Rightmove’s annual review has analysed the locations and features people searched for most often on the portal in 2025, revealing both the practical priorities of buyers and renters and their browsing habits. The data also provides some useful insight into which features to highlight in the marketing of your own properties.
Colleen Babcock, property expert at Rightmove, says:
“With billions of minutes spent on Rightmove each year, we have a unique window into the nation’s passion for property. Our review of the year spotlights some of the most popular trends from the year. From coastal escapes to overseas dream homes, this year’s most popular homes show that whether it’s a move or a moment of inspiration, people continue to love picturing their next move.”
The most regularly searched locations:
London was the most-searched for location of the year, with Manchester and Glasgow, Bristol and Edinburgh all making it into the top five, followed by York, Bath, Cornwall, Liverpool and Sheffield.
In London, the upmarket areas to the west of the capital proved most popular. Wimbledon, Fulham and Chiswick were the areas buyers searched for most. Renters looked at the similarly upmarket spots but with a wider geographic spread. The three top-ranked ones were – Canary Wharf, Clapham and Fulham.
Coastal searches were focused mostly on the south, with Bournemouth, Eastbourne and Worthing, with Scarborough, Weymouth, Brighton, Hastings, Southport and Poole all frequently appearing.
What people searched for:
Rightmove’s keyword tool provides a clear overview of the most commonly filtered features.
The most-searched buyer features in 2025 were:
- Garage
- Annexe
- Acre
- Garden
- Rural
The rankings show that the COVID-driven Race for Space is not entirely over, with outdoor and rural space and flexible layouts continuing to drive searches. The surprising popularity of garages may be a reflection of the growing ownership of electric cars and the need for charging them, as well as a desire for extra storage space. They also tend to be a very simple and cost-effective means of extending a house.
The most-searched renter features:
- Pet-friendly
- Garage
- Furnished home
- Garden
- Bills included
Renters have a similar set of priorities around space and outdoor areas. Unlike sales, though, searches for pet-friendly homes were in top spot, handing landlords that accommodate them a competitive advantage. However, doing so is likely to become compulsory when the first phase of the Renters’ Rights Act comes into force from May 2026. Furnished homes are also clearly more popular than unfurnished ones, and bills included has been a popular search term ever since the energy crisis began when war broke out in Ukraine.
Most-viewed UK homes of 2025
The data also reveals that, as a nation, we still love to dream about properties, with the most viewed ones at the very top of the housing ladder, including several stately homes.
Conwy, Wales – £875,000
St John’s Wood, London – £49,950,000
Jesmond, Newcastle upon Tyne – £20,000,000
Glasgow, Scotland – £2,500,000
Cour D’Honneur, Oakham – £6,000,000
Most-viewed overseas homes of 2025
And those dreams get ever more fanciful when it comes to foreign properties, with one palatial French home in the hundreds of millions:
Mallorca, Spain – £66,336,600
Lagos, Portugal – £23,598,000
Corfu, Greece – £12,236,000
Lombardy, Italy – £152,950
Cannes, France – £104,880,000
And these were the most popular foreign locations, which have a clear preference for sunnier climes.
- Spain
- France
- Dubai
- Algarve
- Portugal
- Italy
- Bulgaria
- Cyprus
- Paphos
- Alicante
