Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
4,794 people live in this town in Co. Kerry.
Low prices, and some weak spots to weigh against them. Listowel grades C+ overall and ranks #208 of 320 Irish towns. Nationally, it does better than 35% of Irish towns. Work and incomes lag (D): 61% of working-age residents are employed, with an unemployment rate of 14%. Walkability is weaker too — on the way to work, 15% walk, cycle or take the bus or train, where the typical Irish town has 23%. Its best grade is for cost of living — the median sale, €220,000, comes to 5.5 times what the median household here earns.
Figures: prices, Property Price Register, 2023 to 2025 · incomes, CSO · work and commuting, CSO Census 2022.
The 3 things Listowel does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Listowel 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 →
The record adds 15 archaeological sites.
Homes built before 1919: 7%, against 3% across Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Listowel.
Single-sex secondaries: 67%, higher than both Co. Kerry’s towns (53%) and Irish towns (39%). Coláiste na Ríochta is the nearest secondary school, 0.4 km away. 8 schools lie within 3 km of Listowel: 4 primary schools, 3 secondary schools and 1 special school.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| Listowel Presentation Primary DEISLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 186 | Catholic |
| St. Michael's College BoysLargest post-primary schoolPost-primary · Voluntary secondary | Post-primary · Voluntary secondary | 347 | Catholic |
| Gaelscoil Lios Tuathail GaelscoilTeaches through IrishPrimary | Primary | 136 | Catholic |
| Coláiste na Ríochta DEISIn the DEIS schemePost-primary · ETB | Post-primary · ETB | 178 | Multi-denominational |
| Schools within 3 km | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In the DEIS scheme | 50% | 18% | 35% |
| Pupils since 2019/20 | +15% | +8% | +4% |
| Single-sex secondaries | 67% | 53% | 39% |
| Teach through Irish | 13% | 10% | 8% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · Without school-level results from Ireland, the cards show no letters.
Short trips: 54% under 15 minutes, about level with Co. Kerry’s towns (51%) and above Irish towns (31%). Employment among 15- to 64-year-olds stood at 61% at the census. The commute to work averages 22.3 min.
| Census 2022 | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unemployment rate | 14% | 11% | 9.2% |
| In work, 15 to 64 | 61% | 67% | 68% |
| Trips under 15 minutes | 54% | 51% | 31% |
| Median household income | €39,930 | €44,504 | €57,760 |
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.
19% rent privately, lower than both Co. Kerry’s towns (27%) and Irish towns (22%). In 2010 the typical home in Listowel sold for €158K; by 2025 it was €245K, 56% more. Social housing holds 20% of households. This Co. Kerry town is the second cheapest of the 5 towns in Co. Kerry, at €220,000.
| By type | Median | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Second-hand homes | €220,000 | 253 |
| The last 12 months | €264,000 | 76 |
| Housing | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Median sale price | €220K | €269K | €350K |
| Rent on a new tenancy, a month | €1,079 | €1,170 | €1,606 |
| Households in social housing | 20% | 18% | 13% |
| Households renting privately | 19% | 27% | 22% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Nearly one in ten homes stand low near a river, lower than Co. Kerry’s towns (12%) yet higher than Irish towns (0.5%). Radon is rarely a worry in Listowel: under 1% of homes are estimated above the reference level. The ground under Listowel carries no high landslide susceptibility.
| Share of homes | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 0% | 28% | 0% |
| Low-lying near a river | 9.2% | 12% | 0.5% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
In 2023–2025, assaults and harassment led the graded crimes in Listowel. Violence comes to 7.8 per 1,000 residents a year. Burglary and damage came to 5.3 per 1,000 residents a year, higher than Co. Kerry’s towns (3.2) yet lower than Irish towns (6.4).
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 | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Violent crime | 7.8 | 5.9 | 5.7 |
| Burglary & damage | 5.3 | 3.2 | 6.4 |
| Theft | 6.6 | 5.9 | 15.3 |
| All recorded crime | 57 | 44.9 | 54.3 |
CSO recorded crime by Garda station, 2023–2025, shared to towns by where residents live · Census 2022 populations
Over twelve months, Listowel averages 10.8°C. July afternoons reach 19.4°C here, below Co. Kerry’s towns (19.7°C) and Irish towns (19.9°C) alike. Also worth knowing: on a January night, the temperature in Listowel falls to about 3.6°C.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rain a year | 1,203 mm | 1,424 mm | 937 mm |
| July high | 19.4°C | 19.7°C | 19.9°C |
| Average temperature over the year | 10.8°C | 10.9°C | 10.3°C |
| January low | 3.6°C | 3.8°C | 2.9°C |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Woodland covers 2.3% of the land within 1 km, lower than both Co. Kerry’s towns (4.8%) and Irish towns (2.7%). Protected nature near Listowel includes Lower River Shannon SAC. Its one park gives Listowel 20 ha of green space.
| Outdoors | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 55% | 77% | 92% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 4.8% | 17% | 1.8% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.4 km per km² | 0.9 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Woodland within 1 km | 2.3% | 4.8% | 2.7% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
The rain holds off today, but the wind gets up to 22 km/h, and the low is 5°C. Of the days after that, Tuesday brings the most rain: about 6 mm. For Listowel, a normal November afternoon peaks at 12°C, and a normal night bottoms out at 6°C.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 10°C | 4°C | 369 mm |
| Spring | 14°C | 6°C | 226 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 12°C | 257 mm |
| Autumn | 15°C | 8°C | 351 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
Young adults of 15 to 24 account for a tenth of the town. Born abroad: 17% of residents, lower than both Co. Kerry’s towns (28%) and Irish towns (22%). Children under 15 make up 18% of residents.
Women make up 53.3% of Listowel
2,554 women and 2,240 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 18% | 18% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 10% | 11% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 26% | 28% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 25% | 24% |
| 65+ | 21% | 17% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 12% | 11% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 17% | 14% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 37% | 38% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 6.6% | 6.4% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 28% | 32% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Kerry and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Kerry County Council is the one council for Listowel; Ireland has no town or county councils between it and the government. 65% voted at the general election. There is no majority on Kerry County Council; Independent have the most seats, 11 of 33, short of 17.
| Turnout | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 57% | 63% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 65% | 65% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
6.6% of homes date from before 1919. The Sites and Monuments Record lists 15 sites here, lower than Co. Kerry’s towns (39) yet higher than Irish towns (11). 80 of Listowel’s buildings made the national inventory of architectural heritage; 1 rank of national or international importance.
| Heritage | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 167 | 81 | 48 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 6.6% | 4% | 3.4% |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 15 | 39 | 11 |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
Disability touches 27% of Listowel’s population. 6.4% of residents give unpaid care to a relative or friend, above Co. Kerry’s towns (5.4%) and Irish towns (5.4%) alike. Asked at the census, 86% of residents of Listowel said they were in good or very good health.
| Census 2022 | Listowel | Co. Kerry | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| With a disability | 27% | 24% | 22% |
| Unpaid carers | 6.4% | 5.4% | 5.4% |
| Good or very good health | 86% | 87% | 88% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.3% | 2.2% | 2% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
Castles, abbeys, gardens, museums and days out in and near Listowel. Best known first.
Castle · Office of Public WorksListowel Castlein town
MuseumListowel and Ballybunion Railwayin townMuseumMuseumKerry Writers' Museumin townArt galleryArt galleryThe Kilmorna Collectionin townMuseumMuseumThe Lartigue Monorailwayin townGardenGardenGarden of Europein townPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
80 of Listowel’s buildings made the national inventory of architectural heritage; 1 rank of national or international importance. Archaeologists have recorded 15 sites here.
21 notable people were born in Listowel.
John B. Keane: Gotfryd, Bernard, photographer, Public domain · Richard Alphonsus O'Connor: Hopkins, J. Castell (John Castell), 1864-1923 and Cochrane, William, 1831-1898, Public domain · Ned O'Sullivan: Houses of the Oireachtas, CC BY 4.0 · Michael J. Stack: Collection of the U.S. House of Representatives, Public domain · John Connors: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Tadhg Kennelly: Flickerd, CC BY-SA 4.0
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Listowel | 4,794 | — | C+ | B+ | C | B− |
| Abbeyfeale Limerick | 2,206 | 14 | — | A+ | A+ | A− |
| Ballybunion | 1,618 | 15 | — | C+ | B | C− |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Listowel had 4,794 people at the 2022 census, down from 4,800 in 2016: 0.1% fewer, while the median of Irish towns grew 7.6%.
The median age in Listowel is 42.6, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns.
76% of working residents drive to work and 15% walk, cycle or take the bus or train (the median of Irish towns: 23%). 8% mostly work from home, and 54% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
Urban area in Co. Kerry
Listowel has 4,794 people, in the area of Kerry 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).