It is still cheaper long-term for businesses to purchase a commercial property. The average commercial mortgage repayment is £1,402 pcm, while the average overall cost to rent a commercial property is currently £3,302 pcm – more than twice as expensive.

This is according to data from business comparison expert Bionic which analysed thousands of retail, hospitality and office spaces across the UK using data from property listing sites Rightmove and PropertyPal.

Prices were collected per property, and monthly mortgage repayment estimates were based on 75% interest-only loans, with 4% interest rates, spread over 30 year repayment periods.

The study also reveals that average overall cost to buy a commercial property in the UK is currently £560,913.

Retail and hospitality spaces were roughly about as expensive as one another to rent, however hospitality spaces were 77% more expensive to purchase. Hospitality: £587,539 vs. Retail: £332,573. This may be attributed to hospitality venues requiring more physical space to operate.

The most expensive area to rent in the UK is still London. Retail, hospitality and office spaces in the Capital cost businesses on average £11,412 pcm, which is three times more expensive than the UK average.

Berkshire in the South East was the second most expensive, costing over £7,000 pcm on average.

Northern Ireland continues to have the cheapest rental prices for commercial properties in the UK (Average: £1,467), while Yorkshire & the Humber was the cheapest for purchasing commercial property (Average: £204,761).

Bionic business comparison expert Les Roberts says: “It’s clear to see from this data that commercial rent prices are continuing to rise. Being tied to a lease is especially risky during economically volatile conditions as many leases increase in line with inflation, which currently sits around 8.7%. Not only does buying give you full control over the property, but it means costs can be fixed, removing the risk of payments increasing.”

He adds: “More and more post-pandemic business leaders are considering full-time remote working to be a hindrance on employee productivity, and ONS data shows that UK productivity losses cost businesses around £43.59 an hour.

“Investing in an office space and adopting either full-time or hybrid working conditions could boost employee productivity and profits.”