Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
This neighbourhood in Cork has a population of 5,592. Its heritage includes 18 buildings on the national inventory.
Several subjects drag its grade down. The weak point is health — 263 residents in bad health and 132 with a disability for every 100 its ages predict. Overall, Knocknaheeny earns a D, which places it #50 of 54 in Co. Cork. It comes out better than 9% of Irish towns. Its strongest is walkability (A−): 29% of commuters walk, cycle or take the bus or train, against 23% in the typical Irish town. Set against the median household income, the median home, at €307,900, costs 7 times as much.
Figures: commuting, health and work, CSO Census 2022 · prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO.
This town's house price is the median for its whole Eircode routing key, town and countryside together: fewer than 30 sales in the town itself were recorded on the Property Price Register in 2023 to 2025, so its Cost Grade is less sure. Health less sure: few enough residents report bad health that the town's figure could be well above or below its true level. 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 Knocknaheeny does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Knocknaheeny 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 →
2 archaeological sites are on the record here too.
3% 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 Knocknaheeny. Best known first.
CathedralSt. Fin Barre's Cathedral1.2 km outside town, to the southeast
CastleBlarney Castle and Gardens4.6 km outside town, to the northwest
CathedralCathedral of St. Mary & St. Anne900 m outside town, to the east
MuseumCork Butter Museum900 m outside town, to the east
Abbey or prioryRed Abbey1.6 km outside town, to the southeast
MuseumLewis Glucksman Gallery800 m outside town, to the southeastPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Knocknaheeny.
Among the 40 Irish towns closest to its size, Knocknaheeny ranks 40th on the Health Grade, near the foot. At the census, 4.9% of residents said their health was bad or very bad, above both Co. Cork’s towns (2%) and Irish towns (2%). Self-reported good health: four fifths of the town’s residents.
| Census 2022 | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 80% | 88% | 88% |
| Bad or very bad health | 4.9% | 2% | 2% |
| With a disability | 29% | 24% | 22% |
| Unpaid carers | 5.2% | 5.9% | 5.4% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
Since 2019/20, pupils changed −0%, below both Co. Cork’s towns (+2%) and Irish towns (+4%). The nearest secondary, Terence Mac Swiney Community College, is 0.5 km away. Families in Knocknaheeny have 59 schools within 3 km to choose from: 34 primary schools, 22 secondary schools and 3 special schools.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoil Oilibheir DEISLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 511 | 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 | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the DEIS scheme | 59% | 35% | 35% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | −0% | +2% | +4% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 46% | 44% | 39% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · No letters and no results: Ireland publishes none school by school.
Household income averages €43,950 a year before tax. The average trip to work took 23.8 min, close to Co. Cork’s towns (24.8 min) and below Irish towns (27.6 min). Working from home was the norm for 6.1% of workers at the census.
| Census 2022 | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In work, 15 to 64 | 56% | 69% | 68% |
| Unemployment rate | 16% | 7.9% | 9.2% |
| Median household income | €43,950 | €54,720 | €57,760 |
| Average trip | 23.8 min | 24.8 min | 27.6 min |
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.
More of the graded crimes in Knocknaheeny were damage to property than anything else (2023–2025). Burglary and damage add up to 7.5 per 1,000 residents each year. For its size, Knocknaheeny records more crime per resident than 59% of the 201 Irish towns of 2,500 to 10,000 people.
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 | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burglary & damage | 7.5 | 4.8 | 6.4 |
| Theft | 8.6 | 10.3 | 15.3 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
The EPA’s radon map puts 4% of homes in Knocknaheeny above the reference level. The ground under Knocknaheeny carries no high landslide susceptibility. Its homes mostly stand clear of low ground by water.
| Share of homes | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0.4% | 0% |
| In high-radon areas | 0% | 0% | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
Private renters make up 6% of households, lower than both Co. Cork’s towns (21%) and Irish towns (22%). 59% of households live in social housing.
| Housing | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households in social housing | 59% | 14% | 13% |
| Households owning their home | 35% | 60% | 61% |
| Households renting privately | 6% | 21% | 22% |
| Median sale price | €308K | €360K | €350K |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure · The price is for the postcode area T23, not the town alone: too few sales inside the town carry a full address.
January nights bottom out at 2.9°C in Knocknaheeny, below Co. Cork’s towns (3.5°C) and close to Irish towns (2.9°C). The annual mean here is 10.3°C. This Co. Cork town gets 1,117 mm of rain a year.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 19.6°C | 20.0°C | 19.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.3°C | 10.8°C | 10.3°C |
| Rain a year | 1,117 mm | 1,114 mm | 937 mm |
| January low | 2.9°C | 3.5°C | 2.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Its 4 parks give Knocknaheeny 44 ha of green space between them. For 100% of homes, green space is under 400 m away. Within 1 km, 2.4% of the land is woodland, lower than both Co. Cork’s towns (4.2%) and Irish towns (2.7%).
| Outdoors | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paths per km² of town | 4.7 km per km² | 1.7 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Near a park | 100% | 88% | 92% |
| Woodland within 1 km | 2.4% | 4.2% | 2.7% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 0.2% | 1.6% | 1.8% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Knocknaheeny’s averages for November set the scene: the usual high is 11°C, the usual low 5°C. A dry day with a stiff breeze lies ahead today: wind building to 21 km/h, then a low of 7°C. In December, the normal shifts to highs of 9°C and lows of 3°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 3°C | 331 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 231 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 11°C | 236 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 319 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
People aged 15 to 24 make up 15% of the town, higher than both Co. Cork’s towns (12%) and Irish towns (12%). Foreign-born residents make up 9.5% of the population. The share of residents under 15 is 18%.
50.4% of Knocknaheeny’s residents are women
2,816 women and 2,776 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 19% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 15% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 29% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 25% | 24% |
| 65+ | 16% | 14% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 25% | 7.9% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 26% | 14% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 35% | 34% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 3.3% | 6% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 10% | 38% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Cork and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Cork City Council runs Knocknaheeny: Ireland has one tier of local government, with no town council below it. Local elections drew 42% of voters to the polls last time. Fianna Fáil lead Cork City Council with 9 of 31 seats, but no party has a majority: 16 are needed.
| Turnout | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 42% | 45% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 58% | 58% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
Per 10,000 residents, Knocknaheeny counts 32 inventory buildings. Homes from before 1919 make up 2.5% of the total, below Co. Cork’s towns (7.7%) and Irish towns (3.4%) alike. The archaeological record lists 2 sites here.
| Heritage | Knocknaheeny | Co. Cork | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 32 | 106 | 48 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 2.5% | 7.7% | 3.4% |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 2 | 12 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
18 of Knocknaheeny’s buildings made the national inventory of architectural heritage, all at regional importance. The national record lists 2 archaeological sites in and around the town.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Knocknaheeny | 5,592 | — | D | C+ | C | D− |
| Gurranebraher | 4,502 | 1 | D | C+ | C | D |
| Sunday's Well | 2,807 | 1.1 | C | C | C− | B |
| Shanakiel | 3,804 | 1.1 | C− | C+ | C | C− |
| Hollyhill and Ballincolly | 8,606 | 1.1 | C | C+ | C− | B |
| Fair Hill | 4,910 | 1.2 | D− | C+ | C− | D− |
| Farranree | 3,824 | 1.5 | D | B | D | D− |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Knocknaheeny had 5,592 people at the 2022 census, down from 5,621 in 2016: 0.5% fewer, while the median of Irish towns grew 7.6%.
The median age in Knocknaheeny is 39.3, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
65% of working residents drive to work and 29% walk, cycle or take the bus or train (the median of Irish towns: 23%).
Neighbourhood in Cork
5,592 people live in Knocknaheeny, 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).