What are the cheapest pedigree dog breeds in the UK, and why?

There are over two hundred different pedigree dog breeds recognised in the UK by the Kennel Club, which is the UK’s umbrella organisation for pedigree dog registration, advocacy and improvement.

As you might expect, there can be quite a degree of variation between the prices commanded for dogs of different breeds, and often, a lot of variation in pricing even within specific breeds. Even individual puppies from within the same litter may be sold at different price points if some of the pups are particularly good quality, and so building up a picture of price norms for different dog breeds can be a challenge.

Pets4Homes tries to ensure that we do our part to provide impartial, accurate information for prospective puppy buyers seeking to choose their next pet, and this includes information on the average pricing for different dog breeds. Within every dog breed profile that we share here to help prospective puppy buyers and others seeking to learn about dog breeds, we share information on the average advertised cost of dogs of the breed as a guideline for puppy buyers.

Whilst the onus lies with the individual themselves in terms of doing the appropriate research and making the right choice about what dog to buy, knowing the average costs commanded for puppies of different breeds can help buyers to ensure that they don’t pay over the odds for a dog when this is unwarranted, or inadvertently think that a cheap puppy is a bargain when it might be less costly for a reason.

We’ve reviewed our advertisement statistics for 2018 in order to identify the cheapest pedigree dog breeds to buy in the UK based on average advertised prices here on Pets4Homes, and we’ll tell you more about the five cheapest pedigree breeds below, along with some insights into the potential reasons for their pricing.

Read on to find out more about the five cheapest pedigree dog breeds to buy.

How we calculated the average prices per breed

To determine which pedigree dog breeds cost the least to buy in the UK, we collated data from adverts placed for dogs of all of the different advertised pedigree breeds on Pets4Homes in 2018.

As Pets4Homes adverts incorporate both registered pedigree dogs of their respective breeds as well as non-pedigrees or unregistered dogs, we’ve used the pricing info supplied for Kennel Club registered pedigrees only to determine the price rankings, to ensure that our results show a true reflection of the cheapest pedigree dog breeds to buy.

The data we’re using was collated from all 244 of the individual dog breeds and types advertised on Pets4Homes during the whole of 2018, and reflects every dog and litter of the designated breeds advertised here during that time.

In order to ensure that we had sufficient data to reflect broad averages by breed, we have discounted dog breeds that are so rare or uncommon within the UK that less than 20 pedigree dogs of the breed were offered for sale here over the course of the 2018 year.

Number 5: The Bichon frise

The Bichon frise is one of a number of small, white dog breeds with fluffy coats, but this breed is one of the more popular ones, being ranked 29th out of all breeds in the UK. This is the fifth cheapest dog breed in the UK for pedigree dog purchases.

• In 2018, there were a total of 191 adverts for pedigree Bichon frise dogs for sale on Pets4Homes, with an average advertised price of £610 per dog.
• Non-pedigree Bichon frise dog adverts during the same period numbered a total of 1,128 dogs, with an average sale price of £510 each.
• The total number of Bichon frise adverts placed for both pedigree and non-pedigree dogs in 2018 was 1,319, with an average value across the board of £524 per dog.

The Bichon frise’s small size means that they’re happy in even smaller homes, and they are also low shedding dogs, although they need quite a lot of brushing and grooming. Bichons are also popular specifically because of the type of coat they have, which tends to tangle up loose hairs rather than shedding them around the home, which makes them a viable choice of pet for some people who are usually allergic to dog dander.

Whilst there are several dog breeds and types that share this fairly unique coat texture, the Bichon is one of the better-known smaller pedigree breeds that offer a coat of this type.

One interesting thing to note from the advert figures for Bichon frises in the UK is that the number of non-pedigree dogs of the breed for sale far outweighs the number of pedigrees, and that there is only around £100 difference between the average price of a pedigree versus a non-pedigree.

The significant number of adverts for non-pedigree Bichons does of course serve to reduce demand for and so, prices of pedigree alternatives, and the huge number of non-pedigree dogs of the breed for sale also indicates that pedigree status is not particularly important for most owners of dogs of the breed.

Number 4: The Siberian husky

The Siberian husky is the fourth cheapest pedigree dog breed to buy in the UK, based on the parameters we outlined above. Huskies are also the 20th most popular dog breed in the UK overall.

• In 2018, there were a total of 291 adverts placed for pedigree Siberian huskies for sale here on Pets4Homes, with an average asking price of £601 per dog.
• As well as the ads for pedigree Kennel Club registered Siberian huskies, we also hosted a total of 1768 adverts for unregistered or non-pedigree dogs of the breed in 2018, with an average asking price of £520 for these non-pedigree huskies.
• The total number of both pedigree and non-pedigree Siberian huskies advertised in 2018 was 2,059, with an average price of £531 per dog.

Prices for Siberian huskies in the UK have actually been rising slightly year on year since 2016, although an average asking price of just over £600 is still something of a bargain for a pedigree dog breed of this size.

This is one breed that really came into the public spotlight in the UK in the last 10-15 years, and awareness of the breed and demand for it in the UK rose exponentially as a result. Huskies are large, handsome and distinctive dogs with very unique personalities; but they are fairly high maintenance in terms of their care and management, which means that they are not for everyone.

Whilst many people love the husky look, this breed is highly intelligent with high energy levels too, so they need masses of exercise and are apt to keep their owners on their toes! All too many first-time husky buyers, particularly those that rode the wave of the breed’s increasing popularity, find that they have bitten off more than they can chew when they buy a husky, and this is also a breed that is commonly surrendered to rehoming shelters too.

The significant number of dogs of the breed available, the fact that the breed is complex to care for, and the number of husky buyers who don’t cope well with their dog and end up rehoming them means that there are lots of individual dogs of the breed for sale at any given time.

This serves to keep prices for dogs of the breed relatively keen, and can help to incentivise a purchase from someone that might be weighing up the benefits of several different large dog breeds side by side.

If you are thinking of buying or adopting a husky, this is not a decision to make lightly. You need to do plenty of research first and learn as much as you can about the breed before you even start shopping around; this article about the unique Siberian husky personality is a good place to begin.

Number 3: The Border collie

The Border collie is perhaps the world’s ultimate working dog breed, and they are still widely used within the UK in working-herding roles. They’re also hugely popular as pets too, and are the 13th most popular dog breed in the UK overall.

Pedigree Border collies are the third cheapest dog breed to buy in the UK, with average pricing as follows:

• In 2018, there were a total of 292 adverts placed for pedigreeBorder Collie Dogsfor salehereon Pets4Homes, with an average advertised price of £579 per dog.
• During the same period, there were 2,813 non-pedigree Border collies advertised here, with an average advertised price of £360 per dog.
• Both pedigree and non-pedigree Border collie adverts totalled 3,105 in 2018, with an average cost of £380 per dog.

The Border collie is a medium to large dog breed that can be challenging to own within a domestic home, because these dogs are so highly energetic and don’t tend to thrive unless they spend several hours every day running around and having something to concentrate their energies on.

This is also the most intelligent dog breed in the world bar none, which means that Border collies can learn and retain a wide range of different commands; but they also tend to get bored very easily, and often learn new things on their own by observing and working things out!

These traits all combine to mean that whilst the Border collie really is at the top of their game in many ways, they are complex and challenging to care for and manage and so, are not a good fit for everyone.

Many first-time Border collie owners greatly underestimate how much exercise dogs of this type need and just how clever they can be, which means that they’re not a good fit for many homes and owners.

The large number of Border collies within the UK and the disadvantage that not being small in size brings in terms of the types of homes that are suitable for dogs of the breed all means that there are always plenty of Border collies for sale, which helps to keep prices low.

Whilst owning a pedigree dog is of course important for a lot of people, in some breeds (often traditional working breeds) pedigree status is not afforded a huge amount of weighting by all owners, and non-pedigree Border collies are much more common than pedigrees.

This level of competition from non-pedigree dogs of the same breed that are generally offered for sale for prices lower than pedigrees also serves to keep the prices of pedigree dogs of the breed relatively competitive for a dog of this size.

Number 2: The Whippet

The whippet is the second cheapest pedigree dog breed in the UK, and the 38th most popular overall.

• In 2018, there were a total of 526adverts placed for pedigreeWhippet Dogsfor salehereon Pet4Homes, with an average advertised price of £578 per dog.
• For non-pedigree whippets or those that are not Kennel Club registered, there were a total of 530 dogs offered for sale over the course of the year, with an average advertised price of £402.
• All ads combined in 2018 totalled 1,056, with an average price of £490 per dog.

Whippet prices have actually gone up slightly over the last few years, and in 2016, the average advertised price of a pedigree whippet for sale was £469, so that’s quite a jump up to £578 within a couple of years.

Whippets have a lot to recommend them as pets for all sorts of owners – they are reasonably small and so, don’t need a large home, they don’t need a lot of grooming, and they aren’t particularly heavy shedders either.

Whippets are of course sighthounds, which means that they have a fast running speed and a high prey drive; however, whippets are as a whole fairly sedentary dogs that spend a lot of time asleep in between walks, and so they’re not particularly high maintenance to live with.

They also tend to be robust and healthy dogs that aren’t associated with a lot of hereditary health issues, which means that they usually live fairly long lives without a lot of major problems and are not overly costly to breed.

There are likely to be a lot of factors that contribute to the relatively competitive purchase price of most pedigree whippets. First of all this is a very well established dog breed that is common and popular in the UK, and there is no shortage of supply of dogs of this type.

It also means that the whippet is not a new, novel or unusual dog breed, which are all things that often serve to inflate prices.

As well as being great pets, whippets are also one of the dog breeds used for dog racing, and whilst whippet racing is rather different to greyhound racing and retired whippets are rarely rehomed or abandoned, competition for homes with other retired racing sighthounds could also be contributing to keeping prices for whippets competitive.

Number 1: The Jack Russell terrier

The Jack Russell is of course a hugely popular and very common small dog from the terrier grouping, and these are very much small dogs with huge personalities. They’re also the cheapest pedigree dog breed in the UK to buy overall!

• In 2018, there were a total of 96 advertsplaced for pedigreeJack Russell Dogsfor salehereon Pets4Homes, with an average advertised price of £460 per dog.
• For non-pedigree Jack Russells or those that were not Kennel Club registered, there were a total of 3,665 adverts, with an average sale price of £348 per dog.
• All of the Jack Russell ads placed in 2018 total 3,761 adverts, with an average cost of £351 per dog.

Jack Russell prices actually jumped up somewhat in 2018, from an average price of £350 for pedigree Jack Russells in 2017 to over £100 more in 2018.

Again, the number of non-pedigree Jack Russells for sale in 2018 was much higher than the number of pedigree dogs of the breed, and this is one breed in particular within which pedigree status has historically been viewed as of only minor importance to most owners, and the rough and ready, tough, robust and outgoing Jack Russell nature is perhaps what attracts most people to dogs of the breed.

Given the huge number of Jack Russells for sale in the UK, there is no shortage of dogs available to buy at any one time, which helps to keep prices low. Jack Russell care, breeding and management are also fairly competitive compared to most other breeds too, which means that their sale prices don’t need to reflect the sometimes costly nature of breeding litters of other breeds.

Another factor that might contribute to the low price of Jack Russells is the fact that they were historically used as versatile working and hunting dogs, and are often seen as more of a utilitarian dog breed than the type that is kept for pretty looks or lapdog tendencies.

If your looking for more information on the popularity or average prices of various dog breeds in the UK, you can use our Pets4Homes Dog Breed pages which displays all 244 dog breeds in order of popularity and includes the average prices for the past year of each dog breed.