Kensington vs Mayfair

Kensington and Mayfair both mean prime London, and both score near the top of the site for safety, walkability and connectivity. On our figures Mayfair costs a couple of hundred pounds a month more for a one-bed, and the gap widens to around four hundred for a two-bed, where Kensington's larger mansion flats bring the price per room down.

The two have very different daily rhythms. Kensington is a place people live: Kensington High Street's shops, the garden squares, Holland Park and Kensington Gardens on either side, and the museums of South Kensington a walk away. It scores much higher for green space and much lower for nightlife, and the evenings are restrained. Mayfair is a business and luxury district with homes in it. Its restaurants, bars, private members' clubs and hotels give it far more to do after dark, but supermarkets, schools and ordinary local life are harder to find.

Both are well connected, in different directions. High Street Kensington is on the Circle and District lines, which are reliable but not fast, while Green Park puts three deep tube lines under Mayfair and makes most of central London a few stops away. From Mayfair, much of the West End is a walk.

Kensington is the stronger answer for families and for anyone who wants parks, space and quiet at a slightly lower rent. Mayfair is the answer for people who want central London on foot, a more social evening and an address that does not need explaining, and who accept paying the highest rents on the map for it.