Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
5,435 people call this neighbourhood in Cork home.
Ballinlough’s strongest is jobs & income — the unemployment rate is 5%, with 74% of 15 to 64s in work. Buying in is costly (D): half the homes sold for more than €455,000, a price of 6.3 times what the median household earns. Safety is weaker too: 8.4 violent crimes and 5.6 burglaries and acts of criminal damage recorded per 1,000 residents a year. The overall grade lands at B+, #23 of 54 in Co. Cork. It comes out better than 71% of Irish towns.
Figures: work, CSO Census 2022 · prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO · crime, CSO recorded crime, 2023 to 2025.
This town's Hazard risk Grade uses radon and landslides only: open LiDAR heights don't cover enough of its homes to measure flooding, so flood isn't counted for or against it.
The 3 things Ballinlough does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Ballinlough with Irish towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far it is from the middle. Towns in other countries are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades Irish towns →
3 archaeological sites are on the record here too.
8% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3% in the median of Irish towns.
Castles, abbeys, gardens, museums and days out in and near Ballinlough. Best known first.
CathedralSt. Fin Barre's Cathedral1.3 km outside town, to the west
CathedralCathedral of St. Mary & St. Anne1.6 km outside town, to the northwest
CastleMTU Blackrock Castle Observatory2.3 km outside town, to the northeast
Abbey or prioryRed Abbey700 m outside town, to the west
MuseumCork Butter Museum1.5 km outside town, to the northwest
Art galleryCrawford Art Gallery1.1 km outside town, to the northwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Ballinlough.
Household income came to €71,790 a year before tax, above Co. Cork’s towns (€51,591) and Irish towns (€57,760) alike. The average trip to work takes 22.1 min. 16% of workers worked mainly from home at the census.
| Census 2022 | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 4.8% | 8% | 9.2% |
| Median household income | €71,790 | €51,591 | €57,760 |
| Average trip | 22.1 min | 24.8 min | 27.6 min |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 74% | 69% | 68% |
CSO, Census 2022 travel to work, work and education · CSO Geographical Profiles of Income 2022 · Live Register · Census day was 3 April 2022, with working from home still common; shares are of those who travelled.
Ages taken into account, Ballinlough counts 89 people with a disability for every 100 predicted. Among the 40 Irish towns closest to its size, Ballinlough ranks 1st on the Health Grade. Self-reported good health: 91% of the town’s residents. 1.4% of residents described their health as bad or very bad, lower than both Co. Cork’s towns (2%) and Irish towns (2%).
| Census 2022 | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unpaid carers | 7.3% | 5.9% | 5.4% |
| Good or very good health | 91% | 88% | 88% |
| Bad or very bad health | 1.4% | 2% | 2% |
| With a disability | 22% | 24% | 22% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
13% of households are private tenants. Social housing holds 3% of households, lower than both Co. Cork’s towns (14%) and Irish towns (13%).
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €455,000 | 59 |
| Housing | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households owning their home | 82% | 59% | 61% |
| Households in social housing | 3% | 14% | 13% |
| Median sale price | €455K | €340K | €350K |
| Households renting privately | 13% | 21% | 22% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
For secondary school, the closest is Regina Mundi College, 0.6 km from the town. 50% of the secondaries are single-sex, above Co. Cork’s towns (44%) and Irish towns (39%) alike. Within 3 km of Ballinlough there are 79 schools (47 primary schools, 22 secondary schools and 10 special schools).
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoil Nioclais Special classesLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 714 | Catholic |
| Christian Brothers College BoysLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 919 | Catholic |
| Gaelcholáiste Mhuire GaelcholáisteTeaches through IrishPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 690 | Catholic |
| Coláiste Éamann Rís DEISIn the DEIS schemePost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 811 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the DEIS scheme | 47% | 35% | 35% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 50% | 44% | 39% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +2% | +1% | +4% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · You won’t find letters or results below: Ireland publishes none for single schools.
Theft, shown but not graded, ran at 29.5 per 1,000 a year, above both Co. Cork’s towns (10.2) and Irish towns (15.3). More of the graded crimes in Ballinlough were assaults and harassment than anything else (2023–2025). Among the 201 Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people, Ballinlough has more crime per resident than 61% of them.
Not in the gradeTheft, public order and offences found by Garda checks (drugs, road traffic, dangerous acts) are shown but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence, burglary and damage.
| Per 1,000 a year | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Theft | 29.5 | 10.2 | 15.3 |
| All recorded crime | 80 | 43.4 | 54.3 |
| Violent crime | 8.4 | 5.5 | 5.7 |
| Burglary & damage | 5.6 | 4.8 | 6.4 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
A January night in Ballinlough drops to 3.5°C on average, close to Co. Cork’s towns (3.5°C) and above Irish towns (2.9°C). Averaged across the seasons, Ballinlough sits at 11.0°C. Also worth knowing: a year brings 1,102 mm of rain to Ballinlough.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average temperature over the year | 11.0°C | 10.8°C | 10.3°C |
| July high | 20.3°C | 20.0°C | 19.9°C |
| January low | 3.5°C | 3.5°C | 2.9°C |
| Rain a year | 1,102 mm | 1,114 mm | 937 mm |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
100% of homes are within 400 m of green space, above Co. Cork’s towns (88%) and Irish towns (92%) alike. Protected nature near Ballinlough includes Cork Harbour SPA. 6 parks and 34 ha of green space in all: that is the town’s share.
| Outdoors | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paths per km² of town | 4.9 km per km² | 1.7 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Near a park | 100% | 88% | 92% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 3.8% | 1.4% | 1.8% |
| Woodland within 1 km | 3.2% | 4.2% | 2.7% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
The forecast for Ballinlough beside its normal weather: a typical November day reaches 12°C and drops to 5°C at night. A passing shower is possible tomorrow, but barely measurable; the breeze reaches 21 km/h, and the low is 7°C. Of the days after that, Monday brings the most rain: about 4 mm.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 10°C | 4°C | 329 mm |
| Spring | 14°C | 6°C | 231 mm |
| Summer | 20°C | 12°C | 229 mm |
| Autumn | 15°C | 8°C | 314 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
Children under 15 make up 17%, lower than both Co. Cork’s towns (19%) and Irish towns (20%). Aged 15 to 24: just over one in ten residents. Among adults, 53% have a degree.
51.7% of Ballinlough’s residents are women
2,812 women and 2,623 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 19% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 11% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 24% | 29% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 27% | 25% | 24% |
| 65+ | 22% | 14% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 3.6% | 8.3% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 10% | 14% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 28% | 34% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 5.6% | 6% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 53% | 38% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Cork and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Ballinlough answers to one council, Cork City Council; Ireland has no town tier. The general election drew a turnout of 60%. There is no majority on Cork City Council; Fianna Fáil have the most seats, 9 of 31, short of 16.
| Turnout | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| General election, November 2024 | 60% | 58% | 59% |
| Local elections, June 2024 | 46% | 45% | 46% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
3 archaeological sites are on the record, below both Co. Cork’s towns (12) and Irish towns (11). Homes from before 1919 make up 7.7% of the total. 45 of Ballinlough’s buildings made the national inventory of architectural heritage, all at regional importance.
| Heritage | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 83 | 106 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 3 | 12 | 11 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 7.7% | 7.7% | 3.4% |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
9.6% of its homes sit in high-radon areas, above both Co. Cork’s towns (0%) and Irish towns (0%). The ground under Ballinlough carries no high landslide susceptibility. Its homes mostly stand clear of low ground by water.
| Share of homes | Ballinlough | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 9.6% | 0% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0.4% | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
45 of Ballinlough’s buildings made the national inventory of architectural heritage, all at regional importance. The national record lists 3 archaeological sites in and around the town.
4 notable people were born in Ballinlough.
The nearest places of 1,000 or more. Boundaries: Tailte Éireann, CSO Urban Areas 2022 and Electoral Divisions.
| Town | People | km | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballinlough | 5,435 | — | B+ | D | C | A+ |
| Knockrea | 5,228 | 0.9 | B− | C− | D− | B+ |
| Tramore | 4,803 | 0.9 | B− | C− | C | B− |
| South Gate | 7,185 | 1.9 | D | C− | D− | D |
| Turner's Cross | 7,208 | 2 | C | C+ | D | C− |
| St Luke's | 4,278 | 2 | C+ | B− | D | B− |
| Montenotte | 4,113 | 2.2 | C | D | C | B− |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Ballinlough had 5,435 people at the 2022 census, up from 5,061 in 2016: 7.4% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Ballinlough is 44.1, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
Neighbourhood in Cork
5,435 people live in Ballinlough, in the area of Cork City Council. TownRatings splits Cork into neighbourhoods made from the CSO’s Electoral Divisions, named from Tailte Éireann’s gazetteer, so each has figures of its own.
Built from Tailte Éireann’s boundaries and the CSO’s Census 2022 (CC BY 4.0)
Sources: CSO, Census 2022 Small Area Population Statistics (CC BY 4.0) · Tailte Éireann, Urban Areas and Electoral Divisions 2022 (CC BY 4.0) · TownRatings grades, run #544 (Irish towns only). Under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).