Flat White Index: Which UK city brews the most affordable takeout coffee?

Would you pay more for a coffee than your commute? Some people would. 

From artisan blends and flat whites, to mochas and espressos, the nation drinks around 98 million cups of coffee per day. But experts have predicted a sharp 25% price increase for coffee beans in 2024 which could leave a bitter taste for some. 

Londoners are the first to enter the £5 coffee era – nearly the equivalent of three bus fares at £1.75 per journey. However, the most expensive brew is in Mayfair setting you back £265 for rare Japanese coffee beans served in a gold coffee cup. 

International Coffee Day is fast approaching on 1 October, so we wanted to find out which UK cities are paying the most for their caffeine fix. 

Our coffee-fuelled researchers here at our digital PR agency crafted a flat white index looking at the most affordable and expensive locations to pick up a morning brew across the UK. We also calculated how many coffees locals could afford to buy per day, week, year and month, based on the city’s average salaries.

Our data reveals that if consumers across the UK were to splurge on a coffee everyday, it would cost just under £1200 – over 4% of their average take home salary. 

Bristol is the most expensive city for coffee with a flat white costing £4.25. However, with an average take home salary of £28k, buying one coffee per day would set residents back over £1,500 per year which works out to over 5% of their total wage. Two cups a day would total over £3,000 working out to nearly 11% of their take home pay.

At one time, Bristolians could have brewed more coffee from their monthly wages, but data from the Office for National Statistics revealed coffee purchased from a cafe is nearly 20% more expensive compared to two years ago. 

Leicester isn’t far behind as the second most expensive city for coffee. Although locals would pay almost £1 less than Bristolians for a flat white, their average take home salary is around £23k so a flat white a day would work out to over 5% of their take home pay and three cups, a staggering 16%. 

Ranking third as the most expensive city for coffee is Luton where the average flat white price is £3.59. It would set residents back £1,310 if they were to buy a coffee everyday and nearly £4,000 if they were to buy three. Hot on its heels is Plymouth and Birmingham where prices for an average flat white are £3.41 and £3.56, respectively.

Top 20 most affordable cities for coffee

St Albans has brewed its way to the top spot as the most affordable UK city to buy coffee. A flat white costs £3.60 but locals can buy more cups per day with their average take home salary of over £46k. A single cup a day works out to just under 3% of the average salary, and two cups just over 5% meaning locals can squeeze almost double the amount of coffee from their wages compared to Bristol. 

The second most affordable city for coffee is High Wycombe where it costs £3.52 for a flat white – just over 3% of their average take home pay. Following closely behind is Southend-on-Sea where it costs £3 per cup, and £1,095 per year for a coffee a day – over 3% of the average salary.

Surprisingly, London is actually the 12th most affordable city in the UK for coffee, likely due to the high number of coffee shops in the capital. These are also wide ranging from premium cafes and Instagram-friendly options, to budget-friendly pit stops. While it has the second highest price at £4.05 per cup, locals could be spending just under 4% of their wage if they were to buy a coffee a day – significantly lower than Bristol. 

Out of the 93 towns and cities, the cheapest location to buy a flat white was in Sunderland where it cost £2.44 per cup, followed by Hartlepool at £2.63 and Doncaster at £2.68.

Martin Stone, director at Tank, added: 

“Coffee and creativity go hand in hand, and as a digital PR agency we often pop out to our favourite local coffee spots for a quick takeaway or to catch up with colleagues and clients. The coffee industry is thriving and here in Nottingham, where Tank is based, we are surrounded by quirky independent coffee shops and chains like the city’s own 200 Degrees. They each have distinctive branding, atmospheres and instagrammable interiors – and are a much-loved part of the creative community.”

Methodology

Using Deliveroo data, marketing experts at Tank analysed the cost of a flat white coffee at 93 of the most accessible ‘pick up’ coffee spots for different cities across the UK, identifying the most affordable and most expensive locations for coffee. 

Comparing this data with the mean annual gross salary of these locations (according to Office of National Statistics) Tank has been able to calculate just how many coffee locals can afford on a yearly, monthly, weekly and daily basis, by dividing the take home salary by that city’s average cost of a flat white.