The Most Popular Places to Move to in Cardiff

In 2023, there was a 46.7% increase in people moving to Cardiff compared to 2022, according to the leading removal comparison website, Compare My Move. Cardiff and the CF postcode area have been a hotspot for movers in the past few years due to its connections to the M4 and trains directly to London, and 2023 has been no different. 

We’ve put together a report on the most popular places people have moved to both in the CF postcode and in Cardiff itself, why more and more people have moved to Cardiff in 2023, and what that means for 2024.

What are the Most Popular Places to Move in the CF Postcode?

Cardiff wasn’t the only place in the CF area that saw an increase in people moving there in 2023, the entire CF area saw a 77.3% increase in people moving there from 2022 to 2023. Below are the top 10 most popular places in the CF area to move to and the average house prices of the area.

Rank	Place	Average House Price
1	Cardiff	£290,383
2	Bridgend	£232,999
3	Barry	£226,720
4	Pontypridd	£166,588
5	Caerphilly	£240,641
6	Penarth	£401,931
7	Pontyclun	£290,105
8	Merthyr Tydfil	£158,359
9	Aberdare	£150,837
10	Hengoed	£197,796

House price data taken from Rightmove.

Unsurprisingly, Cardiff is the most popular place to move in the CF postcode, the Welsh capital has the largest population of any Welsh city and has a variety of activities, eateries, nightlife, and transport links. Cardiff has been voted the friendliest city in the UK by Condé Nast, and although it has expensive house prices for the region, it has fairly inexpensive house prices when looking at cities such as London or Bristol further down the M4.

Bridgend is the second most popular place to move in the CF postcode. Bridgend has a population of over 50,000 people and has easy connections to both Cardiff and Swansea, sitting as a nice middle ground between the two biggest cities in Wales. Bridgend also has a direct train to London, stopping in Bristol, Reading, and other major towns and cities along the M4. The quick and easy transport links are likely the reason that Bridgend has been so popular amongst movers in the last year. 

Located just a 22-minute train journey from the Welsh capital, Barry is the 3rd most popular place to move to in the CF postcode. Much like Pontypridd and Caerphilly, which also come into the top 10, Barry has easy and quick access to the Welsh capital without having the same house prices that come with living in the city.

What is the Most Popular Place to Move to in Cardiff?

Cardiff is the most popular place to move to in the CF postcode, but some parts of Cardiff are more popular than others. Here we have the most popular places to move in Cardiff and the percentage of Cardiff movers that moved into that postcode in 2023.

Rank	Postcode	Percentage of Movers	House Price	Rental Price (per week)
1	CF14	20.8%	£366,768	£269
2	CF5	18.8%	£301,831	£242
3	CF24	14.1%	£238,268	£258
4	CF11	12.9%	£246,327	£258
5	CF23	12.1%	£378,597	£274
6	CF10	9.2%	£187,131	£258
7	CF3	8.0%	£285,454	£267
8	CF15	4.2%	£352,363	N/A

Price and rental data taken from Property.xyz. 

20.8% of the people moving to Cardiff in 2023, moved to the CF14 postcode, with Heath, Lisvane, and Rhiwbina taking up most of this postcode and therefore being very popular among Cardiff movers. The CF14 area is very residential and on the outskirts of the centre and encapsulates the M4, making it perfect for people who want quick access to everything the city centre has to offer with a bit of a quieter environment. 

Similar to CF14, the CF5 postcode is residential and close to the M4 and A48 without being too far away from the city centre. This is likely the reason that Ely, Pentrebane and the rest of the CF5 postcode is the second most popular postcode to move to in Cardiff. The highly residential postcode is home to the St. Fagans National Museum of History and a lot of outdoor space alongside its easy road access as well as house prices being almost £65,000 cheaper than CF14

With over 14% of Cardiff movers moving to this postcode, the CF24 postcode is the most popular place to move in the centre of Cardiff, home to places such as Cathays, Adamstown, and Splott. As well as its residential area, CF24 is known for its nightlife, bars, and restaurants as well as venues like the Globe and the Students Union which are great for gigs and activities. 

Why Are People Moving to Cardiff?

The majority of people moving to Cardiff in 2023 came from either London or Bristol, and more people are moving from these places to Cardiff than vice versa. The cost of living in these places could be a big driving factor when looking to why people are moving to Cardiff. Bristol is on average £51 more expensive per month to live in than Cardiff (excluding rent), and London is on average £317 more expensive per month.

Here are a few specific cost of living examples comparing the three cities.

Cost of Living Examples	Cardiff	London	Bristol
Public transport pass (monthly)	£55.40	£79.10	£83.1
Utility bills (monthly)	£73.90	£166	£128
Gym membership (monthly)	£27.80	£46.10	£30.2
Chicken Breast (1kg)	£5.76	£8.13	£7.66
Beer in a Pub (0.5L)	£4.02	£6.55	£4.94
Taxi (5 miles)	£12.30	£18.50	£16.1
Preschool (monthly)	£1109	£1,791	£1335
Dinner in a Restaurant for 2	£50.40	£67.20	£51.5
Cappuccino	£3.24	£3.67	£3.28
NHS Prescriptions (per item)	Free	£9.65	£9.65
Average Cost of Living	£558	£875	£609

Data taken from LivingCost.org.

Things are generally cheaper in Cardiff than they are in Bristol and London, and people who were a little tighter on budget in 2023, may feel that moving to Cardiff and saving some money on their monthly cost of living. The average house price is also a big factor when moving from one area to another.

City	Population	Average House Price
Cardiff	362,310	£290,383
Bristol	425,215	£384,348
London	8,796,628	£712,108

The house prices in Cardiff are a lot lower than the house prices in Bristol and London. Cardiff’s house prices are on average just under £94,000 cheaper than the house prices in Bristol and a massive £421,725 cheaper than the average house price in London. This means that those who sell in these cities and move to Cardiff will also have a significant amount left over to ease their cost of living, or to have more flexibility when buying a house.

Dave Sayce, founder and managing director of Compare My Move had this to say on Cardiff’s popularity.

“The M4 almost acts as a spectrum of cost, and the further towards London on the motorway you go, the more likely things are to cost more. Therefore, people living in London and Bristol are happy to move a little further down the M4 for larger savings on houses and cost of living.

In the past 5 years, there has been a rise in working from home or hybrid working, meaning that people don’t necessarily have to live where they work. Cardiff’s transport links with direct trains to both London and Bristol means that it can be easy to live in Cardiff while working in these cities.”