Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
With 1,192 residents, it is a town in Co. Donegal.
Newtowncunningham is a safe place by the numbers (A): per 1,000 residents a year, gardaí record 3.1 violent crimes and 2.4 burglaries and acts of criminal damage. Walkability is its weak spot — 8% of commuters walk, cycle or take the bus or train, against 23% in the typical Irish town. Jobs & income is weaker too (D): the unemployment rate is 15%, with 60% of 15 to 64s in work. Home prices sit at a median €160,000, which is 3.6 years of the town’s median household income.
Figures: crime, CSO recorded crime, 2023 to 2025 · commuting and work, CSO Census 2022 · prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO. Newtowncunningham is graded subject by subject, but Irish towns need 2,500 residents for an overall grade.
Rents for this town aren't published on their own, so its Cost Grade uses the county's average rent. Health less sure: few enough residents report bad health that the town's figure could be well above or below its true level.
The 3 things Newtowncunningham does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Newtowncunningham 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% of its homes were built before 1919, against 3% in the median of Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Newtowncunningham.
The graded crime recorded most in Newtowncunningham was assaults and harassment (2023–2025). Every kind together came to 75.1 per 1,000 residents a year, above Co. Donegal’s towns (49.1) and Irish towns (54.3) alike. Also worth knowing: among the 156 Irish towns of 1,000 to 2,500 people, Newtowncunningham has less crime per resident than nearly four fifths 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 | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burglary & damage | 2.4 | 5.4 | 6.4 |
| Violent crime | 3.1 | 8.2 | 5.7 |
| All recorded crime | 75.1 | 49.1 | 54.3 |
| Theft | 2.3 | 4.9 | 15.3 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
The average trip to work took 23.3 min, above Co. Donegal’s towns (20.9 min) but below Irish towns (27.6 min). At the census, 79% of commuters went by car. The jobless rate is 15%.
| Census 2022 | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 15% | 13% | 9.2% |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 60% | 63% | 68% |
| Trips under 15 minutes | 31% | 56% | 31% |
| Average trip | 23.3 min | 20.9 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.
Disability touches 27% of Newtowncunningham’s population. Just over a third of people in the HSE West and North West health region hold a medical card. Unpaid carers make up 6.3% of residents, above Co. Donegal’s towns (5.8%) and Irish towns (5.4%) alike.
| Census 2022 | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| With a disability | 27% | 25% | 22% |
| Unpaid carers | 6.3% | 5.8% | 5.4% |
| Bad or very bad health | 1.9% | 2.4% | 2% |
| Good or very good health | 86% | 86% | 88% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
For a swim, the nearest bathing water is Rathmullan, 11 km from Newtowncunningham, rated good in 2025. Landslides: none of Newtowncunningham lies in a high-susceptibility zone. Radon is rarely a worry in the town: under 1% of homes are estimated above the reference level.
| Share of homes | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Low-lying near the coast | 2.2% | 0% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0.5% | 0% |
| Low-lying near a river | 0% | 4.2% | 0.5% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
14% rent privately, below Co. Donegal’s towns (24%) and Irish towns (22%) alike. Home ownership stands at 56% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €160,000 | 30 |
| Housing | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households in social housing | 29% | 15% | 13% |
| Median sale price | €160K | €181K | €350K |
| Households renting privately | 14% | 24% | 22% |
| Households owning their home | 56% | 55% | 61% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Day and night, summer and winter, Newtowncunningham averages 9.8°C. 1,120 mm of rain falls in a year, below Co. Donegal’s towns (1,316 mm) but above Irish towns (937 mm). In January, overnight lows in Newtowncunningham settle at 2.3°C.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 18.9°C | 18.6°C | 19.9°C |
| Rain a year | 1,120 mm | 1,316 mm | 937 mm |
| January low | 2.3°C | 2.5°C | 2.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 9.8°C | 9.7°C | 10.3°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
The sea makes up 16% of the area within 5 km, higher than both Co. Donegal’s towns (8.7%) and Irish towns (0%). Among the protected sites near Newtowncunningham is Lough Swilly SPA. Walkers have 4 waymarked trails and greenways starting within 5 km.
| Outdoors | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 100% | 54% | 92% |
| Sea within 5 km | 16% | 8.7% | 0% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 7% | 4.7% | 1.8% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.0 km per km² | 0.4 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Today stays dry, with only a light wind of up to 13 km/h and a low of 3°C. Thursday should be the warmest of the days ahead, at 10°C, and the coolest reaches only 6°C. What counts as normal for Newtowncunningham in November: highs come to 10°C and lows to 4°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 8°C | 2°C | 339 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 222 mm |
| Summer | 18°C | 11°C | 256 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 7°C | 304 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
The 15-to-24 age group makes up 13% of residents. People 65 and over make up 12% of the town, below both Co. Donegal’s towns (16%) and Irish towns (14%). One measure of its mix: just over a quarter of residents were born abroad.
50.3% of Newtowncunningham’s residents are women
600 women and 592 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 25% | 21% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 28% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 24% | 23% | 24% |
| 65+ | 12% | 16% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 22% | 14% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 19% | 16% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 30% | 34% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 5.4% | 6.2% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 24% | 29% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Donegal and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Turnout at the last local elections was 52%, near Co. Donegal’s towns (53%) and higher than Irish towns (46%). Donegal County Council is the council for Newtowncunningham, and the only one: Ireland has a single tier of local government. With 10 of 37 seats, Fianna Fáil are the largest group on Donegal County Council, short of the 19 a majority needs.
| Turnout | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 52% | 53% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 59% | 59% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
Homes from before 1919 make up 3.1% of the total, below both Co. Donegal’s towns (4.7%) and Irish towns (3.4%). Newtowncunningham’s built heritage counts 8 inventory entries, each of regional standing.
| Heritage | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 67 | 105 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 0 | 18 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
50% of the schools are in the DEIS scheme, above Co. Donegal’s towns (38%) and Irish towns (35%) alike. 2 schools lie within 3 km of Newtowncunningham: 2 primary schools.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scoil Cholmcille DEISLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 199 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Newtowncunningham | Co. Donegal | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils since 2019/20 | −11% | +7% | +4% |
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 7% | 8% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 50% | 38% | 35% |
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.
One place to visit is mapped within 5 km of Newtowncunningham; with it, the best known within 40 km.
CastleBurt Castle2.1 km outside town, to the north
National parkGlenveagh National Park35 km west
Castle · Office of Public WorksDoe Castle28 km northwest
MuseumFort Dunree Military Museum23 km north
MuseumDonegal County Museum15 km west
CastleGlenveagh Castle30 km westPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Newtowncunningham’s built heritage counts 8 inventory entries, each of regional standing.
No notable person born in Newtowncunningham is on our list; these were born in the towns around it.
Philip Deignan: Balloholic, Public domain
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Newtowncunningham | 1,192 | — | — | A− | A | C− |
| Ramelton | 1,288 | 10 | — | B− | A− | B |
| Letterkenny | 22,549 | 15 | D | B | C− | C− |
| Raphoe | 1,161 | 15 | — | A | A− | D− |
| Milford | 1,076 | 16 | — | A | C | B− |
| Buncrana | 6,971 | 16 | C+ | A | C− | B− |
| Muff | 1,418 | 17 | — | B+ | A | A− |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
12% mostly work from home, and 31% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
Newtowncunningham had 1,192 people at the 2022 census, up from 1,184 in 2016: 0.7% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Newtowncunningham is 36.1, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
Urban area in Co. Donegal
Newtowncunningham has 1,192 people, in the area of Donegal County Council. TownRatings uses the CSO’s 2022 Urban Areas as Ireland’s towns: the physical town, as people mean the word, rather than a county or a council area, so its figures cover the town itself.
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).