Wirral: local statistics
Wirral is a metropolitan borough in the North West, home to an estimated 329,896 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 Wirral, from the council up to the G20.
Key figures
What the figures show
329,896 people lived in Wirral in mid-2025, according to the ONS, up 0.5% on mid-2024. That is 9,182 more people than in mid-2015, a rise of 2.9%; the North West grew by 8.2% over the same years. That is the 3rd slowest growth of all 35 council areas in the North West. No earlier year in the series was higher.
A typical home in Wirral cost £221,849 in July 2026, on the UK House Price Index, up 6.7% on July 2025. Among council areas that puts it the 14th highest of all 35 council areas in the North West (regional average £221,445). This July figure is the highest in the series, 57% up on July 2016. Dividing the average price by the median annual pay of full-time employees living in Wirral (£38,010) gives a ratio of 5.8. That ratio is close to the middle of all 35 council areas in the North West (16th highest ratio).
In the year to March 2026, 23,378 offences were recorded by police in Wirral: 70.9 per 1,000 people, the 23rd highest rate of 35 in the North West. The rate was 68.3 in the year to March 2025. Across the 11 years shown it ranged from 61.2 to 95.6 per 1,000. Fraud is not included.
The ONS counted 10,525 VAT or PAYE-registered businesses in Wirral in March 2026, 3% more than in 2016. That is 32 for every 1,000 residents, the 31st highest of 35 in the North West.
Median weekly pay for full-time employees who live in Wirral was £728.20 in April 2025 (£38,010 a year). That is 0.9% below the figure for the North West and close to the middle of all 35 council areas in the North West (15th highest). Jobs based in Wirral paid a median £683.70 a week, £44.50 less than the figure for people who live there. In 2015 the residents' median was £518.60, so it has risen 40% before inflation.
3.5% of Wirral residents aged 16 to 64 (6,930 people) were on the claimant count in August 2026 (the North West: 4.2%). The rate was the same a year earlier. The five-year high was 5.2% (August 2021); the low was 3.4% (July 2026).
In 2022 to 2024, women in Wirral had a life expectancy at birth of 82.0 years; for men it was 78.2 (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 mid-table in the North West, 15th of 35.
Average Band D council tax in Wirral is £2,500.59 for 2026-27, up £118.93 on 2025-26. That makes it mid-table in the North West, 17th of 35. In 2016-17 the figure was £1,564.95, so it has risen 60%.
An estimated 73.9% of people aged 16 to 64 living in Wirral were in work in April 2025 to March 2026, according to the ONS Annual Population Survey (give or take 3.9 points); the figure for the North West was 73.8%. Over the 11 years shown it ranged from 69.7% to 76.2%.
History
Population (mid-year)
| 2015 | 320,714 |
| 2016 | 320,914 |
| 2017 | 321,020 |
| 2018 | 320,643 |
| 2019 | 320,732 |
| 2020 | 320,249 |
| 2021 | 320,631 |
| 2022 | 322,411 |
| 2023 | 325,228 |
| 2024 | 328,209 |
| 2025 | 329,896 |
Average house price (same month each year)
| July 2016 | £141,740 |
| July 2017 | £148,910 |
| July 2018 | £154,031 |
| July 2019 | £153,967 |
| July 2020 | £153,156 |
| July 2021 | £180,196 |
| July 2022 | £196,300 |
| July 2023 | £198,865 |
| July 2024 | £203,481 |
| July 2025 | £207,963 |
| July 2026 | £221,849 |
Median weekly pay, residents
| 2015 | £518.60 a week |
| 2016 | £523.70 a week |
| 2017 | £532.00 a week |
| 2018 | £533.50 a week |
| 2019 | £578.60 a week |
| 2020 | £564.20 a week |
| 2021 | £569.60 a week |
| 2022 | £627.80 a week |
| 2023 | £689.50 a week |
| 2024 | £713.60 a week |
| 2025 | £728.20 a week |
Average Band D council tax
| 2016-17 | £1,564.95 |
| 2017-18 | £1,635.90 |
| 2018-19 | £1,733.72 |
| 2019-20 | £1,823.23 |
| 2020-21 | £1,895.58 |
| 2021-22 | £1,991.24 |
| 2022-23 | £2,052.58 |
| 2023-24 | £2,158.06 |
| 2024-25 | £2,263.44 |
| 2025-26 | £2,381.66 |
| 2026-27 | £2,500.59 |
Recorded crimes per 1,000 residents
| 2015/16 | 62.3 per 1,000 |
| 2016/17 | 61.2 per 1,000 |
| 2017/18 | 72.2 per 1,000 |
| 2018/19 | 79.8 per 1,000 |
| 2019/20 | 77.9 per 1,000 |
| 2020/21 | 70.9 per 1,000 |
| 2021/22 | 92.5 per 1,000 |
| 2022/23 | 95.6 per 1,000 |
| 2023/24 | 75.1 per 1,000 |
| 2024/25 | 68.3 per 1,000 |
| 2025/26 | 70.9 per 1,000 |
Employment rate
| 2015/16 | 69.7% |
| 2016/17 | 70.7% |
| 2017/18 | 73.7% |
| 2018/19 | 76.2% |
| 2019/20 | 75.5% |
| 2020/21 | 70.1% |
| 2021/22 | 71.9% |
| 2022/23 | 75.4% |
| 2023/24 | 73.7% |
| 2024/25 | 72.4% |
| 2025/26 | 73.9% |
Life expectancy, women
| 2012 to 2014 | 82.1 years |
| 2013 to 2015 | 81.9 years |
| 2014 to 2016 | 81.6 years |
| 2015 to 2017 | 81.7 years |
| 2016 to 2018 | 82.0 years |
| 2017 to 2019 | 82.2 years |
| 2018 to 2020 | 81.5 years |
| 2019 to 2021 | 81.5 years |
| 2020 to 2022 | 81.5 years |
| 2021 to 2023 | 81.9 years |
| 2022 to 2024 | 82.0 years |
Registered businesses
| 2016 | 10,260 |
| 2017 | 10,520 |
| 2018 | 10,350 |
| 2019 | 10,445 |
| 2020 | 10,505 |
| 2021 | 11,200 |
| 2022 | 10,595 |
| 2023 | 10,490 |
| 2024 | 10,305 |
| 2025 | 10,230 |
| 2026 | 10,525 |
Questions about Wirral
What is the population of Wirral?
329,896 in mid-2025, the latest ONS mid-year estimate.
What is the average house price in Wirral?
HM Land Registry's figure for July 2026 is £221,849.
What is the crime rate in Wirral?
Home Office figures show 23,378 offences in the year to March 2026, or 70.9 per 1,000 people, not counting fraud.
What is the average salary in Wirral?
Median pay for full-time employees living in Wirral was £728.20 a week in April 2025 (£38,010 a year), from the ONS Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings.
How many people claim unemployment-related benefits in Wirral?
The ONS claimant count was 6,930 in August 2026, 3.5% of 16 to 64-year-olds. It counts benefit claims, not unemployment.
What is life expectancy in Wirral?
For 2022 to 2024 the ONS gives 78.2 years for men and 82.0 for women.
How much is Band D council tax in Wirral?
The Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government gives an average Band D bill of £2,500.59 for 2026-27.
Who has power over Wirral
Every body that makes decisions for Wirral, 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
- Wirral council spending, reserves, debt and council tax
- Wirral 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
- Birkenhead: Alison McGovern (Labour) MP
- Ellesmere Port and Bromborough: Justin Madders (Labour) MP
- Wallasey: Dame Angela Eagle (Labour) MP
- Wirral West: Matthew Patrick (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 North West
- UK figures: UK population · UK average house price · Crime Survey for England and Wales: headline crime
- Other council areas in the North West: Bolton · Cheshire West and Chester · Salford · Sefton · Stockport · Wigan
Related questions
- What is the population of my area?
- 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?
- How do I check my council tax band?
Figures checked 14 October 2026. Link moved or figure out of date? Tell us.