Oldham: local statistics
Oldham is a metropolitan borough in the North West, home to an estimated 251,915 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 Oldham, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
6.5% of Oldham residents aged 16 to 64 (10,170 people) were on the claimant count in August 2026; the rate for the North West was 4.2%. The rate was the same a year earlier. Over the last five years it peaked at 8.4% in August 2021 and was lowest at 6.0% in January 2024.
The police recorded 106.5 crimes per 1,000 residents in Oldham in the year to March 2026 (26,827 offences in all), the 4th highest rate of 35 in the North West. That compares with 109.5 per 1,000 the year before. Across the 11 years shown it ranged from 87.0 to 123.5 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
A Band D home in Oldham pays an average of £2,602.23 in council tax in 2026-27, 5.8% more than in 2025-26. That makes it the 4th highest of 35 in the North West. Ten years earlier, in 2016-17, it was £1,665.07.
The Annual Population Survey estimates that 64.3% of Oldham residents aged 16 to 64 were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, with a margin of error of 4.7 points either way, against 73.8% across the North West. Its lowest reading in the series was 64.3% and its highest 77.3%.
The median full-time employee living in Oldham was paid £681.10 a week before tax in April 2025, or £34,042 over a year. That is 7.3% below the figure for the North West and 29th of 35 in the North West, counting from the highest. Jobs based in Oldham paid almost the same: a median £683.80 a week. Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was £442.50: a change of +54% before inflation.
A typical home in Oldham cost £217,171 in July 2026, on the UK House Price Index, up 4.7% on a year before. That is mid-table in the North West, 15th of 35; the average for the North West was £221,445. Prices are 87% above July 2016 and at their highest July level in the series. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Oldham (£34,042) gives a ratio of 6.4. That ratio is the 10th highest ratio of the 35 council areas in the North West.
Life expectancy at birth in Oldham is 81.3 years for women and 77.3 years for men (2022 to 2024) (England: 83.3 and 79.5). Since 2012 to 2014 it has changed by +0.6 years for women and +0.0 for men. It is the 22nd highest for women of the 35 council areas in the North West.
Oldham had an estimated 251,915 residents in mid-2025, up 0.5% on mid-2024. The ten-year change since mid-2015 is +8.3%; the North West grew by 8.2% over the same years, close to the middle of the 35 council areas in the North West (17th fastest growth). No earlier year in the series was higher.
8,815 businesses were registered for VAT or PAYE in Oldham in March 2026, 20% more than in 2016. There are 35 per 1,000 residents, the 25th highest of 35 in the North West.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 232,693 |
| 2016 | 235,021 |
| 2017 | 237,161 |
| 2018 | 239,923 |
| 2019 | 242,077 |
| 2020 | 242,181 |
| 2021 | 242,003 |
| 2022 | 244,584 |
| 2023 | 247,251 |
| 2024 | 250,725 |
| 2025 | 251,915 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £115,956 |
| July 2017 | £121,406 |
| July 2018 | £124,782 |
| July 2019 | £130,815 |
| July 2020 | £138,277 |
| July 2021 | £160,330 |
| July 2022 | £178,872 |
| July 2023 | £183,067 |
| July 2024 | £190,293 |
| July 2025 | £207,408 |
| July 2026 | £217,171 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £442.50 a week |
| 2016 | £469.90 a week |
| 2017 | £479.80 a week |
| 2018 | £479.10 a week |
| 2019 | £499.40 a week |
| 2020 | £498.50 a week |
| 2021 | £547.30 a week |
| 2022 | £561.40 a week |
| 2023 | £601.50 a week |
| 2024 | £663.30 a week |
| 2025 | £681.10 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,665.07 |
| 2017-18 | £1,729.05 |
| 2018-19 | £1,809.03 |
| 2019-20 | £1,904.51 |
| 2020-21 | £1,977.21 |
| 2021-22 | £2,037.43 |
| 2022-23 | £2,128.40 |
| 2023-24 | £2,220.03 |
| 2024-25 | £2,331.35 |
| 2025-26 | £2,459.40 |
| 2026-27 | £2,602.23 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 87.0 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 98.7 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 122.9 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 123.5 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 94.9 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 98.8 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 121.9 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 123.3 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 116.2 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 109.5 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 106.5 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 67.0% |
| 2016/17 | 67.5% |
| 2017/18 | 68.1% |
| 2018/19 | 68.1% |
| 2019/20 | 70.9% |
| 2020/21 | 69.3% |
| 2021/22 | 66.4% |
| 2022/23 | 74.3% |
| 2023/24 | 77.3% |
| 2024/25 | 68.7% |
| 2025/26 | 64.3% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 80.7 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 80.6 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 80.5 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 80.9 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 81.2 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 81.0 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 80.5 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 79.8 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 80.1 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 80.5 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 81.3 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 7,360 |
| 2017 | 8,090 |
| 2018 | 8,395 |
| 2019 | 7,640 |
| 2020 | 7,910 |
| 2021 | 8,260 |
| 2022 | 8,225 |
| 2023 | 8,480 |
| 2024 | 8,320 |
| 2025 | 8,570 |
| 2026 | 8,815 |
Questions about Oldham
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Oldham?
10,170 in August 2026 (6.5% of residents aged 16 to 64), on the ONS claimant count, which is not the unemployment rate.
What is the crime rate in Oldham?
106.5 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents in the year to March 2026, excluding fraud (Home Office).
How much is Band D council tax in Oldham?
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government gives an average Band D bill of £2,602.23 for 2026-27.
What is the average salary in Oldham?
£681.10 a week before tax, the median for full-time employees who live there (April 2025, ONS).
What is the average house price in Oldham?
£217,171 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (+4.7% on a year).
What is life expectancy in Oldham?
81.3 years for women and 77.3 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
What is the population of Oldham?
251,915 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
Who has power over Oldham
Every body that makes decisions for Oldham, 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
- Oldham council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Oldham 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
- Manchester Central: Lucy Powell (Labour (Co-op)) MP
- Oldham East and Saddleworth: Debbie Abrahams (Labour) MP
- Oldham West, Chadderton and Royton: Jim McMahon (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 North West
- UK figures: UK unemployment rate · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime · UK employment rate
- Other council areas in the North West: Cumberland · Rochdale · Sefton · Tameside · Trafford · Westmorland and Furness
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?
- What is the average salary in my area?
- Who are my local councillors?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.