UK Mortgage Rates Today: Average Five-Year Fix Hits 6%

Mortgage rates today are at a three-year high. Moneyfacts put the average five-year fixed rate at 6% and the average two-year fix at 5.98% on Monday 5 October 2026, and by its count only nine fixed-rate mortgages priced below 5% were left on sale, down from 1,494 at the start of September. This page tracks where UK mortgage rates stand now, which lenders have moved in either direction and what it means if your deal ends soon. Mortgage One is a whole of market mortgage adviser helping homeowners, landlords and expats secure a rate before lenders withdraw it.

For a free initial consultation on whether the rate you were quoted in September is still on sale, call 01202 155992 or contact Mortgage One.

What are mortgage rates today in the UK?

Mortgage rates today average 5.98% for a two-year fixed deal and 6% for a five-year fix, according to Moneyfacts figures for Monday 5 October 2026. The two-year average is at its highest since mid-December 2023 and the five-year at its highest since late September 2023. Bank Rate is 3.75% and the average standard variable rate is 7.13%.

The numbers behind mortgage rates now, as at 5 October 2026 unless stated:

·       Average two-year fixed rate: 5.98%, up from 5.92% on 25 September

·       Average five-year fixed rate: 6%, up from 5.94% on 25 September

·       Fixed deals priced below 5%: nine, down from 1,494 at the start of September

·       Lowest five-year fix on 1 October: 4.91% at 60% LTV for home movers

·       Average standard variable rate: 7.13%

·       Bank Rate: 3.75%, with the next decision on 5 November 2026

·       Five-year swap rate: around 4.7% on 1 October, up from 4.35% a month earlier

The climb has been steady rather than sudden. The two-year average rose from 5.92% on 25 September to 5.96% on Friday 2 October and 5.98% on Monday, while the five-year moved from 5.94% to 5.98% and then to 6%. On a £250,000 repayment mortgage over 25 years, HomeOwners Alliance calculates that the rise in the five-year average from 4.94% at the start of February to 6% adds about £158 a month, or £1,896 a year.

Averages blend every loan-to-value band and fee level on sale, so a quote for a real case can sit well above or below them. The sharper change is at the bottom of the table. Excluding deals only available in Northern Ireland, fixed-rate mortgages priced below 5% fell from 1,494 at the start of September to nine on 5 October, while sub-5% variable deals barely moved, from 411 to 389. Our chart of average fixed rates by LTV band shows how far each deposit tier now sits from the headline average.

Latest mortgage rate news: who raised rates and who cut

Barclays raised fixed rates on 29 September and again on 2 October, NatWest followed from 3 October and Clydesdale from 5 October, the day TSB announced its own rise. Santander and Accord cut selected fixes by up to 0.25 and 0.10 points. Across September Barclays repriced upward four times and six other major lenders three times each.

The latest mortgage rates from the big lenders moved mostly one way in the week to 2 October. Barclays raised fixed rates by up to 0.30 points on 29 September and withdrew selected deals the same day, then raised 62 products by up to 0.21 points on 2 October. Nationwide raised selected fixes by up to 0.21 points, first direct by up to 0.36 and Halifax and Lloyds Bank by up to 0.15, according to the Moneyfacts rate watch. Our Barclays mortgage rates page tracks its range on a checked date.

NatWest raised selected fixed rates from 3 October, by up to 0.23 points on residential deals and up to 0.30 on buy-to-let, taking its 95% LTV fee-free two-year purchase rate from 5.73% to 5.88%. Clydesdale raised selected two and five-year fixes by up to 0.17 points from 5 October, and TSB announced rises of 0.05 to 0.15 points across selected purchase and remortgage fixes the same day. The NatWest mortgage rates and TSB mortgage rates pages carry each lender's full table.

Not every move is up. Santander cut selected residential, new-build and buy-to-let rates by up to 0.25 points on 2 October, taking its 90% LTV two-year remortgage rate with a £1,499 fee to 5.46%. Accord cut every fixed rate in its residential new business range by 0.10 points in a move reported on 5 October, and Leeds Building Society, Furness and Tipton & Coseley also trimmed selected fixes. Rachel Springall of Moneyfacts called pricing volatile, with some lenders raising fixed rates while others made cuts. The cuts have not turned the averages, and our Santander mortgage rates table shows how far its reductions reach.

Where the lowest mortgage rates today sit by deposit size

The lowest mortgage rates today sit just either side of 5% for borrowers with a 40% deposit. On 1 October Moneyfacts listed Skipton Building Society's 4.91% five-year fix and Yorkshire Building Society's 4.93% two-year fix as the lowest for home movers at 60% LTV, while the lowest two-year remortgage rate had risen to 5.06%.

Remortgage borrowers have lost the sub-5% fix altogether on Moneyfacts' weekly table, with every one of the lowest remortgage rates above 5% by 1 October. Barclays' 5.02% three-year fix at 75% LTV and NatWest's 5.02% five-year fix at 60% LTV were among the lowest-priced, carrying product fees of £999 and £1,495. On a smaller loan the fee can matter more than the rate.

Smaller deposits pay a clear premium. The lowest two-year fix for a first-time buyer with a 10% deposit was 5.31% from NatWest and RBS on 1 October, the lowest 90% LTV five-year fix was 5.26% from Coventry Building Society, and the lowest two-year fix at 95% LTV was 5.50% from Leeds Building Society. Our first-time buyer guide covers how deposit, income and credit history combine on a first purchase.

Any of these deals can be withdrawn at short notice, and a best-buy rate with a four-figure fee is often not the lowest total cost for a given loan. Our comparison of 2-year and 5-year fixed deals works through term choice on total cost rather than headline rate.

To see which of these deals your deposit, income and credit history can actually reach, call 01202 155992 or contact Mortgage One.

Swap rates and gilt yields behind the move to 6%

Fixed mortgage rates follow swap rates, and swaps have jumped. Nicholas Mendes of John Charcol said two-year swaps rose from 4.25% to 4.59% in the month to 1 October and five-year swaps from 4.35% to 4.7%, adding roughly a third of a percentage point to the cost of funding a fixed deal.

The pressure starts in the bond market. On 1 October thirty-year gilt yields broke 6% for the first time since 1998, ten-year yields reached their highest since 2007 and five-year yields their highest since 2008, as a global sell-off and Middle East conflict kept oil and inflation fears high. Five-year gilts matter most here, because shorter-dated yields feed most directly into mortgage pricing. Our guide to how gilt yields reach your fixed rate traces the chain from bond market to mortgage offer.

Bank Rate has not moved. The Bank of England held it at 3.75% on 17 September on a six-to-three vote, with Megan Greene, Catherine Mann and Huw Pill voting for a rise to 4%. Fixed rates price off where markets expect Bank Rate to go, and as at 1 October markets were pricing a rise at the 5 November decision. That is a market expectation, not a decision, and our UK interest rate projection tracks the implied path between meetings. The full account of why lenders moved before the Bank did sits on our page asking are mortgage rates going up.

Buy-to-let, expat and specialist mortgage rates today

Buy-to-let pricing has split by lender. Santander cut its 75% LTV two-year buy-to-let purchase rate to 4.99% on 2 October, while NatWest raised its 75% LTV two-year purchase deal from 4.61% to 4.91% from 3 October. Specialist lenders repriced hardest, led by Perenna with rises of up to 0.62 points.

For landlords the rate is only half the calculation. Santander's deal carries a £1,749 fee and NatWest's a £3,499 fee, and the loan size is set by rental cover at a stressed rate. Many buy-to-let lenders, Landbay and Hodge among them, test a five-year fix at the pay rate but stress a two-year fix at the higher of 5.5% or the pay rate plus two points. With pay rates now around 5%, that gap can decide how much a landlord can borrow. Our buy-to-let mortgage rates page shows how the rental stress test caps the loan.

Borrowers outside the mainstream rely more on specialist lenders, and those lenders moved hardest in the week to 2 October. Aldermore raised fixed rates by up to 0.46 points and United Trust Bank by up to 0.40, Precise withdrew its range and relaunched it, and Kensington pulled selected fixes without replacing them. Expat borrowers paid in foreign currency face a narrower panel again, so one withdrawal can remove a large share of their options. Our expat mortgages and seafarer mortgages pages set out how lenders treat overseas and Seafarers Earnings Deduction income.

Can you still lock in today's mortgage rate before it goes?

Yes. A rate is held once the product is booked or a full application is submitted, and most lenders let a remortgage be arranged up to six months before the current deal ends. Nationwide goes further, letting a broker reserve a product at decision in principle provided the mortgage offer is issued within 90 days.

Speed matters because deals are being pulled with little notice. Of the 1,494 sub-5% fixed deals on sale at the start of September, 1,485 had gone by 5 October. David Hollingworth of L&C Mortgages warned that rates can be pulled from the market with little or no notice, and Nicholas Mendes said that when funding costs move this quickly, changes can come within days.

For most lenders a decision in principle does not hold pricing, and neither does an illustration. Once a product is booked, most lenders honour the rate through to offer and many let the application move to a lower rate if pricing falls before completion, so an early booking carries little downside. Lenders will not usually tell you when a cheaper rate appears after you apply, which is where a whole of market mortgage broker watching the market earns their keep. Our mortgage in principle guide explains what a decision in principle does and does not secure.

The route matters too. A product transfer with your existing lender is quick and usually needs no fresh affordability check, but it prices from one lender's range on one day. A remortgage opens the whole of market and can win on rate or let you borrow more, at the cost of fresh underwriting, and our remortgaging guide weighs the two on total cost.

What today's mortgage rates mean if your deal ends soon

If your fixed deal ends within six months, plan on today's pricing rather than February's. HomeOwners Alliance calculates that a two-year fix at the 5.98% average costs about £168 a month more than at February's 4.85% on a £250,000 repayment mortgage over 25 years, and the 7.13% average standard variable rate costs more again.

The standard variable rate is where the real damage sits. On a £150,000 repayment mortgage with 20 years left, Nicholas Mendes put the monthly payment at around £1,175 on the 7.13% average SVR against about £1,032 on a new 5.5% fix, roughly £1,710 a year saved by not drifting. Our current standard variable rate chart shows what reverting costs against a new fix.

Buyers mid-purchase need the offer more than the averages. A mortgage offer typically holds its rate for six months, so an application submitted now carries today's price through a chain that may not complete until spring, and if rates fall before completion most lenders allow a switch. Sub-5% variable deals have held up far better than fixes, and our analysis of fixed or tracker mortgages weighs a lower starting rate against certainty.

Three dates frame the next month. The Office for National Statistics publishes September inflation at 7am on 21 October, the Budget follows on 28 October, and the Bank of England announces its next decision on 5 November with the November Monetary Policy Report. Our page on the next Bank of England meeting carries the latest vote and what each outcome would mean for tracker and fixed pricing.

Figures as of 5 October 2026, London.

If your fixed deal ends before April 2027 and you want a rate secured ahead of the 5 November decision, call 01202 155992 or contact Mortgage One.

Back to Rate Forecast and Economic Drivers

The information provided in this article is for general guidance only and does not constitute personal or regulated financial advice. If you'd like to understand what these moves could mean for you, speak to Mortgage One. We can explain your options and timings based on your specific circumstances.

FAQs

1. Are UK mortgage rates falling?

Not on average. Moneyfacts put the average two-year fix at 5.98% and the five-year at 6% on 5 October 2026, up from 5.92% and 5.94% on 25 September. Santander and Accord trimmed selected rates in early October, but the cuts have not turned the averages, which sit at their highest in around three years.

2. Is 3.75% a good mortgage rate?

3.75% is the Bank of England's Bank Rate, not a rate any fixed mortgage is priced at today. On 1 October the lowest fixed rate Moneyfacts listed for a home mover was 4.91% on a five-year fix at 60% LTV. A tracker priced off Bank Rate can start lower, but it moves whenever Bank Rate does.

3. Will mortgage rates drop to 3% again?

Not on current pricing. The sub-3% fixes of 2020 and 2021 rested on a 0.10% Bank Rate and swap rates close to zero. Five-year swaps were around 4.7% on 1 October and markets expect Bank Rate to rise rather than fall, so 3% fixed rates would need lender funding costs to fall by well over a point.

4. Is it better to fix for 2 or 5 years?

The averages are almost level, at 5.98% for two years and 6% for five on 5 October 2026, so the choice rests on how long you want certainty and the early repayment charges you can accept. For landlords a five-year fix can also raise the loan, because many lenders test rental cover at its pay rate.

5. Which lender has the lowest mortgage rate right now?

It changes week to week. On 1 October Moneyfacts listed Skipton Building Society's 4.91% five-year fix and Yorkshire Building Society's 4.93% two-year fix, both at 60% LTV for home movers, as the lowest on sale. Both carry fees of £1,495 or more and either can be withdrawn at short notice.

6. How many fixed mortgage deals under 5% are left?

Moneyfacts counted nine fixed-rate mortgages below 5% on 5 October 2026, down from 1,494 at the start of September, excluding deals only available in Northern Ireland. Including those, the count fell from 1,691 to 107. Sub-5% variable rate deals held up far better, slipping only from 411 to 389.

7. Can I lock in a mortgage rate before the 5 November Bank of England decision?

Yes. A product booked or a full application submitted before the lender withdraws the rate holds that price through to offer, and most lenders let you move to a lower rate if pricing falls before completion. Most lenders allow a remortgage to be arranged up to six months before your current deal ends.

8. Do I need a broker when lenders are repricing every few days?

A broker sees withdrawal notices as they land, knows which lenders have repriced and which have not, and can submit a full application the same day to hold a rate before it goes. Mortgage One arranges residential, buy-to-let, expat and seafarer mortgages across the whole of market, and the initial consultation is free.