A lower share of households without a car or van than 99% of Irish towns, at 0.5%
One-person households make up 15%, against 24% across Ireland’s towns. Killenard counted 741 residents and 203 households at the 2022 Census. In Killenard, just over nine in ten residents describe themselves as White Irish. The median age in the town is 40.6, higher than in just over four fifths of Irish towns.
Growth of +14% since 2016 puts Killenard ahead of 81% of Irish towns
Residents at the 2016 and 2022 censuses, on 2022 boundaries, and the change beside the county’s towns and Ireland’s.
Change, 2016 to 2022
CSO publishes yearly population estimates for counties and regions, not towns, so the trend is two censuses rather than a line; 2016 ages aren’t on 2022 boundaries, so there is no change by age.
The median across Ireland’s towns is +8%, and across Co. Laois’ towns +8%.
12% of residents are 65 or over, below 67% of Irish towns
Share of residents in each five-year band; the tick is the typical town.
By its share of residents aged 15 to 24 (11%), Killenard is below 83% of Irish towns. As a yardstick, 14% of residents are 65 or over across Ireland’s towns.
Broad ages · share of residents
Women and men · all residents
54% women, 46% men
About 86 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Co. Laois 50.9%, Ireland 51.2%.
62% of residents belong to the professional, managerial and technical classes
CSO’s social classes (everyone, by their own or their family’s occupation), the occupations of those at work, and where residents lived a year before the Census.
Residents by social class · all residents
Where residents lived a year earlier
Residents who lived somewhere else a year earlier. The bar runs to 25%.
Workers by occupation · residents at work
6.6% of residents lived at another address a year earlier, about the same as across Ireland’s towns. For Killenard, the census puts students among residents 15 and over at 10%.
Bigger households than 94% of Irish towns: 3.1 people each on average
Private households by CSO’s family types, beside the county’s towns and Ireland’s.
Against Co. Laois’ towns and Ireland’s towns
People per household
Ireland’s towns.
43% of households are parents with children across Ireland’s towns, against 50% in Killenard. Census figures put shared households of unrelated adults at 3.4% locally.
Killenard ranks above 93% of Irish towns on holiday homes: 2.9%
Home types, cars and the internet, by household. Owning and renting are on Cost of living.
Type of home
Cars or vans · share of households
Internet at home · share of households
Flats are home to 7.9% of households, against 12% across Ireland’s towns. The usual figure: 0.2% of homes are holiday homes across Ireland’s towns.
€68,500 a year: where the middle household sits
Household income in 2022 from CSO’s linked administrative data (GPIIA): the middle household’s income before and after tax.
At €68,500 a year before tax, the median household income is 14% above that of Ireland (€60,120). Countywide, Co. Laois has a median of €59,520.
Fewer residents with another country’s citizenship than 95% of Irish towns: 7%
Place of birth and citizenship as CSO asks them: born abroad includes Irish citizens born abroad.
Born abroad, by birthplace · share of all residents; the bar runs to 30%
Citizenship · share of all residents; the bar runs to 30%
Citizens of another country, by citizenship; CSO counts dual Irish citizens as Irish.
Other languages · share of all residents
CSO’s small-area tables don’t give the year people arrived.
Another language is spoken at home by 9.9%, most often French (1.8%); 0.9% speak English not well or not at all. Fewer residents born outside Ireland than in 83% of Irish towns: 15%.
Daily speakers of Irish outside education make up 0.6% in Killenard, less than in 90% of Irish towns
Residents aged 3 and over who can speak Irish, and how often they speak it outside education (CSO).
Irish speakers · residents aged 3 and over
The highest share in Co. Laois belongs to Abbeyleix (1.4%). For daily speakers of Irish outside education, the comparison across Ireland’s towns is 1.1%. The ability to speak Irish extends to 344 residents (51% of those aged 3 and over).
More residents who said they are Catholic than 88% of Irish towns: 79%
Ethnic or cultural background and religion, in CSO’s categories, as people described themselves.
Ethnic groups other than White Irish · all residents
White Irish, not charted: 91% of Killenard · Co. Laois’ towns 84% · Ireland’s towns 78%.
Religion · all residents
Across Ireland’s towns, 17% of residents said they have no religion; in Killenard, 15%. The benchmark for residents who said they are Catholic across Ireland’s towns: 71%. Of the other groups, the largest are Other White (6.8%), Asian or Asian Irish (1.3%) and Other, including mixed (1%).
49% of residents 15 and over are married, a share 99% of Irish towns don’t reach
Marital status of residents 15 and over, and unpaid carers.
Partnership status · residents 15 and over
The small-area tables count carers, not their hours of care.
6.2% of residents give unpaid care, about the same as across Ireland’s towns. Across Ireland’s towns, 34% of residents 15 and over are married.
Killenard sits above 90% of Irish towns for adults with a degree or higher (58%)
Highest level of education completed, residents 15 and over whose education has ended.
Highest qualification · residents 15+ whose education has ended
Across Ireland’s towns, 9.7% of adults finished at primary level or earlier; in Killenard, 3.2%, and 22% hold a postgraduate qualification. Typically, 36% of adults whose education has ended hold a degree or higher across Ireland’s towns.
A younger town than 1 of the 6 around it: Killenard
The nearest places, coloured by median age; each is a census urban area.
| Town | People | Away | Median age | 65+ | Parents with children |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Killenard | 741 | — | 40.6 | 12% | 50% |
| Portarlington | 9,288 | 3.9 km | 36.4 | 10% | 50% |
| Monasterevin | 5,307 | 6.3 km | 35.2 | 9.9% | 51% |
| Mountmellick | 4,905 | 11.8 km | 37.6 | 14% | 49% |
| Stradbally | 1,404 | 13.0 km | 43.4 | 21% | 41% |
| Portlaoise | 23,494 | 14.1 km | 35.9 | 9.5% | 50% |
| Rathangan | 3,263 | 14.5 km | 35 | 9.2% | 54% |
Health, work, housing and schools
What this data can and can’t tell you
- Against Co. Laois’ towns and Ireland’s towns. Co. Laois has fewer than five towns of 2,500 or more, so its figure is the median of its towns of 1,000 or more; the national figure is the median of the Irish towns of 2,500 or more (city totals left out). Percentiles are within Ireland only.
- The earlier population is an estimate. Towns had no official 2016 count on today’s boundaries, so the 2016 figure is CSO’s electoral-division count shared out by where people lived in 2022: read a small town in a large rural division loosely.
- What these tables don’t give. The small-area tables give no year of arrival and no hours of care, and a town’s electoral divisions run past its edge, so the page doesn’t split a town into named areas (a city lists its neighbourhoods).
- The census’s own words. Born abroad, citizenship, ethnic or cultural background and religion are CSO’s questions and categories; the page compares them with other towns and never labels a town by them.
Questions about Killenard’s residents
What is the population of Killenard?
Killenard had 741 residents at the 2022 Census, counted within its urban area, 14% more than 2016.
What is the average age in Killenard?
The median age is 40.6. 27% are under 18 and 12% 65 or older.
How many people speak Irish in Killenard?
51% of residents aged 3 and over can speak Irish (344 people), and 0.6% speak it every day outside education, against a typical 1.1% across Ireland’s towns.
How diverse is Killenard?
91% describe themselves as White Irish (Ireland’s towns: 78%); 15% were born abroad and 7% are citizens of another country.
What religion are people in Killenard?
79% are Catholic, 15% have no religion and 5.9% another religion; 5.9% didn’t say.
Is Killenard good for families?
50% of households are parents with children (Ireland’s towns 43%), and 27% of residents are under 18. Schools near Killenard are on its Schools page.
What is the median income in Killenard?
Median gross household income in Killenard was €68,500 in 2022, against €59,520 across Co. Laois and €60,120 for Ireland.
Sources: CSO, Census of Population 2022, Small Area Population Statistics · CSO PxStat FP009 (2016 by electoral division) · CSO GPIIA, household income 2022. 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).