Every fixed and tracker deal ends, and the lender's standard variable rate takes over automatically. What matters is not the SVR itself but its distance from the fixed pricing available the same day, because that gap is what inaction costs each month. Mortgage One is a whole of market mortgage adviser that helps borrowers sitting on a lender's standard variable rate price up the alternatives.

If your fixed deal is close to ending and you want to see the gap on your own loan size, call 01202 155992 or contact Mortgage One.

Where the UK standard variable rate sits today

The chart above tracks the average UK standard variable rate against the average two year fixed rate at 75% loan to value, with the Bank of England base rate underneath both. The four tiles carry the latest level of each series and the SVR premium, which is the gap between the SVR and the fix.

Use the range buttons to switch between the one, two and five year views, or the full history.

Updated 30 July 2026

The five year view shows three distinct phases. Through 2022 SVRs climbed steeply as the Bank of England raised base rate at almost every meeting. Through 2023 and 2024 they plateaued close to their peak and stayed there, well after fixed pricing had already begun falling back. Since base rate started coming down, SVRs have drifted lower in small steps rather than tracking each cut as it landed.

That third phase is the one that costs borrowers money. Fixed pricing responds to swap markets within days. An SVR responds when the lender's pricing committee decides it should, which is usually after the base rate move and rarely in full. A borrower who reverted in the middle of that lag paid the old level while new deals had already repriced. Our UK mortgage rates chart breaks the fixed side down by loan-to-value band if you want to see where your own band prices.

What is the current standard variable rate in the UK?

There is no single UK standard variable rate. Every lender sets its own and can change it at any time, by any amount, so the figure quoted as the current SVR is a market average. The tile above this section carries that average, alongside the average two year fixed rate it sits against.

An average is useful for direction and useless for a decision. The spread between the cheapest and the most expensive SVR in the market runs to several percentage points, so two borrowers reverting on the same day at the same loan-to-value can face very different payments purely on the basis of who they borrowed from originally.

Your own SVR is on your annual mortgage statement and on your lender's rates page. That is the number to compare against, not the market average. Our standard variable rate mortgage guide covers how the rate works, why it sits where it does and what your exit routes are.

How the SVR premium over base rate has moved since 2022

When base rate sat close to zero in early 2022, lenders held their SVRs well above it. As base rate climbed the margin compressed, because SVRs rose by less than base rate did. Since base rate began falling, that margin has held broadly steady, so SVRs have followed the cuts down rather than absorbing them.

The margin over base rate is the cleanest way to read a lender's intent. It is the part of the SVR the lender controls outright, and it moves only when the lender decides to move it. A lender protecting margin holds the SVR after a cut. A lender chasing retention passes the cut through in full and quickly.

Watching that margin also tells you something the headline rate does not: whether the next base rate cut is likely to reach you. A lender already running a thin margin over base rate has less room to pass a cut on than one sitting well above. Our rate forecast page sets out where the market currently expects base rate to go.

For a free initial consultation that compares your lender's revert rate against what the wider market will offer you today, call 01202 155992 or contact Mortgage One.

Why the SVR ignores what fixed rate pricing is doing

Fixed rates are priced from sterling swap rates, which move daily on interest rate expectations. An SVR is not priced from swaps at all. It is a discretionary rate the lender reviews against base rate and its own funding position, so fixed pricing can move sharply in a month when the SVR does not move at all.

You can see this on the chart wherever the fixed line turns and the SVR line carries on in the same direction. Fixed pricing has had several sharp reversals inside the five year window. The SVR has had none. It steps.

The practical consequence is that the SVR premium is not a stable number. It widens when swap markets rally and fixed rates fall away from a static SVR. It narrows when swaps sell off and fixed pricing climbs back toward it. A borrower who checked the gap six months ago and decided it was not worth acting on may be looking at a materially different number today. A tracker mortgage sits between the two, moving contractually with base rate rather than at the lender's discretion.

Why one lender's SVR can sit far above another's

An SVR reflects the lender's own funding mix, the profile of its existing book and its appetite to retain borrowers, not a market benchmark. Large deposit-funded banks tend to sit at the lower end of the range. Specialist and non-bank lenders funded through wholesale markets sit higher, sometimes by several points.

Three things drive the spread. Funding cost comes first: a bank funding itself from retail deposits pays less for money than a lender funding itself in wholesale markets, and the SVR reflects that. Book composition comes second: a lender with a large legacy book of borrowers who cannot easily move has less commercial pressure to hold its revert rate down. Retention strategy comes third: some lenders deliberately price the SVR high and rely on product transfer offers to keep borrowers, while others hold the revert rate closer to market and compete on the initial rate instead.

This is also why a discount product needs reading carefully. A discount is expressed as a reduction off the lender's SVR, not off a market benchmark, so the same headline discount produces a very different rate depending on whose SVR it is applied to. Our discount mortgage guide covers how those products behave when the underlying SVR moves. Where the wider fixed market is pricing today sits on our current UK mortgage rates page.

Will the standard variable rate fall from here?

SVRs follow base rate downward, slowly and at each lender's discretion, so the direction depends on the Bank of England path rather than on swap market moves. The dashed line on the chart is the market-implied base rate, not an SVR forecast. No lender is obliged to pass a cut through, in full or at all.

Waiting for the SVR to fall is a poor strategy even when the direction of travel is downward. The premium over a new fixed deal has not closed at any point in the five year window on this chart, and a cut that arrives in stages leaves the borrower paying the higher rate throughout. The decision is not whether the SVR will come down. It is whether the gap justifies acting now.

Two routes close that gap. A product transfer takes a new rate from your existing lender with lighter underwriting. A remortgage moves the loan and opens the whole market. Our remortgaging guide sets out how the two compare on total cost once fees and early repayment charges are included. Because there is no early repayment charge on an SVR, a borrower who has already reverted can move immediately, which is the one advantage the position carries. As a whole of market mortgage broker, Mortgage One can test the retention offer against the wider market before you commit to either route.

If you have already reverted and want to know what the gap is costing you each month, 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. What is the UK standard variable rate right now?

There is no single UK figure. Each lender publishes its own standard variable rate, so the number quoted as the current SVR is an average across the market. The tiles on the chart above carry that average to the latest data month, alongside the average two year fixed rate and the Bank of England base rate.

2. Which lender has the lowest standard variable rate?

SVR mortgage rates vary widely and the ranking changes whenever a lender reprices. Smaller building societies and deposit-funded banks have historically sat at the lower end, with specialist and non-bank lenders at the top. A low SVR is not a reason to choose a lender, because you should not be sitting on it long enough for it to matter.

3. How has the standard variable rate changed since 2022?

SVRs rose steeply through 2022 as base rate climbed, plateaued near their peak across 2023 and 2024, and have eased back in steps since base rate began falling. The five year view on the chart shows all three phases, and shows fixed pricing moving far more sharply over the same period.

4. Does the standard variable rate follow the Bank of England base rate?

Only loosely. There is no contractual link. Most lenders move their SVR broadly in line with base rate, but they choose the timing and the amount, and they are not required to pass a cut on in full. A tracker mortgage is the product that follows base rate contractually.

5. Why is the average SVR so much higher than the average two year fixed rate?

The SVR is a revert rate rather than a product designed to win business. It carries no fixed term and no early repayment charge, so the lender prices in the fact that the borrower can leave at any time. Fixed rates are priced from swap markets to compete for new lending, which is a different job.

6. Will standard variable rates fall if base rate is cut again?

Usually, but not immediately and not always in full. Lenders review their SVR after a base rate decision and announce a change with a notice period, so the reduction typically reaches borrowers weeks later. Some lenders pass on less than the full cut and keep the difference as margin.

7. Where does the data behind the chart come from?

The standard variable rate, two year fixed and base rate series are built from Bank of England published data, which runs to the most recent completed month. The dashed extension is the market-implied path for base rate, shown for illustration rather than as a forecast of any lender's SVR.

8. Does a broker help if I have already reverted to the SVR?

Yes, and the position is easier to act on than most. With no early repayment charge to clear, the case can be placed immediately. Mortgage One compares the retention offer from your existing lender against the wider market, so the product transfer is tested rather than assumed to be the best available route.