Argyll and Bute: local statistics
Argyll and Bute is a council area in Scotland, home to an estimated 87,310 people (mid-2025). This page brings together 8 official figures for the area, each with its period, publisher and the address it was read from. See also who has power over Argyll and Bute, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
The median full-time employee living in Argyll and Bute was paid £725.80 a week before tax in April 2025 (£39,010 a year). It is 28th of 32 in Scotland, counting from the highest, and 6.4% less than across Scotland. For full-time jobs located in Argyll and Bute the median is £742.00 a week (+£16.20 on the residents' figure). Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was £488.60: a change of +49% before inflation.
An estimated 68.9% of people aged 16 to 64 living in Argyll and Bute were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, according to the ONS Annual Population Survey, with a margin of error of 6.2 points either way; the figure for Scotland was 74.6%. Over the 11 years shown it ranged from 68.9% to 78.2%.
The ONS estimates that 87,310 people lived in Argyll and Bute in mid-2025, a change of -0.5% in a year. That is 540 fewer people than in mid-2015, a fall of 0.6%, against +3.6% for Scotland as a whole. That is the 25th fastest growth of the 32 council areas in Scotland. The series peaked at 88,230 in mid-2016.
The claimant count for Argyll and Bute stood at 1,280 in August 2026, or 2.5% of residents aged 16 to 64; the rate for Scotland was 3.2%. A year earlier the rate was 2.3%. Over the last five years it peaked at 4.0% in August 2021 and was lowest at 2.2% in October 2025.
The average house price in Argyll and Bute was £189,366 in July 2026, up 3.1% on July 2025. It ranks as close to the middle of the 32 council areas in Scotland (15th highest) (average for Scotland: £196,349). This July figure is the highest in the series, 54% up on July 2016. The average price is 4.9 times the median annual pay of full-time employees who live in Argyll and Bute. That ratio is mid-table in Scotland, 15th of 32.
A girl born in Argyll and Bute in 2022 to 2024 could expect to live 81.9 years and a boy 78.1 years, on the ONS's period measure, compared with 81.1 and 77.2 years across Scotland. In 2012 to 2014 the figures were 81.9 and 78.3. It is close to the middle of the 32 council areas in Scotland (14th highest for women).
In March 2026, 4,945 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses were based in Argyll and Bute, 2% more than in 2016. That is 57 for every 1,000 residents, the 5th highest of 32 in Scotland.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 87,850 |
| 2016 | 88,230 |
| 2017 | 88,090 |
| 2018 | 87,590 |
| 2019 | 87,360 |
| 2020 | 87,160 |
| 2021 | 87,960 |
| 2022 | 87,930 |
| 2023 | 88,080 |
| 2024 | 87,780 |
| 2025 | 87,310 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £122,790 |
| July 2017 | £125,127 |
| July 2018 | £128,885 |
| July 2019 | £129,067 |
| July 2020 | £128,564 |
| July 2021 | £152,798 |
| July 2022 | £178,982 |
| July 2023 | £173,944 |
| July 2024 | £173,049 |
| July 2025 | £183,674 |
| July 2026 | £189,366 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £488.60 a week |
| 2016 | £470.90 a week |
| 2017 | £464.50 a week |
| 2018 | £483.40 a week |
| 2019 | £528.40 a week |
| 2020 | £555.60 a week |
| 2021 | £564.30 a week |
| 2022 | £588.40 a week |
| 2023 | £672.30 a week |
| 2024 | £709.40 a week |
| 2025 | £725.80 a week |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 75.9% |
| 2016/17 | 78.2% |
| 2017/18 | 77.0% |
| 2018/19 | 74.3% |
| 2019/20 | 75.5% |
| 2020/21 | 75.4% |
| 2021/22 | 75.6% |
| 2022/23 | 73.5% |
| 2023/24 | 73.2% |
| 2024/25 | 76.7% |
| 2025/26 | 68.9% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 81.9 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 82.3 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 82.5 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 82.3 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 81.9 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 81.8 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 81.7 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 82.1 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 82.1 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 81.8 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 81.9 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 4,860 |
| 2017 | 4,885 |
| 2018 | 4,855 |
| 2019 | 4,795 |
| 2020 | 4,815 |
| 2021 | 4,820 |
| 2022 | 4,905 |
| 2023 | 4,900 |
| 2024 | 4,870 |
| 2025 | 4,875 |
| 2026 | 4,945 |
Questions about Argyll and Bute
What is the average salary in Argyll and Bute?
£725.80 a week before tax, the median for full-time employees who live there (April 2025, ONS).
What is the population of Argyll and Bute?
The ONS estimates 87,310 people lived in Argyll and Bute in mid-2025.
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Argyll and Bute?
The ONS claimant count was 1,280 in August 2026, 2.5% of 16 to 64-year-olds. It counts benefit claims, not unemployment.
What is the average house price in Argyll and Bute?
£189,366 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (+3.1% on a year).
What is life expectancy in Argyll and Bute?
81.9 years for women and 78.1 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
Who has power over Argyll and Bute
Every body that makes decisions for Argyll and Bute, from the street up to the G20. Each one links to its page on the official record. How the ten levels work.
Level 1: Neighbourhood and community power
Residents' and tenants' groups, neighbourhood forums and local policing panels.
Level 2: Parish, town and community councils
Community councils, where the area has them, sit below the council.
Level 3: Local councils
- Argyll and Bute council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Argyll and Bute in official figures this page
Level 5: Devolved and state governments
- Scottish Parliament and Scottish Government makes law for Scotland on devolved subjects
Level 6: National government
- Argyll, Bute and South Lochaber: Brendan O'Hara (Scottish National Party) MP
- All 650 MPs votes, interests and costs
- UK government and Parliament official figures and sources
Level 7: Regional blocs and supranational bodies
- Council of Europe and the European Court of Human Rights (CoE / ECtHR) The UK Government says the United Kingdom was one of the Council of Europe's founding members.
Level 8: The UN and global treaty bodies
- United Nations (General Assembly and Security Council) The UN lists the United Kingdom as a member admitted on 24 October 1945.
- United Nations Security Council (UNSC) The UK is one of the five permanent members of the Security Council and holds the veto, according to the UN.
- NATO NATO lists the United Kingdom among its 12 founding members, which signed the North Atlantic Treaty in Washington, D.C.
- World Health Organization (WHO) WHO's list of member states includes the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
- World Trade Organization (WTO) The WTO says the United Kingdom has been a WTO member since 1 January 1995 and a member of GATT since 1 January 1948.
- Commonwealth of Nations The UK is one of the 56 members, one of three European members with Cyprus and Malta, and the Commonwealth Secretariat is headquartered at Marlborough House in London.
Level 9: The IMF, World Bank and global finance
- International Monetary Fund (IMF) The UK has been a member since 27 December 1945 and has a quota of SDR 20,155.1 million (IMF country page for the United Kingdom).
- World Bank Group (WBG) The UK holds 3.75% of voting power in the IBRD (data as of 30 June 2026) and 6.92% in IDA (as of 30 June 2026), according to the World Bank's voting tables.
Level 10: G7, G20, Davos and global forums
Sources
Each value above links to the official file or query it was read from, on 14 October 2026. What each figure measures.
- Average house price: Scottish figures come from Registers of Scotland.
More on this area and these figures
- Council money: spending, reserves and debt
- Figures for Scotland
- UK figures: UK average weekly earnings growth · UK employment rate · UK population
- Other council areas in Scotland: East Renfrewshire · Inverclyde · Midlothian · Moray · Stirling · West Dunbartonshire
Related questions
- What is the average salary in my area?
- What is the population of my area?
- What is the unemployment rate in my area?
- What is the average house price in my area?
- How do I check my council tax band?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.