Milton Keynes beats dozens of UK cities for work-life balance, study finds

Milton Keynes has been named one of the UK’s strongest cities for work-life balance, with short commutes, good access to green space and a relatively favourable balance between earnings and living costs helping it stand out.

For workers choosing where to live, the quality of life outside the office can be just as important as the job itself. Time spent commuting, the length of the working week and opportunities to work flexibly can all have a major impact on how much time people have for family, friends and hobbies.

Researchers at Manhattan Mental Health Counseling compared 58 UK cities across 12 measures linked to work, finances, wellbeing and leisure. The study looked at average working hours, commuting times, working from home, income, cost of living, overtime, sickness absence, coworking spaces, green space, nightlife, cultural events and sunshine.

Milton Keynes ranks ninth overall. One of its clearest advantages is commuting, with a median journey of just 11.3 minutes. This is considerably shorter than the 19.7-minute commute recorded in Edinburgh and the 20-minute figure for Westminster.

The city also performs well when it comes to green space. Milton Keynes has 168.64 accessible green spaces per 10,000 residents, one of the highest figures in the study. This gives residents plenty of opportunities to get outdoors and take a break from the working day.

Working hours are slightly less favourable, with residents working an average of 37 hours per week. However, the city records just 0.94 hours of paid overtime per week and a sickness absence rate of 1.1%, suggesting that additional working hours and time away from work are relatively limited.

Flexible working is less common than in some of the UK's highest-ranked cities, with 13% of workers having recently worked from home. Milton Keynes has 0.73 coworking spaces per 10,000 residents, giving those who do work flexibly another option outside the traditional workplace.

The financial picture is relatively strong. Average annual income in Milton Keynes is £36,521, while the cost of living-to-income ratio is 0.40. This puts the city on a similar level to Manchester and suggests earnings compare reasonably well with everyday living costs.

There are also plenty of opportunities to enjoy time outside work, although Milton Keynes is less focused on nightlife and culture than some larger cities. It has 5.55 nightlife options and 4.51 cultural and arts events per 10,000 residents, alongside an average of 4.2 hours of sunshine per day.

Overall, the findings suggest Milton Keynes offers a practical approach to work-life balance. Its short commutes and exceptional access to green space give residents more opportunities to reclaim time outside work, while solid earnings and relatively low overtime add to its appeal.

The study found that the strongest-performing cities were:

1. Oxford

2. Manchester

3. City of Edinburgh

4. Canterbury

5. Westminster

6. Stirling

7. Chester

8. Exeter

9. Milton Keynes

10. Cambridge

11. Chichester

12. Norwich

13. Aberdeen City

14. Southampton

15. Liverpool