Photo: Ian S · CC BY-SA 2.0Jobs, pay and the trip to work in Cobh
Out of work at the 2022 census: 7.7% of the labour force in Cobh (the middle of Irish towns: 9.2%). On jobs and income together, Cobh grades B, #30 of 54 in County Cork. The trip to work, school or college averages 27.8 minutes from Cobh; 6.9% take an hour or more.
Jobs and income in Cobh: what the figures say
Work near the middle
67% of people aged 15 to 64 in Cobh had a job at the 2022 census; the middle of Irish towns is 68%. In work ↓
Unemployment near the middle
7.7% of the labour force was out of work at the 2022 census, against 9.2% in the middle of Irish towns; 2.3% of people aged 15 and over had been out of work for a year or more. Unemployment ↓
Written from the data on this page: CSO Census 2022, CSO household income 2022 and the Live Register.
Jobs and income in Cobh earn B
With four measures combined, it comes out better than 56% of Irish towns, #30 of 54 in County Cork.
Its strongest measure is the unemployment rate; its weakest, trip times.
Graded against Irish towns of 1,000 people or more; a shorter trip and less unemployment count in its favor.
How the grade works
Four measures, weighed equally against every Irish town of 1,000 people or more: median gross household income (CSO, 2022), people at work as a share of residents aged 15 to 64, the unemployment rate and the average trip to work, school or college (all three Census 2022). Each becomes a percentile; their average sets the letter.
The industries Cobh’s residents work in
Commerce and trade is the second-largest at 21%, against 26% across Irish towns; the smallest of the seven is farming, forestry and fishing, at 0.3%.
Census 2022 (CSO SAPS), industry of people at work who live here. Ireland doesn’t publish how many jobs are based in each town, so this shows what residents do, not the jobs here.
The share in work in Cobh: 67% of 15-to-64s
Of the 53 other places of 2,500 people or more in County Cork, 19 have a smaller share of 15-to-64s in work.
2.3% of everyone aged 15 and over had been out of work for a year or more. Put another way, 49% of the unemployed had been out of work for a year or more. Of all residents aged 15 and over, retirees and students among them, 56% were at work.
Census 2022 (CSO SAPS): people at work of any age, over residents aged 15 to 64. The census doesn’t cross work with age, so the few people working past 65 count in the top only.
The middle household in Cobh: €57,991 a year
Before tax, 2022: higher than in 56% of Irish towns.
Cobh’s median is 4% below County Cork’s (€60,671). Of the county’s 53 other towns of 2,500 or more, 22 have a higher median. After tax, the median is €49,449. The State median is €60,123, 4% above Cobh’s.
CSO Geographical Profiles of Income in Ireland 2022: median gross household income, from tax and welfare records linked to Census households.
17% of people travelling to work from Cobh walk, cycle or take the bus or train
Driving to work is about as common as in the middle of County Cork, at 72%. 11% work mainly from home, about the same as in the middle of Irish towns. On foot 7.6%, by bike 0.6%: the middle of Irish towns has 10% and 2.4%. The middle of County Cork has 0.3%; here, 3.5% go by train, DART or Luas.
Census 2022 (CSO SAPS), means of travel to work.
Cobh sits near the middle of Irish towns on the trip to work or school
The trip from the middle of County Cork averages 24.8 minutes. Among County Cork’s 54 towns counted, 49 have shorter trips on average. Short trips are about as common as in the middle of County Cork, at 33%. Most often, a trip takes 15 to 44 minutes: 53%, against 59% in the middle of County Cork.
Census 2022 (CSO SAPS), time taken to travel to work, school or college; the four bands are the shares of trips whose length was stated.
Signing on in County Cork, against the 2019 level
19,928 people were signing on in County Cork in September 2026. Over the year to September 2026, the count rose by 5%. Its lowest month since 2019 was February 2022, at 18,274. Cobh office saw its highest month in May 2020: 551 people signing on, 15% above the 2019 average.
Live Register (CSO LRM07), people signing on at social welfare offices each month. It isn’t an unemployment rate: part-time and seasonal workers sign on too, and offices serve areas that aren’t published.
People signing on each month, as a share of the 2019 average (100).
What adults in Cobh do: 56% are in work
The mix is close to Irish towns’ as a whole.
Census 2022 (CSO SAPS), principal economic status of people aged 15 and over; occupations of those at work, in three broad groups.
Cobh on foot: a C grade
Better than 29% of Irish towns on two measures together, #36 of 54 in County Cork.
Of the everyday places, a pharmacy is the one the fewest residents have within 800 m (28%).
OpenStreetMap (© OpenStreetMap contributors, ODbL), places within 800 m in a straight line of each Census small area; active commuting from Census 2022. OpenStreetMap misses many GP surgeries and bakeries in Ireland, so those two are shown, not graded.
55th of 84: where Cobh ranks among Irish towns of 9,900 to 19,100
| # | Town | People | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Income | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ballsbridge County Dublin | 12,743 | 80% | 5.2% | €99K | A+ |
| 2 | Rathmines East County Dublin | 16,923 | 77% | 5.4% | €94K | A+ |
| 3 | Terenure County Dublin | 10,391 | 78% | 4.7% | €87K | A+ |
| … | ||||||
| 11 | Carrigaline County Cork | 18,239 | 70% | 5.5% | €78K | A |
| … | ||||||
| 23 | Midleton County Cork | 13,906 | 70% | 6.9% | €63K | A− |
| … | ||||||
| 40 | Mahon County Cork | 13,892 | 67% | 8.5% | €62K | B+ |
| … | ||||||
| 53 | Rush County Dublin | 10,875 | 69% | 7.2% | €74K | B |
| 54 | Kilmainham County Dublin | 10,240 | 74% | 9% | €60K | B |
| 55 | Cobh County Cork | 14,148 | 67% | 7.7% | €58K | B |
| 56 | Ongar County Dublin | 13,390 | 69% | 8.5% | €79K | B |
| 57 | Castlebar County Mayo | 13,054 | 67% | 11% | €50K | B− |
| … | ||||||
| 84 | Summerhill County Dublin | 11,911 | 60% | 15% | €45K | D− |
Ordered by Jobs & income Grade: the top three, the towns either side of Cobh, and others in County Cork.
Jobs near Cobh: the places around it
| Town | In work, 15–64 | Unemployment | Income | Average trip | Jobs | Walk |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cobh | 67% | 7.7% | €58K | 27.8 min | B | C |
| Passage West-Monkstown 2.9 km | 69% | 7.8% | €64K | 27.1 min | B+ | D |
| Crosshaven 5.9 km | 72% | 4.9% | €70K | 29.7 min | A | D |
| Whitegate 6.1 km | 69% | 5.3% | €71K | 31.6 min | B+ | D− |
| Aghada-Rostellan 6.6 km | 68% | 6.4% | €72K | 29 min | B+ | D− |
| Glounthaune 7.1 km | 73% | 4.3% | €76K | 24.6 min | A+ | D |
| Carrigtwohill 7.3 km | 73% | 5.5% | €71K | 22.3 min | A+ | C |
The people of each place: the share in work, unemployment, household income and trip times, with both grades.
What this data can and can’t tell you
What each figure measures for Cobh, where it comes from, and what Ireland doesn’t publish.
- In work. People at work over residents aged 15 to 64 (Census 2022). Graded in place of the share of everyone 15 and over, so a town of retirees isn’t marked down for them.
- Unemployment. Unemployed people (first-job seekers included) over the labour force, from Census 2022.
- Household income. CSO’s median gross household income for 2022. Where CSO publishes no figure for the town, ours is the household-weighted mean of its electoral divisions’ medians, and the page says so.
- Trip times. Census 2022 groups trips to work, school and college by length; the average uses each group’s middle (7.5 to 105 minutes).
- Signing on. The Live Register counts people signing on at a social welfare office, by office and county. It includes part-time and seasonal workers, so it follows a trend; it isn’t an unemployment rate.
- Walkability. Four everyday places within 800 m (pharmacy, food shop, school, post office) and the share who walk, cycle or take the bus or train to work. GP surgeries and bakeries are shown, not graded: OpenStreetMap misses many.
- Which towns we compare. Places of 2,500 people or more that aren’t a whole city: towns and city neighbourhoods. Grades start at 1,000 people; ranks at 2,500.
- What isn’t here. Ireland publishes no count of the jobs based in each town and no open table of where commuters go (CSO releases its place-of-work file, POWSCAR, on application only), so this page has no daily tide, commute map or jobs-based-here block. Claimant rates aren’t published for towns either: the Live Register is by office and county.
Questions about work in Cobh
What is the unemployment rate in Cobh?
7.7% of the labour force was out of work at the 2022 census, against 9.2% in the middle of Irish towns. 2.3% of people aged 15 and over had been out of work for a year or more.
Is Cobh a good place to find work?
Cobh earns a B for jobs and income, better than 56% of Irish towns on household income, the share of 15-to-64s in work, unemployment and trip times together, #30 of 54 in County Cork.
How do people in Cobh get to work?
72% of commuters go by car or van, 7.6% walk, 0.6% cycle and 8.5% take the bus or train. On census day 2022, 11% worked mainly from home.
How long is the commute from Cobh?
Trips to work, school or college take 27.8 minutes on average; 6.9% take an hour or more and 33% under a quarter of an hour.
How many jobs are there in Cobh?
Ireland doesn’t publish a count of the jobs based in each town. What the census does say is what Cobh’s residents work at, wherever their job is: see What residents work in.
Where do people in Cobh work?
Ireland has no open table of where commuters go: CSO releases its place-of-work file (POWSCAR) on application only. The census does give how people from Cobh travel and how long their trips take.
Sources: CSO Census 2022 SAPS · CSO Geographical Profiles of Income 2022 · CSO Live Register (LRM07) · OpenStreetMap (ODbL) · grades: TownRatings. 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).