Watford: local statistics
Watford is a district council area in the East of England, home to an estimated 107,658 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 Watford, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
The claimant count for Watford stood at 3,235 in August 2026, or 4.6% of residents aged 16 to 64, compared with 3.3% in the East of England. Twelve months before, it was 4.5%. Over the last five years it peaked at 4.7% in August 2021 and was lowest at 3.1% in January 2023.
The Annual Population Survey estimates that 72.6% of Watford residents aged 16 to 64 were in work in April 2025 to March 2026 (give or take 9.4 points); the figure for the East of England was 78.3%. Its lowest reading in the series was 72.6% and its highest 83.7%.
Police recorded 9,296 crimes in Watford in the year to March 2026, 86.3 for every 1,000 residents, 9th of 42 in the East of England, counting from the highest rate. That compares with 83.3 per 1,000 the year before. In the year to March 2016 it was 74.3 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
A typical home in Watford cost £404,299 in July 2026, on the UK House Price Index, down 0.7% on July 2025. Among council areas that puts it the 15th highest of all 45 council areas in the East of England (regional average £337,518). Since July 2016 prices have risen 11%; the July high in the series was £410,610 in 2022. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Watford (£43,219) gives a ratio of 9.4. That ratio is 11th of 45 in the East of England, counting from the highest ratio.
Median weekly pay for full-time employees who live in Watford was £872.00 in April 2025 (£43,219 a year). That is 8.3% above the figure for the East of England and the 14th highest of all 45 council areas in the East of England. Measured by where people work rather than where they live, the median is £760.10, £111.90 lower. Ten years earlier, in 2015, it was £611.30: a change of +43% before inflation.
For 2026-27 the average Band D council tax bill in Watford is £2,446.70, up £103.32 on 2025-26. That makes it 15th of 45 in the East of England, counting from the highest. Ten years earlier, in 2016-17, it was £1,583.46.
Life expectancy at birth in Watford is 83.8 years for women and 79.8 years for men (2022 to 2024), compared with 83.3 and 79.5 years across England. For women that is 1.1 years more than in 2012 to 2014; for men, 0.9 more. It is the 28th highest for women of all 45 council areas in the East of England.
5,875 businesses were registered for VAT or PAYE in Watford in March 2026, 8% more than in 2016. That is 55 for every 1,000 residents, the 9th highest of all 45 council areas in the East of England.
107,658 people lived in Watford in mid-2025, according to the ONS, up 0.8% on mid-2024. The ten-year change since mid-2015 is +8.3%, against +8.5% for the East of England as a whole. That is mid-table in the East of England, 23rd of 45. No earlier year in the series was higher.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 99,449 |
| 2016 | 100,458 |
| 2017 | 100,957 |
| 2018 | 101,658 |
| 2019 | 102,172 |
| 2020 | 102,322 |
| 2021 | 102,507 |
| 2022 | 103,186 |
| 2023 | 105,214 |
| 2024 | 106,799 |
| 2025 | 107,658 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £364,010 |
| July 2017 | £367,904 |
| July 2018 | £353,912 |
| July 2019 | £352,988 |
| July 2020 | £356,977 |
| July 2021 | £383,796 |
| July 2022 | £410,610 |
| July 2023 | £393,473 |
| July 2024 | £390,176 |
| July 2025 | £407,120 |
| July 2026 | £404,299 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £611.30 a week |
| 2016 | £628.30 a week |
| 2017 | £640.00 a week |
| 2018 | £589.60 a week |
| 2019 | £663.90 a week |
| 2020 | £594.80 a week |
| 2021 | £617.20 a week |
| 2022 | £642.20 a week |
| 2023 | £748.80 a week |
| 2024 | £776.50 a week |
| 2025 | £872.00 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,583.46 |
| 2017-18 | £1,652.67 |
| 2018-19 | £1,746.92 |
| 2019-20 | £1,816.17 |
| 2020-21 | £1,885.79 |
| 2021-22 | £1,961.87 |
| 2022-23 | £2,034.72 |
| 2023-24 | £2,134.48 |
| 2024-25 | £2,236.30 |
| 2025-26 | £2,343.38 |
| 2026-27 | £2,446.70 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 74.3 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 79.9 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 94.9 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 92.9 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 91.4 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 71.6 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 81.8 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 83.5 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 78.5 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 83.3 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 86.3 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 83.7% |
| 2016/17 | 77.1% |
| 2017/18 | 79.4% |
| 2018/19 | 82.1% |
| 2019/20 | 77.2% |
| 2020/21 | 73.1% |
| 2021/22 | 77.1% |
| 2022/23 | 78.4% |
| 2023/24 | 76.7% |
| 2024/25 | 81.7% |
| 2025/26 | 72.6% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 82.7 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 83.1 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 83.0 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 82.7 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 82.7 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 82.5 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 82.8 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 82.8 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 83.2 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 83.5 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 83.8 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 5,435 |
| 2017 | 5,735 |
| 2018 | 5,840 |
| 2019 | 5,900 |
| 2020 | 6,365 |
| 2021 | 6,115 |
| 2022 | 5,940 |
| 2023 | 5,815 |
| 2024 | 5,865 |
| 2025 | 5,775 |
| 2026 | 5,875 |
Questions about Watford
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Watford?
3,235 in August 2026 (4.6% of residents aged 16 to 64), on the ONS claimant count, which is not the unemployment rate.
What is the crime rate in Watford?
86.3 recorded crimes per 1,000 residents in the year to March 2026, excluding fraud (Home Office).
What is the average house price in Watford?
£404,299 in July 2026, on HM Land Registry's UK House Price Index (-0.7% on a year).
What is the average salary in Watford?
Median pay for full-time employees living in Watford was £872.00 a week in April 2025 (£43,219 a year), from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
How much is Band D council tax in Watford?
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government gives an average Band D bill of £2,446.70 for 2026-27.
What is life expectancy in Watford?
83.8 years for women and 79.8 for men (2022 to 2024, ONS).
What is the population of Watford?
107,658 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
Who has power over Watford
Every body that makes decisions for Watford, 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
- Watford council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Watford 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
- Watford: Matt Turmaine (Labour) 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 · UK employment rate · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime
- Other council areas in the East of England: Broxbourne · Fenland · Great Yarmouth · Hertsmere · Mid Suffolk · North Norfolk
Related questions
- What is the unemployment rate in my area?
- How do I find the crime rate in my area?
- What is the average house price in my area?
- What is the average salary in my area?
- Which council am I in?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.