Avg house price
- £352,000
- Band D
- £2,714
- Deposit est.
- £2,173
Cardiff
Cardiff
- Avg rent
- £1,177/mo
- Avg house price
- £272,000
- Deposit est.
- £1,358
Rent delta ≈ -£706/mo (-£8,472/yr). Affordability at equivalent gross: Stretched (~45.2% of gross).
Salary ladder
Same COL ratio applied across gross levels — equivalent in Cardiff and take-home at that equivalent.
| Gross in Bristol | Equiv. in Cardiff | Change | TH origin | TH at equiv. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| £40,000 | £25,011 | -37% | £32,320 | £21,528 |
| £50,000Headline | £31,264 | -37% | £39,520 | £26,030 |
| £60,000 | £37,517 | -37% | £45,357 | £30,532 |
| £75,000 | £46,896 | -37% | £54,057 | £37,285 |
| £100,000 | £62,528 | -37% | £68,557 | £46,824 |
£40,000 in Bristol
- Equiv. Cardiff
- £25,011
- Change
- -37%
- TH at equiv.
- £21,528
£50,000 in Bristol
- Equiv. Cardiff
- £31,264
- Change
- -37%
- TH at equiv.
- £26,030
£60,000 in Bristol
- Equiv. Cardiff
- £37,517
- Change
- -37%
- TH at equiv.
- £30,532
£75,000 in Bristol
- Equiv. Cardiff
- £46,896
- Change
- -37%
- TH at equiv.
- £37,285
£100,000 in Bristol
- Equiv. Cardiff
- £62,528
- Change
- -37%
- TH at equiv.
- £46,824
Line-item metrics
| Metric | Bristol | Cardiff |
|---|---|---|
| Equivalent gross (locked vignette) | £50,000 | £31,264 |
| COL index (ONS PIPR rent) | 134.5 | 84.1 |
| Take-home at vignette / equivalent | £39,520 | £26,030 |
| Take-home if same gross in destination | £39,520 | £39,520 |
| Tax band group | HMRC rUK | HMRC rUK |
| Avg private rent (August 2026 / August 2026) | £1,883/mo | £1,177/mo |
| Avg house price (July 2026) | £352,000 | £272,000 |
| Deposit estimate (5 weeks Eng/Wales) | £2,173 | £1,358 |
| Council Tax Band D (2026/27) | £2,714 | n/a (not England MHCLG) |
Context
Locked vignette
£50,000 gross in Bristol, single PAYE, no pension / student loan.
Rent COL source
ONS PIPR August 2026 — UK average £1,400/mo = index 100.
Personalize
Open the calculator with your gross, then stress-test ONS rent and Band D on the results panel.
How to use this compare
- 1
Read the verdict banner
See whether Cardiff needs more or less gross than Bristol on the locked vignette.
- 2
Compare the scoreboard
Check COL, equivalent gross, and take-home on both sides before negotiating.
- 3
Scan the salary ladder
See how the equivalent target scales from £40k through £100k on this corridor.
- 4
Open the calculator
Personalize at /uk-relocation-salary-calculator with your real offer and cities.
Key takeaways — Bristol → Cardiff
- On £50,000 in Bristol, matching purchasing power in Cardiff needs about £31,264 (-37%).
- ONS PIPR rent COL: Bristol 134.5 → Cardiff 84.1 (UK average rent £1,400 = 100, August 2026).
- Tax bands: HMRC rUK in Bristol; HMRC rUK in Cardiff.
- Take-home at origin ≈ £39,520; at equivalent in Cardiff ≈ £26,030.
- ONS average rent: Bristol £1,883/mo vs Cardiff £1,177/mo (£706/mo less in Cardiff).
Bristol → Cardiff relocation salary in 2026
This page holds a locked UK relocation salary vignette (£50,000 gross, single PAYE) moving from Bristol to Cardiff. Equivalent gross scales with the ONS PIPR rent COL ratio; take-home uses the UK tax engine for each city’s band group.
Cardiff needs about £18,736 less gross than Bristol (£31,264 vs £50,000) on this rent-relative COL model.
Modeled take-home stays ≈ £39,520 in Bristol and ≈ £26,030 at the equivalent gross in Cardiff. Same-gross take-home in Cardiff is ≈ £39,520.
How COL and ONS rents work on this corridor
COL indexes are ONS PIPR average private rents (August 2026): metro rent ÷ UK average (£1,400) × 100. Bristol is 134.5; Cardiff is 84.1.
Published average rents: £1,883/mo in Bristol vs £1,177/mo in Cardiff. Average house prices: £352,000 vs £272,000 (July 2026).
ONS has not refreshed a full-basket Relative Regional Consumer Price Level series since 2016 — this tool uses the current monthly PIPR rent series for spatial cost.
Tax bands on this move
Bristol uses HMRC rUK; Cardiff uses HMRC rUK. Class 1 NI is UK-wide on this model.
Both cities share the same income-tax band group on this model, so same-gross take-home matches; COL drives the equivalent-gross target.
Pension salary sacrifice, student loans, and Marriage Allowance are not modeled on this locked page — personalize on the UK tax calculator.
What this comparison leaves out
International shipping, flights, and visa cash belong on the UK relocation cost calculator — not in equivalent gross.
PIPR COL is rent-relative, not a full consumer basket (childcare, commute, and groceries are outside the index).
Enter your real offer on the UK relocation salary calculator (/uk-relocation-salary-calculator) to refresh take-home and housing stress-tests.
Concepts
Equivalent gross
Origin gross × (destination COL ÷ origin COL). On this corridor: £31,264.
ONS PIPR COL
Average private rent ÷ UK average × 100 (August 2026). Not a street-level quote.
Take-home at equivalent
PAYE + Class 1 NI if you earn the equivalent gross in Cardiff: ≈ £26,030.
Deposit estimate
England/Wales five-week cap estimate for Cardiff: ≈ £1,358 (Tenant Fees Act).
Myths vs facts
Myth: “Same take-home in Bristol and Cardiff means the same lifestyle.”
Fact: rUK metros often share modeled take-home at equal gross; PIPR rent COL (134.5 vs 84.1) drives the equivalent-gross target.
Myth: “COL-adjusted salary is what HMRC taxes.”
Fact: HMRC taxes your actual taxable pay. The equivalent figure is a negotiation / planning target only.
Myth: “ONS average rent is what you’ll pay on your street.”
Fact: PIPR averages are LA / BRMA stock measures. Use them as a stress-test, then check local listings.
Who this helps
Good fit
- Employees negotiating a UK city transfer or hybrid location change.
- Candidates weighing London vs regional offers on purchasing power.
- Anyone comparing Scotland vs rUK take-home alongside rent COL.
Use another tool when
- Visa / immigration cash planners (use relocation cost).
- People who need pension / student-loan net figures (use UK tax calculator).
Negotiation checklist
- Anchor the offer near £31,264 gross in Cardiff (or explain the gap).
- Confirm tax residency (HMRC rUK).
- Stress-test £1,177/mo ONS average rent against take-home.
- Add pension / student loan on the UK tax calculator if they apply.
- Budget shipping separately on the UK relocation cost calculator.
Common mistakes
- Accepting a flat regional discount without checking the PIPR COL ratio.
- Ignoring Scottish vs rUK band differences on Edinburgh/Glasgow corridors.
- Treating ONS average rents as a guarantee for your exact postcode.
- Forgetting that equivalent gross is not what PAYE withholds.
Glossary
- Equivalent gross
- Origin gross × (destination COL ÷ origin COL) — salary needed for matching rent-relative purchasing power before tax.
- COL index
- ONS PIPR metro average private rent ÷ UK average (£1,400) × 100.
- rUK bands
- HMRC income-tax rates for England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.
- Scottish Income Tax
- Revenue Scotland band set used for Edinburgh and Glasgow on this tool.
Related tools
Compare another pair
Compare any two UK cities
Prefer the reverse corridor? Cardiff → Bristol
Related comparisons
FAQ
On the locked vignette (£50,000 gross in Bristol), matching purchasing power in Cardiff needs about £31,264 gross (-37.5%). Gap ≈ £18,736.
Cardiff has a lower (or equal) COL index (84.1 vs 134.5), so the same lifestyle usually needs less (or similar) gross.
Yes — take-home figures use PAYE income tax + Class 1 NI for 2026/27 (rUK bands in Bristol; rUK in Cardiff). Pension, student loans, and Marriage Allowance are not modeled on this page.
Planning indexes where 100 = UK average private rent use the ONS Price Index of Private Rents. Bristol is 134.5; Cardiff is 84.1 (latest monthly PIPR averages).
Open the UK relocation salary calculator (/uk-relocation-salary-calculator) and enter your gross and cities.
About £1,177 per month (August 2026 — Wales — Renting Homes (Fees etc.) (Wales) Act 2019 deposit caps apply.).
England/Wales statutory cap estimate is about £1,358 (five weeks’ rent under £50,000 annual). Actual deposits vary.
Yes — open Cardiff → Bristol (/uk-relocation-salary-calculator/compare/cardiff-to-bristol) for the reverse locked vignette.