Plymouth: local statistics
Plymouth is a unitary authority in the South West, home to an estimated 271,361 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 Plymouth, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
Homes in Plymouth sold for an average of £223,161 in July 2026, up 2.2% on a year before. It ranks as the 2nd lowest in the South West (regional average £302,298). This July figure is the highest in the series, 42% up on July 2016. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Plymouth (£35,186) gives a ratio of 6.3. That ratio is the lowest ratio in the South West.
The ONS estimates that 271,361 people lived in Plymouth in mid-2025, a change of -0.2% in a year. The ten-year change since mid-2015 is +3.1% (the South West: +8.0%), the 2nd slowest growth in the South West. The series peaked at 271,904 in mid-2024.
In 2022 to 2024, women in Plymouth had a life expectancy at birth of 82.6 years; for men it was 78.6 (England: 83.3 and 79.5). Since 2012 to 2014 it has changed by +0.1 years for women and +0.3 for men. It is the 2nd lowest for women in the South West.
In August 2026, 5,980 people in Plymouth were on the claimant count, 3.4% of residents aged 16 to 64 (the South West: 2.7%). Twelve months before, it was 3.3%. The five-year high was 4.7% (August 2021); the low was 3.0% (October 2022).
In April 2025 the middle full-time earner living in Plymouth took home £680.70 a week before tax (£35,186 a year). That is 7.3% below the figure for the South West and the 21st highest of all 26 council areas in the South West. Measured by where people work rather than where they live, the median is £711.60, £30.90 higher. In 2015 the residents' median was £483.90, so it has risen 41% before inflation.
In the year to March 2026, 25,339 offences were recorded by police in Plymouth: 93.4 per 1,000 people, 5th of 19 in the South West, counting from the highest rate. That compares with 96.3 per 1,000 the year before. Across the 11 years shown it ranged from 67.1 to 96.3 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
For 2026-27 the average Band D council tax bill in Plymouth is £2,441.85, 5.0% more than in 2025-26. It is the 19th highest of all 27 council areas in the South West. Ten years earlier, in 2016-17, it was £1,599.81.
In March 2026, 8,215 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses were based in Plymouth, 8% more than in 2016. That is 30 for every 1,000 residents, the lowest in the South West.
An estimated 77.6% of people aged 16 to 64 living in Plymouth were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, according to the ONS Annual Population Survey (give or take 3.6 points); the figure for the South West was 79.0%. Over the 11 years shown it ranged from 71.9% to 77.6%.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 263,088 |
| 2016 | 264,440 |
| 2017 | 265,294 |
| 2018 | 265,689 |
| 2019 | 265,041 |
| 2020 | 264,830 |
| 2021 | 264,768 |
| 2022 | 267,574 |
| 2023 | 270,641 |
| 2024 | 271,904 |
| 2025 | 271,361 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £156,681 |
| July 2017 | £160,062 |
| July 2018 | £165,957 |
| July 2019 | £163,513 |
| July 2020 | £169,709 |
| July 2021 | £181,267 |
| July 2022 | £207,877 |
| July 2023 | £205,570 |
| July 2024 | £206,051 |
| July 2025 | £218,322 |
| July 2026 | £223,161 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £483.90 a week |
| 2016 | £481.90 a week |
| 2017 | £512.80 a week |
| 2018 | £524.70 a week |
| 2019 | £506.20 a week |
| 2020 | £512.70 a week |
| 2021 | £522.00 a week |
| 2022 | £550.60 a week |
| 2023 | £624.90 a week |
| 2024 | £655.80 a week |
| 2025 | £680.70 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,599.81 |
| 2017-18 | £1,665.32 |
| 2018-19 | £1,742.67 |
| 2019-20 | £1,813.14 |
| 2020-21 | £1,884.65 |
| 2021-22 | £1,979.91 |
| 2022-23 | £2,008.23 |
| 2023-24 | £2,111.56 |
| 2024-25 | £2,214.87 |
| 2025-26 | £2,325.42 |
| 2026-27 | £2,441.85 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 67.1 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 72.6 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 86.2 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 88.9 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 86.6 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 78.8 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 84.7 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 82.9 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 87.1 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 96.3 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 93.4 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 74.6% |
| 2016/17 | 74.7% |
| 2017/18 | 75.2% |
| 2018/19 | 75.4% |
| 2019/20 | 73.3% |
| 2020/21 | 76.8% |
| 2021/22 | 75.5% |
| 2022/23 | 73.2% |
| 2023/24 | 73.0% |
| 2024/25 | 71.9% |
| 2025/26 | 77.6% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 82.5 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 82.8 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 82.7 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 82.2 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 82.2 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 82.3 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 82.6 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 82.3 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 82.3 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 82.4 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 82.6 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 7,605 |
| 2017 | 7,750 |
| 2018 | 7,690 |
| 2019 | 7,765 |
| 2020 | 7,910 |
| 2021 | 7,975 |
| 2022 | 8,235 |
| 2023 | 8,240 |
| 2024 | 8,175 |
| 2025 | 8,110 |
| 2026 | 8,215 |
Questions about Plymouth
What is the average house price in Plymouth?
£223,161 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (+2.2% on a year).
What is the population of Plymouth?
271,361 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
What is life expectancy in Plymouth?
82.6 years for women and 78.6 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Plymouth?
5,980 in August 2026 (3.4% of residents aged 16 to 64), on the ONS claimant count, which is not the unemployment rate.
What is the average salary in Plymouth?
Median pay for full-time employees living in Plymouth was £680.70 a week in April 2025 (£35,186 a year), from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
What is the crime rate in Plymouth?
Home Office figures show 25,339 offences in the year to March 2026, or 93.4 per 1,000 people, not counting fraud.
How much is Band D council tax in Plymouth?
£2,441.85 on average for 2026-27, including police, fire and parish precepts (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).
Who has power over Plymouth
Every body that makes decisions for Plymouth, 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
- Plymouth council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Plymouth 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
- Plymouth Moor View: Fred Thomas (Labour) MP
- Plymouth Sutton and Devonport: Luke Pollard (Labour (Co-op)) MP
- South West Devon: Rebecca Smith (Conservative) 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 South West
- UK figures: UK average house price · UK population · Life expectancy at birth (UK)
- Other council areas in the South West: Bath and North East Somerset · Dorset · East Devon · North Somerset · South Gloucestershire · Swindon
Related questions
- What is the average house price in my area?
- What is the population of my area?
- How healthy is my area?
- What is the unemployment rate 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.