Reigate is a historic market town in east Surrey, about 18 miles from Westminster. Zoopla describes it as affluent and popular with London commuters. Local agent Garrington's list of the best places to live in Surrey calls it a smaller market town with nationally popular, historic schools and colleges, with the M25 and Gatwick a short drive away. It has also appeared in the Sunday Times Best Places to Live list, in 2023, when the paper pointed to its food scene.
It is not without critics. Surrey Live reported that Reigate was nominated in a tongue in cheek online poll for the most depressing town in Britain, and noted in the same piece that official indicators show it doing better than average. Treat both as colour rather than guidance.
The hill on your doorstep
The big draw is the North Downs behind the town. The National Trust looks after Reigate Hill and Gatton Park, 600 acres of grassland and woods with views towards the Weald and the South Downs. It takes in a landscaped park designed by Capability Brown, the 19th century Reigate Fort and a Site of Special Scientific Interest. The address is Reigate Hill, Wray Lane, Reigate RH2 0HX. The fort's rooms are open only by prior arrangement.
You can walk to it. The National Trust gives the distance from Reigate station to the Wray Lane car park as 1 mile, and its walk from the station on Holmesdale Road involves a steep climb. For a circular route, National Trails lists a 3 mile loop from the Margery Wood car park off the A217 Sutton Road. It is steep in places and can be muddy, but suits a rugged buggy, and there are toilets and refreshments at the Wray Lane car park about halfway round. The Inglis Memorial on Colley Hill dates from 1909 and began life as a drinking fountain for horses.
In town, Castle Grounds is a public park on the site of the Norman castle, with a gatehouse folly from 1777 at the entrance. Baron's Cave, a scheduled ancient monument, is open only on a handful of days a year, so check dates with Reigate Caves before planning a visit. Reigate Priory, a Grade I listed house, sits in around 65 acres of parkland. The house is a school, and the grounds belong to the council.
Where locals say to look
Forum posters on Mumsnet (anecdotal, so take with salt) say the most sought after parts lie north of the station and around the centre. Nutley Lane, Yorke Road and Somers Road are named as pricey, and Holmesdale Road, Doods Road and Deerings Road also come up. Wray Common is described as lovely but expensive. One poster suggests staying within about a 20 minute walk of the town centre if you commute by train, and another complains of crowding and parking trouble. Estate agents sometimes call the Reigate and Redhill border Redgate.
Schools
State schools have no catchment areas, according to one forum poster, with places allocated by proximity where other criteria do not decide. Check Surrey County Council's admissions data before you buy.
Primary: Reigate Priory Community Junior School on Bell Street (ages 7 to 11) was judged Outstanding in a full Ofsted inspection in June 2024. Ofsted no longer gives state schools an overall grade.
Secondary: Reigate School on Pendleton Road (ages 11 to 16) was rated Good overall by Ofsted in December 2023, with behaviour and personal development Outstanding.
Sixth form: Reigate College on Castlefield Road is a sixth form college for ages 16 to 19.
Independent: Reigate Grammar School on Reigate Road, founded in 1675 and co-educational, has fees from £28,905 a year according to the Good Schools Guide. Dunottar School on High Trees Road, founded in 1926 and taking ages 11 to 18, is listed at £26,880 a year. Micklefield School on Somers Road is a prep school whose pupils mostly go on to Reigate Grammar or Dunottar, by its own account.
Trains and roads
Reigate station is on Holmesdale Road, about 0.3 miles from the town centre. Southern runs to London Victoria, with an hourly direct service to London Bridge, and there are also Reading and Guildford services. Trainline gives the fastest Victoria journey as about 45 minutes, with an average nearer 50. Southern lists London Bridge at 45 to 48 minutes. Faster Thameslink trains run from Redhill, a short drive away, so check both stations against a current timetable before you commit.
By road, Junction 8 of the M25 is minutes away. Micklefield School puts Gatwick at 15 to 20 minutes by back roads and Heathrow at about 25 minutes when the motorway is flowing.
What homes cost
The Office for National Statistics put the average price across the whole Reigate and Banstead borough at £496,000 in April 2026 (provisional), up 3.1% on a year earlier. The average first time buyer paid £379,000.
Town figures vary by source and method. Over the past 12 months of sales, Zoopla gives an overall average of £611,684 and Rightmove £628,313, while a Land Registry median analysed by Offrly comes in lower at £527,000. As a rough guide:
Flats: about £280,000 to £330,000.
Terraced and semi detached houses: about £550,000 to £650,000.
Detached houses: around £1m.
For a sense of individual sales, Zoopla's Land Registry data shows a two bedroom end of terrace on Lesbourne Road selling for £470,000 and a three bedroom detached house on Oakfield Drive for £735,000.
On council tax, the borough council has frozen its share, with a Band D charge of £264.87, roughly a tenth of a typical bill. Surrey County Council's Band D is £1,938.42, with the police precept added on top.
Who it suits
Reigate suits families who want strong schools, a walkable town centre and open downland close by, and who are happy with a 45 to 50 minute run into London. Prices are well above the national average, so it pays to compare several sources and look closely at the streets within walking distance of the station and centre.
More detail on the hill is on the National Trust page, and the borough's price data is on the ONS site.
