London commuter townsChatham vs Rochester

Chatham vs Rochester: which commuter town suits you?

Rochester is 4 minutes closer to London, but Chatham is £39k cheaper on the average sold price.
Chatham

#22 of 118

Rochester

#16 of 118

Train to London

40 min
36 min

Annual season ticket

£5,106
£5,106

Average house price

£285k
£324k

Price to local earnings

Years of the local authority's median wage

7.7x
8.7x

Average rent (2 bed)

£1,137/mo
£1,137/mo

Rent to local earnings

Share of the local authority's median wage

37%
37%

Crime index

0–100, lower is safer

79
68

Broadband

Average available download speed, from Ofcom

976 Mb
976 Mb

Life satisfaction

ONS, 0–10

7.3
7.3

Historic landmarks

Protected sites within 3 miles

179
181

Parks and fields

Hectares within 3 miles

637 ha
587 ha

Places to eat and drink

Restaurants, cafes and pubs within 3 miles

311
299

Estimates only. Prices from HM Land Registry (August 2025 to July 2026), crime from police.uk (August 2025 to July 2026); broadband, life satisfaction and train times from Ofcom, ONS and National Rail, reviewed periodically. A tinted figure is the better of the two on that row alone, not an overall verdict.

The full picture on each

Living in Chatham

Kent · 40 min to London · average sold price £285k.

Read the Chatham report

Living in Rochester

Kent · 36 min to London · average sold price £324k.

Read the Rochester report

Deciding between Chatham and Rochester?

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