Best places in South West for students
Persona weighting: Affordability (rent) 35%, Connectivity (broadband) 25%, Safety (low crime) 15%, Living cost (council tax) 15%, Schools (Ofsted Good+) 5%, Health (life expectancy) 5%.
Updated quarterly · from the latest government data releases.
What is the best place to live in South West for students?
As of 2026-06-19, the best South West local authority for students is Swindon, scoring 72.3/100 on the Gera Persona Fit index — a persona-weighted composite of rent, crime, Ofsted schools, broadband, life expectancy and council tax across 25 South West local authorities. GeraRent recomputes it quarterly.
| # | Area | Persona Fit | GLS |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Swindon | 72.3 | 64.6 |
| 2 | Torbay | 71.6 | 64.8 |
| 3 | Plymouth | 69.1 | 63.5 |
| 4 | Cheltenham | 68.6 | 63.3 |
| 5 | Tewkesbury | 67.9 | 64.0 |
| 6 | North Somerset | 67.3 | 65.8 |
| 7 | East Devon | 67.1 | 62.5 |
| 8 | Forest of Dean | 67.1 | 61.4 |
| 9 | Exeter | 66.9 | 60.6 |
| 10 | Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole | 66.6 | 65.1 |
| 11 | Gloucester | 64.9 | 58.4 |
| 12 | Teignbridge | 64.3 | 59.5 |
| 13 | North Devon | 63.6 | 57.9 |
| 14 | Dorset | 61.2 | 56.6 |
| 15 | Wiltshire | 60.7 | 57.9 |
| 16 | Torridge | 60.4 | 54.7 |
| 17 | South Gloucestershire | 60.3 | 60.9 |
| 18 | Cotswold | 60.2 | 60.2 |
| 19 | West Devon | 59.3 | 55.1 |
| 20 | Stroud | 58.5 | 55.8 |
| 21 | Bristol, City of | 58.1 | 53.2 |
| 22 | Mid Devon | 57.7 | 55.2 |
| 23 | South Hams | 57.5 | 56.5 |
| 24 | Cornwall | 56.8 | 52.1 |
| 25 | Bath and North East Somerset | 55.2 | 61.0 |
Students in other regions
Found your area? Find a home there.
Browse verified rental listings in South West on GeraRent and set an alert for new homes that match your budget.
Search rentals on GeraRentSources (all Open Government Licence v3.0):
- ONS — Price Index of Private Rents — as of May 2026.
- HM Land Registry — UK House Price Index — as of April 2026.
- MHCLG — Council Tax levels set by local authorities in England — as of 2026-27.
- Ofcom — Connected Nations (Gera Broadband Index) — as of July 2024.
- ONS — Life expectancy by local authority — as of 2017-19.
- Ofsted — State-funded school inspection outcomes — as of 31 May 2026.
- Home Office — Police recorded crime (PFA) + ONS population — as of Year ending December 2025.
Licence: Open Government Licence v3.0 © Crown copyright. Recorded-crime figures are neutral official statistics shown as context only and must not be used to characterise an area or its residents.