April 1 is the day that most annual price rises for bills such as Council Tax and water bills come into effect, with estimates that most households will have to find around an additional £200 a year to keep pace with rising costs.
Number crunchers at money.co.uk have estimated that average household costs have increased by £188, or 7%, this year compared to last, with essential bills such as water, a broadband and home phone package, a mobile contract, Council Tax and the TV licence fee now coming in at £2,995 a year on average.
With 28.1 million households in the UK, we could be spending around £84 billion a year on these five expenses, an extra £5 billion a year on these common household bills compared to 2022/23.
Read more: All the money changes in April affecting you including DWP benefits and energy bills
If you've ever wondered where your money goes each month, we've compiled a list of 10 things that most families have to pay and compared the price we pay today compared to just five years ago in 2018
Stamps
2023: £1.10
2018: 67p
Increase: 43p
Stamps cost just one penny when they came into use in 1840, but from Monday (April 3), a first-class stamp will cost you £1.10 - an inflation-busting 16% increase from 2022/23. Prices for large letters and parcels are also increasing. Royal Mail's revenue has decreased especially since the pandemic as more people rely on digital communications, so the cost of stamps has been increased to compensate.
Water
2023: £448
2018: £405
Increase: £43
The average annual water and sewage bill in England and Wales will be around £448 from April, an increase of 7% on the previous year. However the 2.7m customers in our region now pay an average bill of £391 to Northumbrian Water for their water and sewerage services in 2023/24, the second lowest in the UK, with only Hafren Dyfrdwy customers in Wales paying less.
Prescriptions
2023: £9.65
2018: £8.80
Increase: 85p
The charge for a standard prescription in England will be increasing from £9.35 to £9.65 in April, the first increase since the charge was frozen in 2022. Prepayment certificates will also increase to £31.25 for three months, up from £30.25. Patients in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland get their prescriptions free after the charges were abolished.
NHS dental check
2023: £25.80
2018: £21.60
Increase: £4.20
Dental costs have been frozen since 2020, but have gone up by 8.4% this month. Band 1 treatment covers basic dental services such as a dental check-up, X-rays, and a scale and polish.
Air Passenger Duty
2023: £87
2018: £78
Increase: £9
Air passenger duty (APD) is a tax levied on passengers departing from UK airports. The amount of APD charged is dependent on the distance travelled and the class of travel. Band B flights are for economy class for journeys of between 2,001 and 5,500 miles.
TV licence
2023: £159
2018: £150.50
Increase: £7.50
The TV licence is one of the few things that won't be going up this month, with the price being frozen until April 1, 2024. Anyone who watches or records live TV is required to hold a TV licence and it is used to fund the BBC, but it will be abolished altogether in 2027.
A pint of milk
2023: 69p
2018: 44p
Increase: 25p
The economists' and politicians' favourite barometer to measure the general cost of living has taken a hike from 2021 onwards, after staying relatively stable for the five years before then. There was a significant increase in the price of milk from 2021 to 2022, with the average cost rising to £0.57 and this continued into 2023, with the average price reaching 69p in January.
Council Tax
2023: £2,065
2018: £1,671
Increase: £394
Band D is the Council Tax band that’s usually used for comparison purposes and this year the average Band D rate is going up to £2,065 on average. That’s an increase of 5% from last year, the maximum local authorities have been allowed to increase their bill by up to 5% without a referendum. Research by County Councils Network (CCN) found that 84 out of the 114 local authorities in England have increased their tax by the full 5%, but in the North East, only County Durham has done so.
Broadband and home phone packages
2023: £23
2018: £10
Increase: £13
The cost of a broadband and home phone package has fluctuated over recent years, but it is certainly on the up. Telecom companies are allowed to increase prices in line with inflation and around 4% extra on top of this, which this year adds up to an eye-watering 17.3% possible hike in your broadband and/or mobile phone bill. Some providers raised their prices from March 31, but the majority are starting on April 1. The cheapest available package today costs £23, which is an increase of 28% from the previous year and 73% from 2016/17. The cheapest available package on Uswitch.com today costs £23, which is an increase of 28% from the previous year.
SIM-only mobile contracts
2023: £3.95
2018: £3
Increase: 95p
Mobile phones are an essential part of modern life, but their prices have remained relatively stable.
Read more:
- DWP cost of living boost announced for millions of families from today
- Exact date £301 cost of living payment will start to hit bank accounts
- Universal Credit claimants could lose £1,000 under DWP trial
- Cost of living: A five-step plan to get debt free in 2023
- How to work out how much your heating costs per hour
