Galway second most expensive city as new-tenancy rents break €2,000

Galway city is now the second most expensive city in Ireland for new renters, with rents rising by more than 10 per cent since the end of last year.

Published 9th Oct 2026, 18:15 BST Iconic Galway city is now the second most expensive city in Ireland for new renters, with rents rising by more than 10 per cent since the end of last year. The latest Residential Tenancies Board (RTB) Rent Index puts the standardised average rent for a new tenancy in Galway city at €2,004 a month in the first three months of this year.

Only Dublin city, at €2,301, was more expensive, with Galway ahead of Limerick, Cork and Waterford.

Sign up to our Connacht Tribune Today daily newsletter Sign up Thank you for signing up! Did you know you can manage your profile, and explore all of the available newsletters from Connacht Tribune within your account.

“Standardised average rents for new tenancies in Galway city exceeded €2,000 for the first time in Q1 2026,” the report stated, “new tenancy rents rose €236 over the past year, from €1,769 in Q1 2025 to €2,004 in Q1 2026.”

Galway also recorded the biggest increase of the five cities since the end of last year, with rents for new tenancies up 10.5 per cent.

The highest rents were in the city centre, where a new tenancy averaged €2,154 a month. Meanwhile, the figure was below €1,900 in both Galway City East and Galway City West.

Galway households 'struggling to heat homes' as oil prices soar And the picture was different for people already renting. Existing tenancies in Galway city averaged €1,445 a month - €559 less than the average for a new tenancy.

Rents for existing tenancies rose by just 2.9 per cent compared with a year ago, the lowest increase among the five cities.

The RTB/ESRI report says the gap between new and existing rents across the country is further evidence

Nationally, new tenancies averaged €1,839 a month, compared with €1,513 for existing tenancies. The rise in rents for new tenancies came as changes to rent controls took effect on March 1.

The changes allow rents to be reset to market levels when one tenancy ends and another begins. However, the report says it is too early to know how much of the increase is linked to the new rules and how much is part of a longer-term change in the rental market.

“High growth in average new tenancy rents was evident in several urban and commuter counties, including Cork, Galway, Limerick, Kildare and Wicklow,” the report stated.

The Rent Index is based on regulatory data covering all new tenancy registrations, regardless of how the property was advertised.