Stop comparing weekly rents. Normalize everything:
1. Weekly to monthly: multiply by 52, divide by 12. A 250 GBP/week room is 1,083 GBP/month, not 1,000. 2. Contract weeks: a 39-week hall contract vs a 51-week private tenancy. Same weekly price, wildly different annual total. 3. Bills: included or not? Add 80 to 180 GBP/month in the UK, 150 to 200 CAD in Canada if not. 4. Deposit and upfront: UK landlords may demand 6 months upfront from internationals without a guarantor. That is a cash-flow bomb. 5. Commute cost: a cheap room 45 minutes out plus a 120 GBP/month travelcard is not cheap. 6. Summer: are you paying for months you are not there? Subletting rules matter. Sources: Numbeo Cost of Living Build the full annual number for each option. The cheapest weekly rent rarely wins.
