Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Home to 629 people, this town lies in Co. Laois.
A typical home sold for €240,000, or 5 years of the town’s median household income. Walking, cycling and public transport carry 6% of commuters. Just over a fifth of adults have a degree. Between 2016 and 2022, its population grew by 22%.
Irish towns are graded from 1,000 residents, which leaves Borris-In-Ossory out for now.
The 3 things Borris-In-Ossory does most differently from other towns.
The record adds 1 archaeological site.
Homes built before 1919: 7%, against 3% across Irish towns.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Borris-In-Ossory.
The EPA’s radon map puts 2.8% of homes in Borris-In-Ossory above the reference level. No part of Borris-In-Ossory is mapped as high landslide susceptibility. Very few of its homes sit on low ground by water.
| Share of homes | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In high-radon areas | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| On high landslide susceptibility | 0% | 0% | 0% |
EPA radon map, GSI landslide susceptibility and our low-lying homes estimate from OPW LiDAR.
The year’s mean temperature is 9.7°C, below Co. Laois’ towns (9.9°C) and Irish towns (10.3°C) alike. The warmest afternoons come in July, at around 19.8°C in Borris-In-Ossory. The nearest weather station is Gurteen, 28 km away.
| Climate, 1991–2020 | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Average temperature over the year | 9.7°C | 9.9°C | 10.3°C |
| January low | 1.9°C | 2.0°C | 2.9°C |
| July high | 19.8°C | 20.1°C | 19.9°C |
| Rain a year | 989 mm | 938 mm | 937 mm |
Met Éireann, 1991–2020 averages.
Ages taken into account, Borris-In-Ossory counts 126 people with a disability for every 100 predicted. 7.2% of residents give unpaid care to a relative or friend, higher than both Co. Laois’ towns (5.2%) and Irish towns (5.4%). Asked at the census, 86% of residents of Borris-In-Ossory said they were in good or very good health.
| Census 2022 | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Unpaid carers | 7.2% | 5.2% | 5.4% |
| With a disability | 25% | 25% | 22% |
| Good or very good health | 86% | 87% | 88% |
| Bad or very bad health | 2.3% | 2.4% | 2% |
CSO, Census 2022 general health, disability and carers · CSO life expectancy by region, 2016 · HSE medical cards, 2024 · TownRatings age-standardised ratios
Households that own their home make up 52%. 18% of households rent privately.
| Housing | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Households in social housing | 28% | 16% | 13% |
| Households owning their home | 52% | 63% | 61% |
| Median sale price | €240K | €251K | €350K |
| Households renting privately | 18% | 19% | 22% |
Property Price Register · CSO residential prices by Eircode area · RTB rents · CSO, Census 2022 tenure
Among the protected sites near Borris-In-Ossory is River Nore SPA. Woodland covers 0.9% of the land within 1 km, below both Co. Laois’ towns (2.5%) and Irish towns (2.7%). A park or green space is within 400 m for 63% of homes.
| Outdoors | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Near a park | 63% | 71% | 92% |
| Protected nature within 5 km | 5% | 1.6% | 1.8% |
| Paths per km² of town | 0.0 km per km² | 0.6 km per km² | 2.1 km per km² |
| Woodland within 1 km | 0.9% | 2.5% | 2.7% |
OpenStreetMap parks and paths, NPWS protected sites and the National Trails Register.
Judged by the averages, Borris-In-Ossory sees November days reach 10°C and nights fall to 4°C. Expect no rain today, only a light breath of wind up to 8 km/h, and a low of 3°C. Over the coming week, Tuesday looks wettest, with about 5 mm of rain.
| Season | High | Low | Rain |
|---|---|---|---|
| Winter | 8°C | 2°C | 276 mm |
| Spring | 13°C | 5°C | 205 mm |
| Summer | 19°C | 10°C | 227 mm |
| Autumn | 14°C | 6°C | 281 mm |
Forecast: MET Norway (CC BY 4.0) · normals: Met Éireann, 1991–2020
A household here earns €48,390 a year before tax, on average. 5.2% of workers worked mainly from home, below Co. Laois’ towns (7.3%) and Irish towns (11%) alike. The census found 61% of 15- to 64-year-olds in work.
| Census 2022 | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| In work, 15 to 64 | 61% | 63% | 68% |
| Average trip | 32.5 min | 30.4 min | 27.6 min |
| Median household income | €48,390 | €52,817 | €57,760 |
| Unemployment rate | 12% | 12% | 9.2% |
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.
People 65 and over make up 13% of the town, higher than Co. Laois’ towns (10%) and near Irish towns (14%). Among adults, 21% have a degree. Those aged 15 to 24 account for 13% of residents.
Women make up 53.3% of Borris-In-Ossory
335 women and 294 men live here; across Ireland, women are 50.6%.
| Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 25% | 23% | 20% |
| 15–24 | 13% | 13% | 12% |
| 25–44 | 28% | 29% | 29% |
| 45–64 | 21% | 24% | 24% |
| 65+ | 13% | 10% | 14% |
| Primary or none | 14% | 11% | 9.7% |
| Lower secondary | 20% | 17% | 14% |
| Leaving Cert | 40% | 41% | 35% |
| Diploma or cert | 5% | 6.3% | 5.8% |
| Degree or higher | 21% | 23% | 36% |
CSO, Census 2022 · Co. Laois and Ireland: the median of their towns of 2,500+
Fianna Fáil lead Laois County Council with 6 of 19 seats, but no party has a majority: 10 are needed. Local government for Borris-In-Ossory is Laois County Council alone; Ireland has a single tier. In the Dáil, Borris-In-Ossory is part of Laois, which elects 3 TDs.
| Turnout | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Local elections, June 2024 | 56% | 51% | 46% |
| General election, November 2024 | 58% | 58% | 59% |
Department of Housing count sheets, 2024
The Sites and Monuments Record lists 1 sites here, below Co. Laois’ towns (14) and Irish towns (11) alike. Per 10,000 residents, Borris-In-Ossory counts 79 inventory buildings. Before 1919: that is when 7% of homes were built.
| Heritage | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Inventory buildings per 10,000 residents | 79 | 79 | 48 |
| Archaeological sites on the record | 1 | 14 | 11 |
| Homes built before 1919 | 7% | 5.1% | 3.4% |
NIAH, the National Inventory of Architectural Heritage · Sites and Monuments Record · CSO, Census 2022 homes by year built
One school lies within 3 km of Borris-In-Ossory. 95 pupils attend the one school within 3 km of the town.
| School | Level | Pupils | Ethos |
|---|---|---|---|
| St Josephs National School Special classesLargest primary schoolPrimary | Primary | 95 | Catholic |
| Schools within 3 km | Borris-In-Ossory | Co. Laois | Ireland |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pupils since 2019/20 | −10% | +10% | +4% |
| In the DEIS scheme | 0% | 15% | 35% |
| Teach through Irish | 0% | 0% | 8% |
Department of Education school lists, 2025/26 (preliminary) · no results are published by school · These schools carry no letter or result: Ireland doesn’t release them school by school.
2 places to visit are mapped within 5 km of Borris-In-Ossory; with them, the best known within 40 km.
CastleBallaghmore Castle4.6 km outside town, to the northwest
CastleLeap Castle16 km northwest
CastleBirr Castle26 km northwest
Abbey or prioryAghaboe Abbey7.9 km east
CastleRoscrea Heritage Centre – Roscrea Castle and Damer House12 km west
CathedralCathedral of the Assumption, Thurles31 km southwestPhotos: each place’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Surveyors for the national inventory recorded 5 buildings in Borris-In-Ossory, each of regional importance. Archaeologists have recorded one site here.
7 notable people were born in Borris-In-Ossory.
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Borris-In-Ossory | 629 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Rathdowney | 1,368 | 9.4 | — | A | B− | C− |
| Roscrea Tipperary | 5,542 | 11 | B | A+ | B− | D |
| Mountrath | 2,070 | 13 | — | A | B− | C− |
| Abbeyleix | 1,897 | 19 | — | A− | A+ | B+ |
People: CSO, Census 2022. Distances: centre to centre.
Borris-In-Ossory had 629 people at the 2022 census, up from 517 in 2016: 21.7% more, against 7.6% in the median of Irish towns.
5% mostly work from home, and 33% of journeys take under 15 minutes.
The median age in Borris-In-Ossory is 34.1, against 37.6 in the median of Irish towns. 25% of residents are under 15 and 13% are 65 or over.
Urban area in Co. Laois
Borris-In-Ossory has 629 people, in the area of Laois 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). 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).