Harlow: local statistics
Harlow is a district council area in the East of England, home to an estimated 98,543 people (mid-2025). This page brings together 10 official figures for the area, each with its period, publisher and the address it was read from. See also who has power over Harlow, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
4.6% of Harlow residents aged 16 to 64 (2,850 people) were on the claimant count in August 2026 (the East of England: 3.3%). A year earlier the rate was 4.3%. Since August 2021 the rate has ranged between 3.8% (February 2023) and 6.0% (August 2021).
The police recorded 92.1 crimes per 1,000 residents in Harlow in the year to March 2026 (9,072 offences in all), the 6th highest rate of 42 in the East of England. That compares with 94.5 per 1,000 the year before. Across the 11 years shown it ranged from 80.6 to 119.2 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
In March 2026, 4,230 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses were based in Harlow, 28% more than in 2016. That is 43 for every 1,000 residents, the 35th highest of 45 in the East of England.
Average Band D council tax in Harlow is £2,298.69 for 2026-27, 3.7% more than in 2025-26. That makes it the 37th highest of 45 in the East of England. In 2016-17 the figure was £1,616.88, so it has risen 42%.
In 2022 to 2024, women in Harlow had a life expectancy at birth of 82.8 years; for men it was 78.8 (England: 83.3 and 79.5). For women that is 0.2 years less than in 2012 to 2014; for men, 0.2 more. It is the 37th highest for women of the 45 council areas in the East of England.
The ONS estimates that 98,543 people lived in Harlow in mid-2025, up 0.4% on mid-2024. That is 10,746 more people than in mid-2015, a rise of 12.2% (the East of England: +8.5%). That is the 9th fastest growth of the 45 council areas in the East of England. The mid-2025 estimate is the highest in the series.
Median weekly pay for full-time employees who live in Harlow was £728.10 in April 2025, or £38,380 over a year. That is 9.5% below the figure for the East of England and the 35th highest of the 45 council areas in the East of England. Measured by where people work rather than where they live, the median is £735.00, £6.90 higher. Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was £487.70: a change of +49% before inflation.
The average house price in Harlow was £319,860 in July 2026, up 4.4% on July 2025. That is mid-table in the East of England, 27th of 45; the average for the East of England was £337,518. This July figure is the highest in the series, 22% up on July 2016. The average price is 8.3 times the median annual pay of full-time employees who live in Harlow. That ratio is mid-table in the East of England, 22nd of 45.
An estimated 81.0% of people aged 16 to 64 living in Harlow were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, according to the ONS Annual Population Survey (give or take 8.0 points); the figure for the East of England was 78.3%. Its lowest reading in the series was 68.0% and its highest 83.3%.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 87,797 |
| 2016 | 88,913 |
| 2017 | 89,824 |
| 2018 | 90,695 |
| 2019 | 91,952 |
| 2020 | 92,415 |
| 2021 | 93,428 |
| 2022 | 94,556 |
| 2023 | 96,341 |
| 2024 | 98,130 |
| 2025 | 98,543 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £261,756 |
| July 2017 | £278,153 |
| July 2018 | £280,524 |
| July 2019 | £275,785 |
| July 2020 | £277,511 |
| July 2021 | £287,950 |
| July 2022 | £311,874 |
| July 2023 | £313,158 |
| July 2024 | £307,166 |
| July 2025 | £306,384 |
| July 2026 | £319,860 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £487.70 a week |
| 2016 | £511.00 a week |
| 2017 | £523.60 a week |
| 2018 | £525.50 a week |
| 2019 | £520.50 a week |
| 2020 | £523.90 a week |
| 2021 | £532.50 a week |
| 2022 | £584.30 a week |
| 2023 | £647.00 a week |
| 2024 | £700.70 a week |
| 2025 | £728.10 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,616.88 |
| 2017-18 | £1,662.06 |
| 2018-19 | £1,733.43 |
| 2019-20 | £1,813.58 |
| 2020-21 | £1,876.89 |
| 2021-22 | £1,912.23 |
| 2022-23 | £1,983.87 |
| 2023-24 | £2,052.81 |
| 2024-25 | £2,140.47 |
| 2025-26 | £2,216.43 |
| 2026-27 | £2,298.69 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 82.1 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 80.6 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 85.4 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 102.2 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 114.7 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 104.8 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 119.2 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 117.3 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 110.4 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 94.5 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 92.1 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 74.3% |
| 2016/17 | 83.3% |
| 2017/18 | 74.6% |
| 2018/19 | 76.4% |
| 2019/20 | 72.0% |
| 2020/21 | 76.1% |
| 2021/22 | 78.6% |
| 2022/23 | 70.0% |
| 2023/24 | 68.0% |
| 2024/25 | 72.3% |
| 2025/26 | 81.0% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 83.0 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 83.4 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 83.2 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 83.2 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 82.8 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 82.9 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 82.6 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 82.3 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 82.1 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 82.1 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 82.8 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 3,300 |
| 2017 | 3,495 |
| 2018 | 3,430 |
| 2019 | 3,560 |
| 2020 | 3,705 |
| 2021 | 3,800 |
| 2022 | 3,900 |
| 2023 | 3,850 |
| 2024 | 4,005 |
| 2025 | 4,075 |
| 2026 | 4,230 |
Questions about Harlow
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Harlow?
The ONS claimant count was 2,850 in August 2026, 4.6% of 16 to 64-year-olds. It counts benefit claims, not unemployment.
What is the crime rate in Harlow?
92.1 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents in the year to March 2026, excluding fraud (Home Office).
How much is Band D council tax in Harlow?
£2,298.69 on average for 2026-27, including police, fire and parish precepts (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).
What is life expectancy in Harlow?
82.8 years for women and 78.8 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
What is the population of Harlow?
98,543 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
What is the average salary in Harlow?
£728.10 a week before tax, the median for full-time employees who live there (April 2025, ONS).
What is the average house price in Harlow?
£319,860 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (+4.4% on a year).
Who has power over Harlow
Every body that makes decisions for Harlow, 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
Parish, town and community councils, where the area has them, sit below the council.
Level 3: Local councils
- Harlow council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Harlow in official figures this page
Level 5: Devolved and state governments
England has no devolved parliament of its own: its laws are made by the UK Parliament.
Level 6: National government
- Harlow: Chris Vince (Labour (Co-op)) 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.
- Recorded crime: Years before April 2020 come from the earlier Home Office table.
More on this area and these figures
- Council money: spending, reserves and debt
- Figures for the whole region: the East of England
- UK figures: UK unemployment rate · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime · Life expectancy at birth (UK)
- Other council areas in the East of England: Babergh · Broxbourne · East Cambridgeshire · Great Yarmouth · Three Rivers · Uttlesford
Related questions
- What is the unemployment rate in my area?
- How do I find the crime rate in my area?
- How much has council tax gone up this year?
- How healthy is my area?
- Which council am I in?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.