Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Few residents are of retirement age: 6% are 65 or over. It is a neighbourhood of 22,796 residents in Dublin.
A well-rated place to live, with prices to match. Health outcomes beat most towns: bad health runs at 72 and disability at 94 per 100 expected for its ages. Stepaside grades A overall and ranks #11 of 116 in Co. Dublin. Set against the rest, it does better than 88% of Irish towns. Hazard risk is higher than most (D): an estimated 5% of homes are above the radon reference level. It lags on cost of living as well: the median home here went for €401,000, 3.9 times the median household income.
Figures: health, CSO Census 2022 · radon, EPA · prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO.
The 3 things Stepaside does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Stepaside 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 →
47 archaeological sites are on the record here too.
2% 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 Stepaside. Best known first.
CastleManderley Castle4.1 km outside town, to the east
CastlePuck's Castle1.5 km outside town, to the southeast
Museum · Office of Public WorksPearse Museum - St. Enda's Park2.5 km outside town, to the northwest
MuseumNational Maritime Museum of Ireland4.4 km outside town, to the northeast
Castle · Office of Public WorksMonkstown Castle3.2 km outside town, to the northeastCastleCastle · Office of Public WorksRathfarnham Castle3.9 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 Stepaside.
For secondary school, the closest is Stepaside Educate Together Secondary School, 0.9 km from the town. 73 schools lie within 3 km of the town: 50 primary schools, 18 secondary schools and 5 special schools. Also worth knowing: since 2019/20, pupils changed +8%, above Co. Dublin’s towns (+4%) and Irish towns (+4%) alike.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| ST Olaf's National SchoolLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 591 | Catholic |
| St Benildus College BoysLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 949 | Catholic |
| Gaelscoil na Fuinseoige GaelscoilTeaches through IrishPrimary | Primary | 441 | Multi-denominational |
| Cabinteely Community School DEISIn the DEIS schemePost-primary · Community school | Post-primary · Community school | 512 | Inter-denominational |
| Schools within 3 km | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the DEIS scheme | 14% | 40% | 35% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +8% | +4% | +4% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 44% | 40% | 39% |
| Teach through Irish | 7% | 7% | 8% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Ireland doesn’t publish results for individual schools, so none of these carries a letter.
On high landslide susceptibility: 1.9% of homes, above Co. Dublin’s towns (0%) and Irish towns (0%) alike. Few of its homes stand low beside water.
| Share of homes | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| On high landslide susceptibility | 1.9% | 0% | 0% |
| Low-lying near a river | 0% | 0% | 0.5% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
At the census, 1% of people here described their health as bad or very bad. 17% of residents have a disability, below Co. Dublin’s towns (22%) and Irish towns (22%) alike. Unpaid caring falls to 4.6% of Stepaside’s residents.
| Census 2022 | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Good or very good health | 94% | 89% | 88% |
| With a disability | 17% | 22% | 22% |
| Bad or very bad health | 1% | 1.9% | 2% |
| Unpaid carers | 4.6% | 5.3% | 5.4% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
In work: 73% of residents aged 15 to 64, above Co. Dublin’s towns (71%) and Irish towns (68%) alike. The census counted a fifth of workers working mainly from home. Getting to work takes 32.4 min on average.
| Census 2022 | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median household income | €102,170 | €72,400 | €57,760 |
| Unemployment rate | 6% | 7.4% | 9.2% |
| Average trip | 32.4 min | 31.1 min | 27.6 min |
| Trips under 15 minutes | 20% | 23% | 31% |
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.
Renting cost €2,006 a month on average, close to Co. Dublin’s towns (€2,066) and above Irish towns (€1,606). Prices in Stepaside have trailed Irish towns since 2010: the typical sale is up 58%, to €405K in 2025, against 77%. Private tenants account for 24% of households.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €398,000 | 315 |
| The last 12 months | €403,800 | 120 |
| Housing | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | €401K | €454K | €350K |
| Rent on a new tenancy, a month | €2,006 | €2,066 | €1,606 |
| Households renting privately | 24% | 19% | 22% |
| Households owning their home | 65% | 66% | 61% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Town centres with shops, stations and nightlife record more incidents per resident: they are counted where they happen, not where victims live.
The violent crime rate is 3.7 per 1,000 residents a year. Burglary and damage came to 4.6 per 1,000 residents a year, lower than both Co. Dublin’s towns (7.5) and Irish towns (6.4), and recorded crime of every kind runs at 33.6 per 1,000 residents a year. For its size, Stepaside records less crime per resident than 79% of the 118 Irish towns of 10,000 to 50,000 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 | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Burglary & damage | 4.6 | 7.5 | 6.4 |
| All recorded crime | 33.6 | 59.2 | 54.3 |
| Violent crime | 3.7 | 5.3 | 5.7 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
937 mm of rain falls in a year, above Co. Dublin’s towns (770 mm) and close to Irish towns (937 mm). Averaged across the seasons, Stepaside sits at 10.1°C. November is the wettest month locally, with 113 mm of rain on average.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| July high | 19.5°C | 19.9°C | 19.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.1°C | 10.3°C | 10.3°C |
| Rain a year | 937 mm | 770 mm | 937 mm |
| January low | 2.8°C | 2.9°C | 2.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
The sea makes up 5.9% of the area within 5 km, above both Co. Dublin’s towns (3.7%) and Irish towns (0%). Across its 7 parks, Stepaside has 99 ha of green space. A park or green space is within 400 m for 98% of homes.
| Outdoors | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Woodland within 1 km | 15% | 2.2% | 2.7% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 6.4% | 0.2% | 1.8% |
| Paths per km² of town | 4.3 km per km² | 5.5 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Sea within 5 km | 5.9% | 3.7% | 0% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Usually, November days warm to 11°C and nights cool to 5°C; Stepaside’s forecast is read against that. Around 2 mm of rain is due today, on a breeze of up to 31 km/h, with a low of 10°C. Rain peaks later in the week on Tuesday, at about 6 mm for the day.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 9°C | 3°C | 253 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 199 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 11°C | 204 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 8°C | 280 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
People aged 15 to 24 make up 13% of the town, above both Co. Dublin’s towns (12%) and Irish towns (12%). Those 65 and older account for 5.9% of residents. 29% of residents were born outside the country.
51.4% of Stepaside’s residents are women
11,721 women and 11,075 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 24% | 17% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 12% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 34% | 30% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 23% | 24% | 24% |
| 65+ | 5.9% | 14% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 3.1% | 8.5% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 6.1% | 11% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 23% | 30% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 5.7% | 5.2% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 62% | 44% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Dublin and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Turnout at the last local elections was 45%, above Co. Dublin’s towns (42%) but below Irish towns (46%). With 16 of 40 seats, Fine Gael are the largest group on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council, short of the 21 a majority needs. Local government for Stepaside is Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council alone; Ireland has a single tier.
| Turnout | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| General election, November 2024 | 61% | 57% | 59% |
| Local elections, June 2024 | 45% | 42% | 46% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
The Sites and Monuments Record lists 47 sites here, above Co. Dublin’s towns (6) and Irish towns (11) alike. Homes from before 1919 make up 1.5% of the total. Stepaside’s built heritage counts 49 inventory entries; 1 carry national or international standing.
| Heritage | Stepaside | Co. Dublin | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 21 | 9 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 47 | 6 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
Stepaside’s built heritage counts 49 inventory entries; 1 carry national or international standing. 47 recorded monuments and archaeological sites lie here.
5 notable people were born in Stepaside.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stepaside | 22,796 | — | A | C | B | A |
| Sandyford | 8,844 | 2.1 | A− | D | B | A− |
| Foxrock | 12,163 | 2.7 | A− | D− | B+ | A+ |
| Stillorgan | 18,212 | 3 | A | D− | B+ | A+ |
| Dundrum | 16,570 | 3.6 | A− | D− | B | A |
| Cabinteely | 15,864 | 3.7 | B+ | D− | B+ | A |
| Ballinteer | 16,038 | 3.9 | A− | D− | B+ | A |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Stepaside had 22,796 people at the 2022 census, up from 19,103 in 2016: 19.3% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
The median age in Stepaside is 34.3, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
Neighbourhood in Dublin
Stepaside has 22,796 people, in the area of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council. TownRatings splits Dublin 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).