Brits spend £4,454 yearly on their looks

The average Brit spends £4,454 on their looks throughout the year, with Leeds and London the biggest beauty spenders, according to new research by Totally Money.

Consumers in Leeds have a higher-than-average level of pride in their appearance with 79% of local respondents saying they considered their looks important, with those in the area spending £7,000 per capita on beauty outgoings, the report found.

Leeds residents are the biggest spenders on teeth whitening services and also have the highest spend per capita on dermatologists – a staggering £587 a year. The survey also revealed that Londoners spend the most in the UK on gyms, at £601 a year per person.

Those in Belfast have an overall spend of £5,900 a year on beauty, with the main outgoing costs the result of facial products – a per capita spend shy of £1,000 a year, researchers found.

Manchester’s overall yearly cost of £5,600 is also primarily made up of face products (£861) but also included a significant expenditure on clothes at £544 a year, the report found.

The UK’s biggest beauty cities, based on average spend per person on beauty, are:

Image: ©Totally Money

The piece isn’t just about the total spend,” said Joe Gardiner, Totally Money’s head of brand and communications. “It’s interesting to see the breakdown and understand which cities value which parts of their appearance the most.” 


Researchers also discovered that 70% of Brits are beauty conscious, with 45% unwilling to post a picture of themselves on social media if they haven’t had a chance to put an effort into their appearance.

For the full report, click here.