Somerset: local statistics
Somerset is a unitary authority in the South West, home to an estimated 590,972 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 Somerset, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
The ONS counted 28,585 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses in Somerset in March 2026, 2% more than in 2016. There are 48 per 1,000 residents, mid-table in the South West, 16th of 27.
Homes in Somerset sold for an average of £282,062 in July 2026, up 3.1% on July 2025. That is the 19th highest of 26 in the South West; the average for the South West was £302,298. This July figure is the highest in the series, 39% up on July 2016. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Somerset (£36,279) gives a ratio of 7.8. That ratio is the 18th highest ratio of all 26 council areas in the South West.
In the year to March 2026, 49,467 offences were recorded by police in Somerset: 83.7 per 1,000 people, the 6th highest rate of all 19 council areas in the South West. The rate was 80.8 in the year to March 2025. In the year to March 2016 it was 55.9 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
In April 2025 the middle full-time earner living in Somerset took home £710.60 a week before tax, or £36,279 over a year. That is 3.2% below the figure for the South West and the 17th highest of all 26 council areas in the South West. Jobs based in Somerset paid almost the same: a median £708.30 a week. In 2015 the residents' median was £479.10, so it has risen 48% before inflation.
In mid-2025 the population of Somerset was estimated at 590,972, up 0.5% on a year earlier. The ten-year change since mid-2015 is +7.7%; the South West grew by 8.0% over the same years. That is the 17th fastest growth of all 27 council areas in the South West. The mid-2025 estimate is the highest in the series.
The claimant count for Somerset stood at 8,725 in August 2026, or 2.6% of residents aged 16 to 64, compared with 2.7% in the South West. Twelve months before, it was 2.4%. The five-year high was 3.5% (August 2021); the low was 2.3% (September 2023).
Average Band D council tax in Somerset is £2,560.59 for 2026-27, 5.0% more than in 2025-26. That makes it close to the middle of all 27 council areas in the South West (12th highest).
Life expectancy at birth in Somerset is 84.1 years for women and 80.2 years for men (2022 to 2024), compared with 83.3 and 79.5 years across England. For women that is 0.1 years less than in 2012 to 2014; for men, 0.3 less. It is close to the middle of all 26 council areas in the South West (14th highest for women).
The Annual Population Survey estimates that 78.3% of Somerset residents aged 16 to 64 were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, with a margin of error of 2.9 points either way, against 79.0% across the South West. Over the 11 years shown it ranged from 76.3% to 81.0%.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 548,792 |
| 2016 | 554,806 |
| 2017 | 558,895 |
| 2018 | 562,159 |
| 2019 | 564,987 |
| 2020 | 566,310 |
| 2021 | 573,100 |
| 2022 | 577,172 |
| 2023 | 583,076 |
| 2024 | 588,173 |
| 2025 | 590,972 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £202,922 |
| July 2017 | £215,059 |
| July 2018 | £223,448 |
| July 2019 | £226,649 |
| July 2020 | £229,548 |
| July 2021 | £245,441 |
| July 2022 | £281,436 |
| July 2023 | £276,158 |
| July 2024 | £270,737 |
| July 2025 | £273,609 |
| July 2026 | £282,062 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £479.10 a week |
| 2016 | £483.10 a week |
| 2017 | £514.30 a week |
| 2018 | £531.10 a week |
| 2019 | £566.50 a week |
| 2020 | £546.30 a week |
| 2021 | £566.80 a week |
| 2022 | £609.10 a week |
| 2023 | £640.20 a week |
| 2024 | £676.90 a week |
| 2025 | £710.60 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2023-24 | £2,116.09 |
| 2024-25 | £2,267.02 |
| 2025-26 | £2,438.62 |
| 2026-27 | £2,560.59 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 55.9 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 68.3 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 67.5 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 69.1 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 70.8 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 60.3 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 69.3 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 70.1 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 71.9 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 80.8 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 83.7 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 77.8% |
| 2016/17 | 76.3% |
| 2017/18 | 76.5% |
| 2018/19 | 79.2% |
| 2019/20 | 79.3% |
| 2020/21 | 76.7% |
| 2021/22 | 76.9% |
| 2022/23 | 77.6% |
| 2023/24 | 81.0% |
| 2024/25 | 78.6% |
| 2025/26 | 78.3% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 84.2 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 84.1 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 84.1 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 84.1 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 84.1 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 84.4 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 84.2 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 84.0 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 83.9 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 84.0 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 84.1 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 27,925 |
| 2017 | 28,380 |
| 2018 | 28,300 |
| 2019 | 28,550 |
| 2020 | 28,920 |
| 2021 | 28,805 |
| 2022 | 28,870 |
| 2023 | 29,045 |
| 2024 | 28,745 |
| 2025 | 28,445 |
| 2026 | 28,585 |
Questions about Somerset
What is the average house price in Somerset?
HM Land Registry's figure for July 2026 is £282,062.
What is the crime rate in Somerset?
83.7 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents in the year to March 2026, excluding fraud (Home Office).
What is the average salary in Somerset?
£710.60 a week before tax, the median for full-time employees who live there (April 2025, ONS).
What is the population of Somerset?
The ONS estimates 590,972 people lived in Somerset in mid-2025.
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Somerset?
8,725 in August 2026 (2.6% of residents aged 16 to 64), on the ONS claimant count, which is not the unemployment rate.
How much is Band D council tax in Somerset?
£2,560.59 on average for 2026-27, including police, fire and parish precepts (Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government).
What is life expectancy in Somerset?
For 2022 to 2024 the ONS gives 80.2 years for men and 84.1 for women.
Who has power over Somerset
Every body that makes decisions for Somerset, 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
- Somerset council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Somerset 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
- Bridgwater: Sir Ashley Fox (Conservative) MP
- Frome and East Somerset: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat) MP
- Glastonbury and Somerton: Sarah Dyke (Liberal Democrat) MP
- Taunton and Wellington: Gideon Amos (Liberal Democrat) MP
- Tiverton and Minehead: Rachel Gilmour (Liberal Democrat) MP
- Wells and Mendip Hills: Tessa Munt (Liberal Democrat) MP
- Yeovil: Adam Dance (Liberal Democrat) 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 · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime · UK average weekly earnings growth
- Other council areas in the South West: Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole · Bristol, City of · Cornwall · Dorset · South Gloucestershire · Wiltshire
Related questions
- What is the average house price in my area?
- How do I find the crime rate in my area?
- What is the average salary in my area?
- What is the population of my area?
- Which council am I in?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.