A recent survey by Travel Counsellors found that 50% of Brits surveyed wanted to quit their jobs, with better pay and benefits, better work-life balance and being able to secure more flexible working hours being the three top reasons.1

Interested in this, the resume experts at Resume.io, sought the most commonly searched terms related to resignation/quitting a job, including ‘Resignation letter template’, ‘Quiet Quitting’ and ‘How to leave my job’. They then used Google AdWords to analyse which UK cities are researching quitting their jobs the most.Highlights from the research:

• Bristol has the highest percentage of unsatisfied employees, with 4.12% of the population (or 412.42 searches a year per 10,000 people) for keywords such as ‘Resignation Letter template’
• Those in Bradford are the most satisfied in their role, with just 1.07% (6,000) of the population looking to quit their job per year
• ‘Resignation Letter’ was the most commonly searched term across all UK cities, the highest in London (118,800 searches annually)
• ‘Resignation Letter template’ was the second term most commonly searched, with 52,800 searches a year in London

Ranked: The UK Cities that want to quit their job the most#CityEstimated Annual Searches for KeywordsPopulation Figures as of 2023*Percentage of searches per population (annual)Estimated Average Annual Searches (Per 10,000 people)1Bristol19,920482,9984.12%412.422Manchester22,920579,9173.95%395.233Cambridge5,760149,9633.84%384.094Newcastle11,760311,9763.77%376.955Reading6,480178,1963.64%363.646Leeds29,400829,4133.54%354.477Sheffield19,680573,2523.43%343.308Birmingham38,7601,166,0493.32%332.409Portsmouth6,960210,2973.31%330.9610London289,6808,945,3093.24%323.83 The complete dataset used throughout this study can be found here.

People in Bristol want to quit their jobs the most
Resume.io can reveal that Bristol has the highest percentage of people wanting to quit their job, with an estimated 412 searches per 10,000 people for terms related to resignation, equating to one in four (4.12%) of the city’s 482,998 population. Bristol received 28.5% greater searches than fellow South-Western city of Portsmouth in ninth place (330.96).

In second place is Manchester. Approximately 3.95% of the city’s 579,917 population searches ‘how to quit their job’ annually, equating to 395 searches per 10,000 people. ‘Resignation letter’ was the most commonly searched here, with 8,640 searches a year, followed by ‘Resignation letter template’ with 3,840 searches. Manchester generated over 3,000 more annual searches than Sheffield (19,680), the closest city in the top 10.

Cambridge is third, with an estimated 3.84% of their 149,963 population searching ‘how to quit their job’, despite having the least annual searches than the other cities in the top 10 and having just ¼ of Manchester’s population. This highlights the impact that a smaller city has.

Bradford residents are happiest in their job
Those in Bradford are most satisfied with their job. Despite having 600,000 searches a year relating to queries surrounding resignation, this only equates to just 101 searches per 10,000 people (or 1.01% of their population). This is over three times fewer searches than neighbouring city Leeds, with 3.54% of their 829,413 population searching how to quit their job.As ‘Resignation Letter’ and ‘Resignation Letter template’ were the most commonly searched terms across all UK cities, Amanda Augustine, careers expert at Resume.io provided tips on how to quit your job in a professional manner:

“Resigning from your job can be challenging, but following these steps can help you navigate the process smoothly:

First, carefully consider your reasons for leaving to ensure you’re confident in your decision. If there’s room for negotiation, discuss your concerns with your line manager to see if any changes can be made.

If you find that you and your manager are at an impasse after you’ve requested changes to your role, your working arrangement or your compensation, then it’s time to make your move.

Take a moment to consider what you’re looking for in your next job and make any necessary updates to your CV to best support your job search.

It’s typically easier to secure a new job while you’re still employed, so try to hold off on giving your notice at work until you’ve successfully landed your next job opportunity.

Even if you’re planning to take a break before pursuing your next job, it’s best to update your CV while you still have access to company records – adding specific examples and quantifying your work adds credibility to your contributions and accomplishments.

Once you’re ready to give notice, inform your employer by speaking with HR or your line manager. Maintain professionalism to avoid misunderstandings.

Provide adequate notice, typically ranging from one week to six months, to allow your employer time to find a replacement. During this period, offer to assist with the transition, such as training a replacement or completing a handover document.

Draft a formal resignation letter, clearly stating your intention to resign, your final working day, and expressing appreciation for the opportunities you’ve had. This letter will be part of your employment records, so ensure it’s written professionally.

Express your gratitude to your colleagues and employer, as a sincere ‘thank’ you can help maintain positive relationships and leave a lasting impression.

Finally, consider requesting a reference. Leaving on good terms makes it easier to secure recommendations that will be valuable in your future job search.

Be prepared for what may follow your resignation. Whether asked to leave immediately or stay through your notice period, remain assertive and professional.

This approach ensures a graceful exit while maintaining your professional reputation and keeping future opportunities open."If you need anything else, please don’t hesitate to contact me.

Kind Regards,

Jack Clifford | Senior Digital PR Executive

Email: Jack@Journalistic.orgIf you wish to use this study, we kindly ask you to provide a link to https://resume.io/uk. A linked credit allows us to keep providing you with future content that you may find useful.Methodology:

1. Resume.io sought to uncover which UK city wanted to quit their role the most.
2. They took the 30 largest UK cities by population from The Geographist.
3. They then compiled a list of the top 25 search terms related to resignation with the largest monthly search volume from Ahrefs.
4. These were each then searched through Google Keyword Planner and ranked by the highest average monthly searches across each region.
5. Searches were then multiplied by 12 to provide how many times they were searched per year.
6. Population data from across each UK city was taken from the ONS, population figures are correct as of 2023.
7. Then each city’s annual searches per keyword were expressed as a percentage of their relative population.
   
   • To make the findings fair due to the vast population differences, data was broken down by the amount of total average searches per 10,000 people for each location to give the final figures.
8. The cities were then ranked from highest to lowest in order of searches per 10,000 people.
9. The data can be found here.
10. Data is correct as of 29th August 2024 and is subject to change.